I wanted to share this blog for anyone who relates to the exhaustion of overstimulation / an overactive mind / sensory and cognitive overwhelmed of doing something you really enjoyed!
AuDHD can mean doing things I love is absolutely exhausting to the point of overwhelm...
I have always made a bee-line for the exit at the end of an event, concern, play, activity that I found exhilarating and until recently never really thought about why I do this.
Whilst it might look like I'm in a rush, disinterest, unsociable, shy even, it's none of those things. I am just overstimulated and need to decompress so I can process and enjoy what I have just experience, because otherwise I just succumb to overwhelm.
Until I identified the reason I did this I often wasn't able to meet my need to find somewhere quiet and grounding in order to appreciate, absorb and enjoy what I had just experienced. Instead I would just bustle out of there onto the next thing on the to do list, or into a throng of people or new activity. This at best meant I missed out on truly realising what I had just experienced and at worst led to a complete meltdown somewhere downstream.
On the day I wrote this blog I had just spent a day and a half listening to inspiring speakers, meeting amazing women, making plans for my business and learning tips and tricks. I was excited and buzzing but towards the end so close to overwhelm that I was left my phone in the van, I misplaced my medication, my head was getting swimmy, I started feeling tearing and I could feel my executive functioning was on the slide!
The moment the formal part was done I was up and out of there (even though it would have been lovely to stay and chat more with people over lunch). But initially I went to sit in a coffee shop and check my emails, bustling onto the next thing to do... when it suddenly hit me that this feeling of overwhelm isn't a sign to rush into a new task, it’s the exact opposite - it's a sign to slow down! and breath.
I am so lucky to live and work by the Dorset coast so am never too far from the beautiful views out across the Solent - so off to the cliff top I went. What a place to catch your breath :)
Working as an Occupational Therapist I help people problem solve and hack these barriers to occupation on a daily basis - but sometimes we need to remember to use our skills on ourselves. Decompression time is now going to be part of the plan for anything I am going to really enjoy, as well as the more obvious need for it after the things I don't enjoy!!
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