What Causes Autistic Burnout? How to Identify Root Causes
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As an Autistic person, have you ever felt overwhelmed and exhausted from trying to navigate a world that doesn't always understand or accommodate your unique perspective and needs? It's a common experience known as Autistic burnout, but you may be wondering what exactly causes Autistic burnout. In this blog post, we will delve into the various factors that can contribute to Autistic burnout and discuss strategies for managing and preventing it.
As an Autistic individual who is also a psychologist, I have firsthand experience with Autistic burnout. Before I was diagnosed with autism at age 37, I thought my feelings of depression and chronic fatigue were unrelated. However, once I learned about Autistic burnout, I realized that I had experienced it several times, and it had contributed to my depression.
In the past two years, I have focused on healing from burnout and building a lifestyle that reduces the risk of future burnout. In my professional work, I often encounter clients who struggle with Autistic burnout, and I am passionate about raising awareness and discussing strategies to prevent it, as I believe addressing Autistic burnout is key to promoting mental health for Autistic individuals. Let's delve into this topic further.
In this blog post, we'll explore the root causes of Autistic burnout and how they can impact Autistic people. By understanding the underlying factors that contribute to Autistic burnout, we can better understand how to support and care for ourselves and our loved ones who may be struggling with this experience.
What is Autistic Burnout?
Autistic burnout is a state of exhaustion, emotional and physical depletion, and disconnection from the self and the environment. The three core characteristics of Autistic burnout include:
Chronic exhaustion: Pervasive physical, cognitive and social fatigue
Reduced tolerance to stimulus: Increased sensory sensitivities and sensitivity to sensory stimuli
Loss of skills: Many of our executive functioning skills will worsen during burnout. We may struggle with speaking, attention, regulating attention, and other cognitive functions.
Raymaker et al. were the first to put together a clinical definition of Autistic burnout that differentiates it from depression and occupational burnout. According to their research, Autistic burnout is characterized by the above symptoms and is long-term (burnout symptoms have been present for three months or longer).
What Causes Autistic Burnout?
There are a variety of factors that can contribute to Autistic burnout. Autistic burnout can be triggered by the demands and expectations of neurotypical society, as well as the challenges of navigating a world that is not always accommodating or understanding of neurodiversity.
This can include pressure to conform to neurotypical social norms, expectations to communicate or behave in certain ways, and the constant effort of trying to fit in or hide one's neurodivergence.
Other factors contributing to Autistic burnout include stress related to work or school, financial or housing insecurity, difficult relationships, and a lack of support or understanding from loved ones or professionals.
Autistic burnout can also be triggered by physical or mental health conditions, such as chronic pain or fatigue, or by a lack of self-care practices.
According to research by Raymaker et al., there are two main factors that can contribute to Autistic burnout.
The first factor (cumulative load) is related to life stressors such as managing expectations, disabilities, work and school demands, and relationships.
The second factor (inability to obtain relief) involves barriers to obtaining support, which may be caused by masking Autistic traits, difficulties in receiving a diagnosis or accommodations, socio-economic hardships, or other people not acknowledging or understanding Autistic challenges.
When a person’s cumulative stress is beyond the person’s ability to cope, Autistic burnout sets in.
Difficulties Accessing Support and Accommodations
Having accommodations and support in place can help us better manage life stressors and reduce the risk of burnout. However, many Autistic individuals face challenges obtaining the supports and accommodations we need, leaving us more vulnerable to burnout.
Difficulties accessing support and accommodations can contribute to Autistic burnout in several ways. When Autistic people cannot access the support and accommodations we need, it can be overwhelming and exhausting to try to navigate the world without the resources we require. This can lead to feelings of frustration, isolation, and a lack of control over our lives.
Difficulties accessing support and accommodations can be caused by a variety of factors. Some people may not be aware of the support and accommodations that are available to them, or they may not know how to access them. Others may be denied support and accommodations due to stigma or a lack of understanding about neurodiversity. Women, BIPOC, and Trans people are particularly vulnerable to being misdiagnosed, which can result in difficulty getting the formal support we need.
If you're struggling to access the support and accommodations you need, it's important to seek out resources and advocates who can help you. This can include disability services, support groups, or neurodivergent-affirming mental health professionals. You can also learn more about self-advocacy and how to build accommodations into your daily life. (For self-advocacy, I like the Integrated Self-Advocacy Curriculum. You can also check out my self-advocacy worksheets, which is part of my Autistic burnout toolkit).
