Catastrophizing emotions?

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I had not heard of this before. I watched a video about this and was like "okay this could be applied to an adult". And then the doctor said that people with aspergers tend to catastrophize emotions. What do you guys think?

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbZ2QRJnUVg&feature=related[/youtube]

catastrophize?

Like, "OMG THE WORLD IS ENDING BECAUSE I DID SOMETHING STUPID" catastrophized?

I can absolutely relate to this. Emotional regulation and hitting these extremes of emotion are some of my biggest daily challenges. I genuinely feel suicidal when upset by something, overwhelmed with panic when anxious about something small, and on the other and, can be totally overjoyed by tiny positives. And as the video said, it passes fast, in less than 15 minutes.

For me it does not actually feel like I catastrophize the incident that actually happened- eg. Having an argument with someone or doing something embarrassing, it's that the emotion that that incident created spins out of control. I will have completely dismissed what happened, I'm very logical about what is and isn't worth being upset about, but that initial emotion that it created takes on a mind of its own.

My wife complains that I go "from zero to one hundred" very quickly - i.e. from calm to to intensely upset very easily.

I can also obsess about some small slight for days, building it up into a huge disastrous problem in my mind.

One that is what I Do quite often.

I'm definitely a catastrophizer

I tend to exaggerate things because i'm an impulsive person and also tend to OVERTHINK many situations.
I'm not happy at all with this flaw and i'm aware it is a flaw but it is just me and can't do anything about it.
Many told me that it is the time I should change but I can't change, they will never understand that.

People need to learn to accept others or at least to not ask anyone to be like them because such thing is not possible. (not in my case)

Yep I catastrophize. If my routine is broken or something else upsets me I feel as though nothing is going to be good again. After it's over I then go over the details for days making myself worry more and more.

I can DEFINITELY relate to this! Every emotion for me is extreme, especially depression and anxiety. I also get stuck in negative feedback loops that drive my emotions into the ground. The thing is, I can logically extrapolate out a negative line of reasoning that supports my depression and gives me good reason to end my own life. I have come close a few times but can never quite pull the trigger on it.

I think it's right for me, too.

But the part where it would just flip away after half an hour is a little too optimistic.
There are things that might leave an imprint until the end of your life.
And about those you'll feel sad, without catastrophizing it.

These tend to make you overall unhappy I'd say

I am relatively "flat" in terms of emotions (I simply "exist" and I'm perfectly content with that, though I can feign emotions if I need to). My mother, on the other hand, tends to make a mountain out of a molehill quite often. I remember a time when she was about to have a breakdown because she forgot to pick up apples at the store. It was always over the smallest problems too (like office tape sticking to itself, dull scissors, icy roads, detergent, etc.)...

Sorry for the necrobump , just wanted to say thanks for the video link , it's another video that me & GF watched then looked at each other with disbelief wondering why ASD wasn't apparent sooner.

I'm very guilty of catastrophizing from an early age.

Dr. Tony Attwood is a good source for these things.

I am I guess the "wise elder" Dr. Attwood spoke of. What has helped is I recognized a pattern. On a fairly consistent basis my worst fears have not come true.

Very insightful. Makes sense

The biggest problem I had about self diagnosing myself with ASD is I didn't remember having difficulties as a child but since watching that video I realized I catastrophized a lot as a child which led to extreme reactions , as a 10 year old I pulled a knife on my stepfather as I feared for mum's life in a domestic they were having ( I think I was ready to stab him to help my mum), I also attempted suicide after getting into trouble with the police as I thought I was going to prison ( theft of an empty video tape box ). I still catastrophise today which can escalate in my darkest periods and always leads to suicidal ideation.

The weird thing about my suicidal ideation is most of the time I find it comforting like it's an old friend but at the same time find it distressing ( I realize that might not make sense )

Read all these posts and I have to admit I do the same thing. It feels like NTs have a myelin sheath around their emotions which I don't have, so I feel every bump in the road of my thoughts.

I've also found the opposite to be true. A lot of things NTs think are disastrous, I'll casually dismiss and won't grasp the full extent of until the consequences are in full swing, e.g. gossip, rumour and slander situations.

It's like having a coin with 2 bad sides.