Meltdowns in Adults?

Post Reply New Topic

Recently I have been having a difficult time with my depression and have been in and out of a mental hospital. Being in the hospital seems to have caused my meltdowns to increase in numbers and intensity. I was in the hospital yesterday and the nurse told me I was being rude.

This is what had happened " In the hospital they have a recreation room in the basement of the hospital. There is a bowling ally, pool tables, a ping pong table, exercising equipment, table hockey and card and board games. I decided I would bowl. When it was time to leave one of the staff told another patient and I to pick up a pile of shoes someone else had left laying on the floor. The other patient said he would not pick the stinky shoes up because he did not leave them there. This meant that I would have to put all of them up by myself. I told the staff person I would put one pair back and the other people who where in the rec room could help as well. I thought this was a good solution. Later when my nurse brought my meds to me she said that I had been rude and uncooperative in the recreation room and that my privilege's were being taken away. She told me I had acted like a five year old and should have been willing to put the shoes away and not say anything. At that moment I lost control of myself and had the pills she gave me in my hand. I just exploded, and threw the pills across the room and told her she had no place to come into my room and tell me I was acting like a five year old and treat me like one by taking my privilege's away. I told her she was not treating me with respect and that she needed to leave my room before I slapped the @#! ! out of her."

Are melt downs like this normal when your in your 40's? I have had allot of stress lately. I'm losing my job in May and my mother has been ill, plus the treatment for depression. I'm afraid I'm going to hurt someone and I can't seem to control myself once the rage takes over my brain.

At my last mental hospital I got in trouble for punching my mattress when I thought it was a safe outlet to aggression that needed to come out before I did something unsafe to myself or someone else. It was worse when I was an adolescent when I was put in seclusion, injected with thorazine and sometimes put in restraints when I wasn't even violent I was just questioning authority or refusing to go to seclusion for showing that I was upset about something. I fought back when they were restraining me and shooting me with thorazine and they said I was hostile.

I wish they'd be more caring enough to take more time to talk to people instead of taking drastic measures. It would require more effort than just tying us down, drugging us and isolating us, but would actually help us instead of making people resent the places meant to help people.

They're very normal, and this is the biggest problem I take with autism awareness. A lot of groups out there fail to acknowledge that autistic people grow up and symptoms don't just magically disappear when we become adults, and they also don't magically get better. The stigma associated with that kind of behavior has to be a lot worse in your 40s, where when you're younger you're assumed to just need help, later in life you're assumed to just be crazy. I hope you can find the support you need, not many recognize autism doesn't go away after childhood..

In fact in some cases autism symptoms could get more obvious when you're older and thrown into the adult world, needing social skills to survive, go back to school, possibly get a job. And I'm only 28. When I was a child I just thought I was on of the weird kids who would grow up to be some genius millionaire. I learned slowly and painfully it doesn't always work that way.

I'm 28.. I get these situations when people are being unfair. And from what you wrote, I find that it was not fair to put you in that situation..

I am 37. I still have meltdowns sometimes. They can be violent. I do not like it. Stress is one of the things that will set me off as well.

I have "meltdowns" usually under acute stress. I become verbally aggressive, hysterical , irrational and paranoia ramps up.

I don't know about "normal," but I'm 38, and when I get incredibly frustrated about something, I alternate between screaming/shrieking (not so much anymore, but it's a wonder the neighbors never called the cops), punching hard furniture so my knuckles swell up (I once fractured a desk--I don't even feel the pain at the time), punching or clawing my legs, tearing at my hair, hurling things around (usually the object that's offending me, if applicable, and if it's not expensive/easily broken--I keep that much sense of mind, at least), and sobbing...since I live with my parents, and they have tempers to match mine, most of my meltdowns nowadays just involve me physically beating myself up and crying in the privacy of my room so they won't yell at me.

I always feel horrible and humiliated afterwards, but when it's happening it's like I have zero control over it; telling myself it's childish and irrational doesn't take away the frustration or the rage.

So...not normal, at least according to everyone around me, but definitely not unique even at this age. :/

The nurse is a b***h. f**k her.

You only have to put your own shoes away. Common sense.

I'm wondering why the other person who refused to put any shoes away did not get in any trouble. Seems blatantly unfair. :/

The recreation room, the staff member, the shoes, the bowling, everything about what you described makes me think it it were me, I'd see if I could be excused from going to the recreation room as a loud uncontrolled place where things might trigger you, as well as a place where they feel ok asking patients to clean up, which you don't want. And just try to get well and leave as soon as possible.

You have to try, but it's hard to stay in control when people are demeaning like the nurse was. With all the stress plus being in the hospital, i think it's almost normal to have a meltdown When staff you're depending on to help you treat you poorly. I'm sorry that happened--get well soon!!