Others Minimizing Autistic Experiences
When other people minimize or dismiss our Autistic experiences and do not take our challenges and needs seriously, it can be frustrating and invalidating and can contribute to Autistic burnout. This can include loved ones, professionals, or society as a whole not understanding or acknowledging the unique challenges and strengths of autism. Other people minimizing our traits or challenges can also result in the inability to access appropriate diagnoses and accommodations.
Minimization and dismissal of Autistic experiences can lead to feelings of isolation and a lack of support, as well as a constant effort to convince others of the validity of our experiences and needs. This can be emotionally and physically exhausting and can lead to a lack of motivation and enjoyment in activities.
If you're struggling with the minimization or dismissal of your Autistic experiences, it's important to seek out neurodivergence-affirming resources and advocates who can support you. This can include Autistic-informed therapy, support groups, or disability services. Many people seek comfort by finding Autistic community online.
Masking and Holding Ourselves to a High Standard
Autistic masking is the act of hiding or suppressing our Autistic traits to fit in or conform to neurotypical expectations. While Autistic masking can be a coping strategy for some people and is an important survival strategy in oppressive environments, it can also contribute to Autistic burnout.
Masking can be exhausting and emotionally draining, as it requires a constant effort to suppress our true selves and conform to neurotypical expectations. This means we are suppressing the activities that soothe and regulate us (stimming, avoiding eye contact, and talking about our special interests). This can lead to feelings of disconnection from our true selves, emotional dysregulation, as well as physical and emotional exhaustion. Autistic masking can also lead to a lack of support and understanding from loved ones and professionals, as it can be difficult for them to recognize and accommodate our neurodivergence if it is not visible.
Internalized ableism, or the internalization of societal attitudes that devalue disability, can cause us to hold ourselves to unrealistic standards and expectations. We may try to conform to the ways that allistic (non-autistic) people's bodies and brains function, even if it is not feasible for us. Acknowledging our limits and accepting them can be difficult and may involve grieving and working through neurodivergent shame. Personally, learning to accept and grieve my limits has been a difficult but essential part of building a sustainable and fulfilling life. Grieving and accepting my limits has played a significant role in my recovery from Autistic burnout.
People-Pleasing and Poor Boundaries
One way that many Autistic people adapt to their social communication differences is by becoming perpetual people-pleasers. People-pleasing is the act of trying to make others happy or satisfied, often at the expense of one's own needs and desires. People-pleasing can be a coping mechanism for Autistic people as it allows us to navigate social situations more easily and avoid potential conflicts or misunderstandings.
There are a few ways in which people-pleasing can contribute to Autistic burnout:
Social and communication demands: Trying to please others often involves a lot of social interaction and communication, which can be draining and overwhelming. It can be especially challenging to navigate allistic social norms and expectations that may not come naturally, which can lead to exhaustion.
Loss of personal autonomy: When people-pleasing becomes a priority, it can be easy to lose sight of one's own needs and desires. This can lead to a lack of personal autonomy, which can be frustrating and de-motivating.
Cognitive overload: People-pleasing often involves trying to anticipate the needs and desires of others, which can be mentally and emotionally taxing. This can lead to cognitive overload, which is a state of mental exhaustion that can result from trying to process too much information at once.
It's important to recognize that while people-pleasing can be a helpful survival strategy for many of us, it is not a healthy or sustainable way to interact with others, and it's okay to set boundaries and prioritize our own needs and well-being.
People-pleasing can be especially draining and exhausting for Autistic people, who may already struggle with managing daily life stress and tasks. It's important to find a balance between being considerate of others and taking care of yourself.
If you're struggling with people-pleasing and it’s contributing to your Autistic burnout, it may be helpful to reach out to a therapist or other supportive professional for help in learning assertive communication, self-advocacy, and how to cultivate healthy boundaries.
Autistic Burnout vs. Occupational Burnout
Autistic burnout and occupational burnout are two different conditions that can have similar symptoms, but it's helpful to distinguish between the two to get the most appropriate treatment.
Autistic burnout is a state of exhaustion, emotional and physical depletion, increased sensory sensitivities, and a loss of skills. It can be triggered by the demands and expectations of neurotypical society, as well as the challenges of navigating a world that is not always accommodating or understanding of neurodiversity. Autistic burnout can manifest as physical and emotional exhaustion, difficulty with self-care, changes in sleep and eating patterns, difficulty with social interaction, a loss of skills, and a lack of motivation and enjoyment in activities.
