Welcome to Meet My Autistic Brain. I'm your host, the autistic woman. Before we begin, I want you to know that your support is important because without it, the podcast will not be possible. With more than 100 episodes, a donation of only $10 means you're paying less than $0.10 per episode. Now, it's even better. You can use Kofi to make a one-time or continuing donation. For example, if you make a donation of $5 and order a product like Govey Lights, you get $5 back. So it's a win-win. Check Kofi for more information. Shutdowns are a common experience for autistics. They're a sudden and temporary inability to function in everyday life. Shutdowns can be caused by a variety of factors, including sensory overload, emotional distress, or overwhelming social situations. Questions can last for a few minutes, a few hours, or a few days. They might happen once a month. They might happen irregularly, more rarely. They can be very distressing for the person experiencing them. During a shutdown, a person might experience a loss of communication and interaction. They may stop talking, responding to questions, or making eye contact. A decrease in physical movement. They may become stiff or immobile. A change in facial expression. They may have a blank or expressionless look on their face. A change in breathing. They may breathe rapidly or shallowly. A change in heart rate. They may have a racing heart or a slow heart rate. A change in body temperature. They may become hot or cold. An autistic person in shutdown might feel listless. They may feel like they're suffering from depression. They may lose motivation. Depression making is virtually impossible. An autistic may not know what caused the shutdown. Some autistics are unable to move or function during a shutdown. Shuttowns may seem to come out of nowhere or have no obvious trigger. There are a variety of factors that are believed to cause shutdowns like sensory overload. When autistics are exposed to too much sensory input, we can become overwhelmed and experience a shutdown. This can be caused by loud noises, bright lights, strong smells, or touch that is too firm or too light. Emotional distress. When I'm feeling anxious, angry, or scared, I might experience a shutdown. For some autistics, it can be caused by things like bullying, social rejection, or changes in routine. For me, a shutdown would happen during a particularly emotional exchange. If the person I was talking to said something unexpected and emotionally charged, my brain would shut down. I couldn't answer or respond. My mind went blank. This was very detrimental to relationships. For example, there was a time when someone was telling me about something that upset them. I'm sure the look on my face was the one I've been told looks like I'm mad. I wasn't mad at all.