What causes Meltdowns?

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I thought I'd ask this question as I have not had a Meltdown for about four weeks now and I was just wondering what causes meltdowns. Is there anything in the brain that causes them. I want to learn a bit more about AS I have Tony Attwoods book A Complete Guide what is the book like because I have never read it at all.

One thing I forgot to ask is The Complete Guide is it worth reading?

I always thought that a meltdown had to do with being annoyed of something. But thats called rage, isn't it?

I was wondering if more meltdowns was linked to pessimistic thinking/depression etc or if it was linked to other things like having certain kinds of anxiety problems.

I have tried to put this into perspective: the brain processes emotions and emotions help us make decisions among other things such as that emotions are linked to creativity.

It seems to me like melt-downs are some kind of process of switching mental states just like having a panic attack on occasions unrelated to any stimulas.. thats my theory.

I'm not sure what causes them; I have noticed certain foods make them more likely to happen. It's kinda like your control mechanism erodes, or something.

I have noticed taking a calcium magnesium in the middle of them does help them get under control - you still feel crappy, but crying often stops.

I think its a form of narcissistic rage:

Being thrown into a world that you had no say in its creation where people judge and poke at you and at times decide your fate without asking your opinion.

?

Over load of external information, lack of understanding, uncomfortable situations, other irritations. Some sounds and problems taking in instructions cause me problems, particually. A meltdown isn't necessarily rage. It can be a very phased out state, nullness I call it you not really all there. Lot’s of other things. Although I can get verbally abusive, I probably haven’t been physically abusive as far as I remember though I’ve destroyed property. Basically if I start flapping my hands and say ‘whatever’ or ‘ok’ or ‘leave’ then maybe some swearing stop talking to me and leave me.

To me, Meltdowns, is a way of losing it in a difficult and stressful situation.

Norepinephrine. There is a risk of efflux in a calcium/magnesium-deficient environment. High levels of norepinephrine are common in autism and schizophrenia. Try seeking dietary sources of calcium and magnesium. Avoid milk, though: the opioid peptides that the casein protein therein breaks down to can inhibit the release of oxytocin, thereby worsening some of the symptoms of autism.

i really need to get better at avoiding dairy...and wheat...and meat.....gah...

Beyond the true biological aspects.....
I have them more often when I am already stressed(usually)...or when my hormones are in a certain state.....though there have been times when they have seemed to come out of nowhere...but possibly during times when my nutrition has been lax...and definitely when i have been drinking.

As long as I keep it up with my omega 3's I have alot less meltdowns and things that occur that would be potential meltdowns seem alot less severe.

Anywhoo...it feels as if the machine that is my brain gets a wrench thrown into it and goes kinda haywire....cogs are turning....belts are loose.....instead of getting processed and moving onward, the same thoughts or feelings will loop around and around and around...
everything needs to come to some sort of crash before I can continue again normally.

I think mine originally stem from misunderstandings. I can have a lot of misunderstandings through the course of a week, but it doesn't guarantee I will have a meltdown for each time, and it doesn't mean I won't blow at the end of the week. I think all in all for me, it has a lot to do with things being so complicated, with each person being so different and thinking I have found people to talk to then having a big misunderstanding with them, etc. Usually I blow when someone starts a discussion but refuses to clarify something for me because they think it serves no purpose... or when after a week of misunderstandings, I misinterpret something to be moreso of a personal attack to something I cannot change. The rest of every day things just seem to be build up to it. I probably have a lot of small ones I am fairly unaware of, as I tend to go through a lot of times where I just need to be alone for a little bit altogether or I start blocking things out.

Just as an NT has something similar to a meltdown (except it usually comes out as anger and an unwillingness to listen) when they are explaining something that is very emotional for them and I cannot relate-by my questions they are somewhat forced to think about things they would rather not... mine comes out differently, but it is essentially the same thing I think. Theirs is due to my lack of "caring" as they say, mine is usually due to their lack of caring or their blissful ignorance to seeing what is going on factually, or to clarify what they are saying to me so that I can understand while they are deeming me "inconsiderate".

Okay, I was apparently wrong as I could be about the norepinephrine. Apparently, some people are taking norepinephrine agonists in order to reduce their meltdown theshold. This struck me, needless to say, as weird, but it seems to be true. However, I still think that the norepinephrine efflux plays a role in some of the symptoms of the meltdowns, so you'd still want to try getting more magnesium and calcium in your diet unless you've been found to have, ironically, an overabundance of these minerals. You could heighten your release of norepinephrine by just having a caffeinated drink, such as a black tea or some coffee.

I see it as overreacting emotionally. At least that's how it is for me. A lot of Aspies don't like changes so when it happens we kind of freak out. Also we can take criticism very personally, so that could cause a meltdown as well. Of course there are probably different triggers for everybody.

I think it's when the systemising approach that AS brains use to cope with the world (Baron-Cohen theory of AS, which I think is correct) just becomes impossible to continue with - the world is too complex - leading to brain overload, which leads to systems crash/meltdown/tantrum.
But if you stop systemising you won't get the overload...
Best wishes, JC
http://unlearningasperger.blogspot.com

I get them when there are situations I feel I cannot control
When I cannot express things I need to say
And when I am outright overwhelmed, for example, when more than one person is talking to me at the same time, or when someone is talking to me and there is loud music on at the same time, or when there is loud building or traffic noise or when I lose something important to me.

Alright, that makes a lot more sense. In that case, try getting more magnesium and calcium in your diet. The norepinephrine isn't inherently bad, but a sudden efflux is probably what results in these meltdowns. This happens often when there is a poverty of calcium/magnesium in certain parts of the brain.

I thought something was funky, though, because autists and shizotypes have often been found to have elevated levels of norepinephrine.