Autistic Burnout: What it Looks Like and How to Support It

There is a lot of talk about autistic burnout in the neurodivergent communities right now. This can happen for both children and adults on the spectrum. If someone is not diagnosed with autism, this may look like dissociation, shut down, and/or depression. As we learn more and more about the autistic brain and how it functions, we can begin to see the crossover with mental health issues. 

A person can get autistic burnout from being in environments that have excessive demands that put a lot of pressure on a nervous system that is wired differently. If there is a constant push for a child to fit into a particular mold (often seen in school situations, especially public school), or if there is a lot of chaos in the home situation with siblings and/or parents, or an otherwise high level of demand to perform or behave a certain way from a parent may be exhausting to someone with autism. Also, simply having to constantly navigate unclear social expectations and change in routine can be exhausting and overwhelming for a person on the autism spectrum. 

Autistic burnout can have many characteristics. An intensification in any of these things that is beyond what is usual:

• Sensory overwhelm: this can include heightened sensitivity to sounds, visual stimulation, clothing textures, foods (leaning into strong food preferences), smells, or movement. 
• Increase in rigid behaviors: inflexibility with changes in routine, wearing specific clothing, eating specific foods, attempts to control social behaviors (like dominating rules of games, need to win, dictating what happens between friends in social circles, rejection of siblings)
• Intensification of behaviors: this may include social withdrawal, stimming behaviors (flapping, spinning, lunging, rocking, etc), increase in intensity. or duration of meltdowns, moving into only one room and isolating
• Emotional changes: highly volatile, reactive, anxious, depressed, loss of interest in things that are normally enjoyable.
• Exhaustion: unable or unwilling to get out of bed, little to no willingness to participate in activities of daily living (such as bathing, eating, brushing teeth, changing clothes)

If your child is experiencing any of this and has sensory challenges or is on the autism spectrum, you can take certain steps to help them. 

Immediate supports for the acute phase:

• Reduction of demands: allow for rest, give space
• Encouraging journaling or art to express and release heavy emotions
• Using essential oils or natural scents to create a quick shift of mood
• Using an ice cube on the bridge of the nose or face as a reset
• Quick, short burst of exercise/activity; outside is best such as walking a pet, walking to the park or playground
• Nourishing foods as much as possible, and mood boosting supplements like B and D vitamins, magnesium, 5HTP, vitamin C, probiotics, omega 3s

Long term supports to help keep burnouts from happening:

• Therapeutic support: occupational therapy and psychotherapy can help over the long run
• Healing foods, supplements + medications 
• Prioritizing intermittent breaks, rest, and self care 
• Setting up accommodations in school through an IEP or 504 
• Setting up regular outlets for movement, focusing on muscle work such as climbing, riding a bike, hiking, and jumping on a trampoline

Autistic burnout is real. If your child is acutely experiencing this, please try the suggestions for acute management. If your child is not experiencing burnout, start applying some of the long term suggestions and get ahead of it. Most importantly, know the signs of burnout so that you can more quickly identify it and start applying some of these suggestions.