Occupational burnout, on the other hand, is a state of physical and emotional exhaustion caused by work-related stress. It's often triggered by a combination of factors, including excessive workload, lack of control, lack of support, and a lack of meaning or purpose in work. Occupational burnout can manifest as physical and emotional exhaustion, difficulty with self-care, changes in sleep and eating patterns, a sense of derealization, and a lack of motivation and enjoyment in work. For the Autistic person, they may be experiencing both occupational burnout and Autistic burnout, which intensifies the experience of both!
Autistic Burnout vs. Depression
Autistic burnout and depression are two different conditions that can have similar symptoms. It's important to distinguish between the two to get the most appropriate treatment (you can read more about the similarities and differences in my Venn diagram post on it here). Complicating matters Autistic burnout often leads to depression!
Autistic burnout can look a lot like depression! The intensity of fatigue, loss of motivation and energy, and increased irritability can look like depression. And in fact, it often leads to depression.
Autistic burnout is a physiological response to an overload of life stress. Depression, on the other hand, is a mental health disorder characterized by persistent sadness, loss of interest or pleasure, and a range of physical and emotional symptoms. Depression can be triggered by a variety of factors, including genetics, life events, and medical conditions. Symptoms of depression can include persistent feelings of sadness, loss of interest or pleasure in activities, changes in sleep and eating patterns, difficulty concentrating, and feelings of hopelessness and worthlessness.
Autistic burnout and depression are distinct conditions that share some common symptoms. However, research by Raymaker et al. identified two specific markers that differentiate depression from Autistic burnout: changes in sleep patterns and a loss of pleasure. It's important to note that Autistic burnout can lead to depression or, in some cases, may be mistaken for depression.
It's important to distinguish between depression and burnout because they require different approaches to support and treatment. For example, one common treatment for depression is called "behavioral activation," which involves planning and scheduling activities like socializing with friends, exercising, and completing tasks to help the person break out of the cycle of depression and lethargy. This treatment can be very effective for depression, but if the person is also experiencing burnout, it is crucial to allow them plenty of time to rest and to prioritize sensory-soothing and low-demand tasks.
Recovering from Autistic Burnout
Recovering from Autistic burnout can be a challenging process, but there are steps you can take to manage your symptoms and improve your quality of life. Here are some tips for recovering from Autistic burnout:
Seek support: It's important to have a supportive network of people who understand and validate your experiences as a neurodivergent person. This can include therapy, support groups, online community, or disability services.
Practice self-care: Take care of your physical and emotional needs by getting enough sleep, eating well, exercising, and finding activities that bring you joy and relaxation (hint: it will likely require getting more comfortable with setting boundaries to have the time and space to engage in self-care).
Set boundaries: It's important to set boundaries with others to protect your energy and well-being. This can include saying no to unreasonable demands, setting limits on social interactions, and finding ways to advocate for your needs and boundaries.
Seek accommodations: If you're struggling with tasks or activities due to your neurodivergence, it's important to seek out accommodations that can make things easier for you. This can include things like flexible scheduling, technology, or physical modifications.
Embrace your neurodivergence: It's important to embrace and celebrate your neurodivergence as a natural and valid way of being. This can include finding and connecting with other neurodivergent people, addressing internalized ableism, learning about neurodiversity, and finding ways to advocate for neurodiversity.
Remember that recovering from Autistic burnout is a process, and it may take time. It's important to be patient with yourself and to seek help if you're struggling.
Summary: What Causes Autistic Burnout?
Autistic burnout is a state of chronic exhaustion characterized by emotional and physical depletion, an increase in sensory sensitivities, and a loss of skills. It can be caused by a variety of factors, including the demands and expectations of neurotypical society, Autistic masking, stress related to work or school, financial or housing insecurity, difficult relationships, and a lack of support or understanding from loved ones or professionals. Autistic burnout can also be triggered by physical or mental health conditions, such as chronic pain or fatigue, or by a lack of self-care practices.
It's important to be aware of the factors that might be contributing to your Autistic burnout and to seek help if you're struggling. If you're struggling with Autistic masking and experiencing symptoms of autistic burnout, it's important to seek help and find strategies that work for you. This may include seeking out neurodivergence-affirming therapy or support groups, finding ways to advocate for your needs and boundaries, and learning to embrace and celebrate your neurodivergence.
For more of a deep dive on all things Autistic burnout, check out my full workbook here, which includes fillable workbook pages to help track your triggers and early signs of burnout and help you to create a recovery and prevention plan.
