I have not been diagnosed as hqving them yet as I am on a list waiting to be assessed, but I get shutdowns. (Been for almozt a lifetime trying to find out what they were without success until I joined this site and knew nothing much about autism in the past).
What you describe to me with the balance and co-ordination sounds like a partial shutdown mixed with anxiety (Have had anxiety most of my life and not known because I never knew the feeling and the results of the feeling had a name, again until I joined this site and found out). Often anxiety will cause a shutdown be it partial or full. Anxiety itself can effect vocal chords as fear comes in with it if the anxiety is mixed with a task one is going to do, such as before one goes to work or an appointment. (Sometimes I am stuck in the car unable to move for half an hour due to anxiety. Can get anxiety itself without partial shutdowns.... (Full shutdowns come if I am first in a partial shutdown and they go deeper but always partial shutdowns come first).
From my personal experience, I can get anxiety alone or partial shutdowns (Of full) alone, but often in mornings before an appointment or before work etc I would get both, and is not easy to separate them to work out which is which but here goes....
The voice changing would be fear linked to anxiety as when I have had this it has been this.
The dissorientation is far more likely shutdown related, as is the not talking. I hope this helps, as in ones mind they all can take place at the same time, and is only the last four years while waiting go be assessed I have really thought in detail about it in desperation to find out what was happening to me. (Actually found the link to what I call shutdowns as being a mentalnthing which effects the physical a month or two before I joined this site but needed it to be confirmed which is why I joined, as past doctors said my issues were allergy related but it took me almost 30 years of my life desperately asking doctors for an allergy test and it took a change of doctors to get one. Changed doctors and had one straight away which showed me it was not related.. Then Istarted to look for other things now I had the internet on my side where in tne past all I had were doctors who honestly did not know and in the past thought I was just making it up so despite me quitting many jobs when burnout came the doctors thought it was not an issue. (Thought to myself "I don't see you having to quit your job for things like this and thinking it was nothing important to ones health" but if it happened to the doctor I 100% guarantee that he would have not said that to me!)
But anyway. The good thing is that myself and others have experienced similar things as I went for most of my life having symptoms that no one understood and even doctors and fwmily members thought I was faking so I had no where to turn to for any sympathy. The closest I had in sympathy was "Ignore it and it will go away!" It wasn't until I found on Youtube a kid having a similar shutdown event and able to show it via virtual reality that I could share the experience that I had (Though I would be on the floor unable to move as all strength would abandon my muscles and the kid is able to stand as it looks like his muscles seem less effected). Take a look at this where they put on the virtual reality gadget.
https://youtu.be/zmFGpZ5pNiw
That to me is a full shutdown as I will be on the floor unable to move with loud tinitus and unable to see but will be concious and feels like being trapped inside ones body! Partial shutdowns are to me symptoms that I get as warning signs that a full shutdown could occur and these are balance issues and co-ordination where I need to have more space around me to walk past people etc as I have to visually over compensate for the loss of it, and will feel weakness to the point where to continue walking feels like wearing a heavy restricting suit of armour (But heavy!) where every physical move takes great energy sapping effort to achieve (Or noticable effort if on the fringes of a partial shutdown. Great effort comes if I am closing in on a shutdown). My balance is greatly effected so walking looks like I am drunk which is a good think because people leave me alone if I then get a full on the floor shutdown, as I need to be left alone so I can lie there on the floor so I can recover.
25 Apr 2023, 9:30 pm
