Aggression / Violent Outbursts.

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I have autism and things like sensory overload / people overload / information overload / etc make me get aggressive/extremely agitated and if I get pushed enough, I can have violent outbursts.

Recently I hurt my friend during a violent outburst. He knows I'm autistic and I did apologise (he accepted the apology). But I don't like these outbursts. I have had violent outbursts in public and the police have had to deal with me before because of them (I assaulted my mum on several occasions but she didn't press charges).

I do not get violent on purpose; I get overloaded, everything goes red and I lose control of my body.

I am asking, is there anything I can do about this? My antipsychotics and the Sertraline I take haven't lessened these outbursts at all.

I don't want to end up get arrested.

The best way of avoiding overload is to use everything you can (earplugs, earphones, shades, hats etc) to minimise overload and to remove yourself from the situation (step outside, have a dedicated "me space" where people leave you alone where you can go to get away) as soon as things get too much.

If you are unable to recognise the signs of an impeding overload yourself, perhaps you could ask your friends if there are any outward signs (increased stimming, tuning out etc) they notice, and perhaps agree a signal so they can signal you that you need a "time out"?

That's a good idea. I'll try to minimise overload and I'll talk to my friends and support workers if they can watch out for signs.

However sometimes it happens with people who don't understand. For example the so-called carer that visits me in the evenings (I live in supported housing with other people and a carer lives nearby) started half-shouting at one of the people that live here and when I intervened, he started shouting at me. Then I lost it; I was screaming involuntarily and then I slammed the door so hard that I nearly broke it. Then I went into my room and punched the walls for over ten minutes. This useless carer knows nothing about autism and I don't think he would ever understand autism.

With AS it is the Rumble/Rage/Recovery cycle.
By that I mean something will set us off, could be someone disrupting our routine, someone moving something of ours, etc.
We then have a Rage event, we generally yell and make a big fuss and say some pretty stupid things.
We then recover and this frustrates NT's (like my wife) we will just return to normal and look at everyone we just blasted and say "What?" like nothing happened and often won't remember the things we said a few days later when everyone else is still mad at us.

The suggestions made are good, the basic thing is get away, either physically or by tuning out.
Let other people around you know that when you get like that to just leave you alone.
I hate it when I'm in a Rage and someone is standing there going "Calm down, why are so upset?"

SteelMaiden - sounds like that shouty carer is in the wrong job!

I am prone to violent outbursts too, and I don't know what to do about it either. Sensory overload doesn't cause them for me. It's usually fears or overload of agitation that triggers them off. Sometimes feelings of guilt or jealousy can set them off aswell, because I am living in shame of myself and I get all angry with myself when I hear about other people succeeding in life.

During an outburst, I hit myself several times in the face, and I just want to physically beat myself up and let everyone around me know how frustrated I am, and that this situation hasn't just made me feel a little angry it has made me feel VERY angry and I want everyone to know that. If I express it calmly in words, people still don't get the message, so I have to overreact to get people thinking ''OK, she's really angry about it.'' Well, I am very verbal when I am having an outburst, but I need to scream and shout and swear to get it all out of my system, I can't just sit calmly and go ''oh dear, I am feeling very frustrated right now. Ahh.'' I don't think many people can do that when they're very angry, because even NTs can lash out and huff and puff and stamp their feet and swear, so you can imagine why it comes out worse with Aspies because the world is a little harder for us to deal with.

I've never had an outburst out in public though. I have felt like it before, but I've been able to hold myself back and try my hardest to keep my cool, simply because I don't want to suffer the embarrassment of showing myself up and being in the spotlight and being ridiculed by everyone. I have rasied my voice before at my mum or my cousins in public before, which made people look. I remember once when I was 14 my cousin was winding me up because he liked seeing me shout, and I did get into a rage and these people were looking, and I yelled, ''what are YOU looking at?!''

It would be lovely if people could act how they want in public and not get looked at or thought anything of (unless they were attacking somebody else, physically or verbally).

I am a very quiet person by nature and shy....but when i get upset something inside changes..i can turn very nasty in seconds..i have never hurt anyone but can become loud and angry at people...it does not last long..and when i calm down i feel ashamed of myself for reacting like this...it does take a lot to make me angry..but i feel out of control when it happens..because it is not in my nature to be like this..i think maybe my AS has a lot to do with this..although i try really hard not to get into any situations that can get me like this..as i am not a bad guy
This condition can make life hard i must say!

I have had this as well and it comes from when I am very upset or stressed out and I can just get mad for no reason when I am being interrupted I just snap. I either yell or scream or push or hit or throw things. I mostly yell. I don't rage often but I have once pushed my mother when I was 13 and she fell in the lazy boy chair, I once tossed a cell phone at my husband and it hit him in the face, I have snapped at him when he interrupted me during my video game because my family wanted to do pictures and they were taking too long and I wanted to get back to the game. I just started snapping at my husband. My mother saw it and she had to calm me down. I once pushed my aid in the resource room when she grabbed me because I threw my test on the floor while I was frustrated with it. It was a natural reaction and she startled me so I shoved her away. I didn't get in trouble for it and I felt bad about it anyway.

This could have been written by me...and as I am always globetrotting, I have ended up in cases where I was nearly ending up in jail...
I wonder...but then I have seen nothing else from my dad and mum...anger, retribuitons, beatings, domestic violence for 17 years.. I have been able to break the circle, i never hit my children...

But travelling for 30 years and then putting up with a woman, travel friend for 3 years, well, I am not proud I have had moments unrepairable, however she admitted at some point she can be a b***h. One day I pushed her away from me onto the bed, or in a corner, or dragged her by her arms and flung her away from me...

I have black outs, see red/black like you...then I lock myself up and don't want to talk to no one for hours, and they come and tell me: to calm down, but the more they say that the more I seethe and rage and curse. When I am doing that, I think: I will never talk to that person again, I will go away, but also: Hey, you
act like a child, you should be able to overcome this, recompose yourself and shake hands with her...I just can't...

Noises, smokers...they put me off...past few days went to the same restaurant twice, I was tranquil and enjoyed a coffee with a pie...and then some foreigners from France arrived...and I knew that not much later they would light up a cigarette, and they did! And the next day with another couple happended the same. thing I thought I am so tired of these foreigners who light up without asking if it bothers me or not...
In younger times, would have made a huge fuss about it and confront them with my anger, these times, I finished my meal and left them...I though I cannot afford to make myself sick with all those people. But that was because I was calm and had nearly finnished eating. But had they come in the middle of my meal, I really wouldn't have taken it, for the smoke up my nose drvies me nuts...

I still have not been able to tone down my agression and outbursts...I had many this year...I have a big fat liver I cannot heal...I read that anger posions the liver...my father died of liver cancer...he was mad most of the time with my mum...so maybe he had cancer because of that.

Thanks for the tip form the one who replied.