Meltdowns!! A word most parents dread and seek to avoid. You may also hear the words meltdowns and temper tantrums used interchangeably but they are actually very different. Let’s briefly define them. A temper tantrum is purely behavioral. This is when a child will cry or whine because he wants something. For instance, a child wants to watch extra television or finish playing a game, but the established rules in place do not align with the child’s wants. As a response, the child will cry or throw a fit (temper tantrum) to get what he wants. Many parents respond by giving in because they do not want to hear the crying or disruptive behavior. Once a parent gives in, the child immediately stops the behavior. This qualifies as a temper tantrum. Whereas, a meltdown is driven primarily by biology. In this case, if you were to give in to what the child wants he will continue having a meltdown due to the emotionally heightened state, driven physiologically by emotions versus reason. Now that we have discussed and defined the basics let’s talk about the difference between a meltdown a kiddo with Autism is experiencing versus a kiddo with sensory concerns is experiencing.
A kiddo with Autism is more likely to experience a meltdown due confusion, difficulty communicating, or uncertainty. For instance, it is very common for children with Autism to think in a black and white manner, so areas that fall in the grey can be very confusing for them. Can you imagine how disorienting and frustrating this can be? An example of this inflexibility or black and white thinking may look like wanting to choose the brown shoes instead of the black shoes because they imagined wearing those with a specific shirt. In addition, this could lead to difficulty communicating because they do not understand what is going on or how to express their feelings about social situations or social culture. Lastly, uncertainty is difficult for most, but a child with Autism is more likely to get overwhelmed with transitions, and so they find unpredictable situations alarming and extremely discomforting. Each scenario has the ability to increase emotional dysregulation that can turn into a full blown meltdown without the appropriate coping skills. Some kiddos with Autism can be observed stimming, which is a form of regulating their emotions that have manifested in the body. Imagine if you were really excited and all of a sudden you were filled with excessive amounts of energy but you didn’t know what to do with it so you yelled and jumped up and down to physically display your excited feelings. The same applies to what these kiddos are experiencing but it may come across as disruptive or atypical. This can include rocking back and forth, banging their head on their hand or a wall, flapping their hands or flapping while jumping up and down. These are some of the most common ones that are seen.
On the other hand, a child with sensory processing difficulties feels overwhelmed due to excessive stimuli or due to stimuli that irritate his sensory system. This may occur when a child walks into an area that has too many lights or people talking. Their brain is not able to properly process all the external activity that is going on in the area. Another example would be a kiddo going downstairs first thing in the morning and the coffee machine is going, the TV is on, and the sun is shining through the windows. Ultimately, the sensory system gets overstimulated, which even causes physical pain for the child and he cannot process the feelings the way a kiddo without sensory processing difficulties may. A kiddo with sensory difficulties needs more body movement to regulate their nervous system, such as jumping, hanging upside down, spinning in circles, rocking, swinging, and many more. In many cases, these kiddos need vestibular regulation and a sensory diet.
Can a kiddo with Autism also have sensory processing concerns that cause meltdowns? Yes, so if your kiddo has both diagnoses the important aspect would be to identify what is being triggered in your kiddo.