Coping with Autism as an Adult
An adult who experiences ASD symptoms may face many difficulties throughout his live. Having an undiagnosed ASD adds to these difficulties as autistic adult often don’t understand why he feels so different from those around him.
If you’ve long suspected that you have ASD or some other condition that sets you apart from your peers, a diagnosis can come as a relief. Suddenly, a lot of your past experiences and interactions make sense and you’re afforded a sense of clarity.
No matter how you feel after a diagnosis, keep in mind that, just like everyone else, you have unique strengths and weaknesses. Read on, to discover best coping skills for autism.
Recognizing the Signs:
Common signs like:
- Sensory avoidance (hand on ears, closing eyes, retreating somewhere).
- Sensory seeking behavior (bumping into furniture, getting into a small, tight space).
- An increase in repetitive behaviors like touching the same objects over and over.
- Bolting or running away.
- Withdrawing, and not engaging.
- An increase in stimming behaviors such as fast, intense rocking, pacing, self-talk..
Coping skills to adults with autism
Building and maintaining a routine
Building and managing a routine is one of the best strategies for autistic people to manage behaviors and emotions. This skill can prove to be the best strategy and can provide increased comfort to autistic people.
Through research, it is noted that autistic people like routines and they get upset with the minor changes in them.
Deep breathing
Deep breathing can help an individual to improve his ability to manage symptoms related to emotions, stress, and anxiety problems. The difficulties for an individual within the autism spectrum can be best coped with using deep and relaxed breathing that can prove to give many neurophysiological benefits to calm autistic people.
Exercising regularly
You may not feel motivated to get up and move, particularly if you’re focused on an activity you enjoy, like art or reading.
It’s important, though, to be active at least once every day. Spending some time moving can improve both overall health and sleep.
Self-advocacy
You might have triggers that make you anxious, such as shrill sounds or flying insects. When you’re calm and not triggered, it helps to make the people in your life aware of the things that might upset you. This is so that they can support you when needed.
This can be as simple as removing the trigger for you or giving you some time to leave the environment to calm yourself.
Therapy
Dr. Carla will help assess stressors in your life and develop adaptive solutions, such as reframing your thoughts and building more effective communication skills. Contact her now and benefit from a free consultation!
