What Is Sensory Overload Like?

I’m autistic and living in the present world can be a sensory nightmare for me. There’s overpowering light, constant noise pollution, lack of quiet spaces in public urban areas for respite, influx of inescapable advertisements everywhere I walk…the list goes on.

Sensory overload occurs when my mental and emotional resources, and capacity to tolerate and manage input (from all senses) from the environment is depleted, resulting in my nervous system going into survival mode. 

THE EXPERIENCE

I have no space to think, or for thoughts to run freely through my mind.

Processing is paused; the need to delete junk intensifies.

My mind is weighed down by bricks of the world.

Ability to store additional environmental input in short-term memory is gone.

Stress becomes irritability, which can brew into anger if a complete crash is imminent.

Everything becomes overwhelming; the sound of cutlery on plates, being asked a basic question or the existence of other humans around me.

My nervous system becomes heightened in threat-defensive mode.

I feel run down and queasy from survival mode.

I simply want out of the hell, retreating into silence and nothingness.

THE RETREAT & HEALING

I give myself permission to honour boundaries, leaving the environment fuelling the overload.

I go into sensory deprivation to recuperate as best as possible.

This can mean diverging from a group for alone time, putting in earplugs, closing eyes and being physically still in a relatively comfortable spot.

Or perhaps, escaping from a suffocating, crowded urban location in exchange for more open space with greenery.

I can also stim more intensely to self-regulate; being more fidgety or restless.

Requiring comfort elements and familiarity is another piece of the puzzle.

The retreat and temporary escape time varies depending on the degree of sensory overload and quality of sensory deprivation, but typically averages at 30 minutes for a decent recovery before going back into the battlefield.