Faux pas?

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This might all sound very stupid and ridiculous but it's a situation that makes me anxious right now so please bear with me.

I had a long and deep conversation online with an acquaintance of mine the other week. I haven't seen him in a long time (a couple of years or so) and we don't speak that often, but we speak sometimes and he started the conversation I'm referring to a while ago. He's studying psychology and thinks autism is interesting so our conversation is mostly about my autism (he was one of the first people I told that I suspected I have AS back when that whole process started) and he's the one who brought it up by asking if I still suspected I have it etc.

Problem: after exchanging a few messages I sent him a reply to his message about 10 days ago and he hasn't replied since. I really didn't want to put any kind of pressure on him (I mean it) but at the same time I was getting anxious and started to think things like "what if there was some sort of error and he never got the message?", "what if he's replied but I haven't gotten his message and now he thinks I'm ignoring him?" etc. So yesterday night I sent him a short message just checking if he's alive. He replied today and said he's alive ("but barely") and that he's really busy so he hasn't even read my message. He said he'll have to get back to me later next week or something when he's done with all the things he need to do.

It's really difficult to interpret things online (which is why this whole situation probably is ridiculous and I'm probably overreacting) but now I'm really anxious because he "sounded" annoyed. I'm afraid that perhaps he really feels pressured now even though I absolutely didn't want him to. I'm afraid that perhaps I ruined everything and that he now thinks I'm really annoying and a burden and a selfish/self-centered/self-absorbed piece of crap. (I might be "projecting" these feelings onto him because I sort of think of myself as annoying and a burden and self-centered etc. But even if these are projections, it doesn't mean he doesn't feel like that as well.)

Did I just ruin everything? Did I make a mistake? Faux pas? How do I get rid of this anxiety?

(Sorry again if this is stupid. I worry that you all think I'm annoying as well. Yes, my self-esteem is so low it's virtually non-existent.)

These sorts of worries are normal and common - you've just got to try and give yourself a break.

I think a friendly message after 10 days checking that everything is OK is perfectly acceptable.

From what you wrote, it sounds like the guy is simply stating the truth - he has been very busy. He sounds swamped by life. If he sounded annoyed in his email, he may have been - but not at YOU. His stress about life in general probably just came through in his words a bit.

He told you he didn't even have time to read what you wrote. If he was just trying to be "polite", he would have just said "sorry" instead of admitting he didn't even read it yet. Telling the truth risked him looking worse as a person. The fact that he was honest and upfront is a good sign.

Yep...I agree with Nerdygirl.

Honestly, I would give him some time and then hopefully he will get back to you. I am often in the same position as your friend- I have school, two jobs, a boyfriend with two kids and a lot of the time, I have to worry about those things before I can worry about the other things in my life. Many times my sister will text me and I literally will not have time to respond. It is not because I am mad at her or ignoring her-- it's because I literally don't have time to sit there and text with her for a few hours. So, I would give the guy some time to sort out his other stuff and then I am sure that he will get back to you.

Did he tell you a specific time or time line? Like, did he say "I have to get this stuff taken care of but I should be free this weekend" or something like that? I would give it a bit of time and then after that time frame or when you think he may be less busy, then maybe try contacting him. Like, if it was family stuff that he had to take care of, maybe a few weeks? I don't know, it would vary for each situation. Sorry I'm so vague.