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Mood Swings in Adults on the Autism Spectrum

Mood swings can be described as “a mental health condition that results in significant emotional instability.” This can lead to a variety of other stressful mental and behavioral problems. 
 
With mood swings, a person may have a severely distorted self-image and feel worthless and fundamentally flawed. Anger, impulsiveness and frequent anxiety may push others away, even though the person may desire to have loving and lasting relationships.

If you have Asperger’s (AS) or High-Functioning Autism (HFA), and you experience frequent mood swings – don't get discouraged. Many adults on the autism spectrum have some degree of moodiness, but they get better with treatment and can live satisfying lives. Mood swings affect how you feel about yourself, how you relate to others, and how you behave.



Signs and symptoms of excessive moodiness may include:
  • Awareness of destructive behavior (e.g., self-injury), but sometimes feeling unable to change it
  • Difficulty controlling emotions or impulses
  • Fear of being around crowds
  • Feeling misunderstood, neglected, empty or hopeless
  • Feelings of self-hate and self-loathing
  • Inappropriate anger and antagonistic behavior (sometimes escalating into physical fights)
  • Short but intense episodes of anxiety or depression
  • Suicidal thoughts

 
When AS and HFA adults have severe mood swings, they often have an insecure sense of who they are. Their self-image or self-identity often changes rapidly. They may view themselves as “bad,” and sometimes they may feel as if they don't exist at all. An unstable self-image often leads to frequent changes in jobs, friendships, goals and values.

When AS and HFA adults experience frequent and severe mood swings, their relationships are usually in turmoil. They may idealize their spouse or partner one moment, and then quickly shift to anger and resentment over perceived slights (or even minor misunderstandings). This is because people on the autism spectrum often have difficulty accepting gray areas. In other words, things seem to be either black or white.

Wild mood swings (which some people call ‘meltdowns’) can damage many areas of a person’s life. It can negatively affect intimate relationships, jobs, school, social activities and self-image. Repeated job losses and broken marriages are common. Self-injury (e.g., cutting, burning) and suicidal thoughts can occur. Also, the individual may have other mental health disorders (e.g., alcohol or substance abuse and dependency, anxiety disorder, depression, and eating disorders).

Treatment for mood swings may include psychotherapy and/or medications:

1. Psychotherapy is a fundamental treatment approach for mood swings. Types of psychotherapy that may be effective include:
  • Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). With CBT, you work with a mental health counselor to (a) become aware of inaccurate, negative or ineffective thinking; (b) view challenging situations more clearly and objectively; and (c) search for and put into practice alternative solution strategies.
  • Mentalization-based therapy (MBT). MBT is a type of therapy that helps you identify and separate your own thoughts and feelings from those of people around you. MBT emphasizes thinking before reacting.
  • Schema-focused therapy (SFT). SFT combines therapy approaches to help you evaluate repetitive life patterns and life themes (schema) so that you can identify positive patterns and change negative ones.
  • Transference-focused psychotherapy (TFP). TFP aims to help you understand your emotions and interpersonal difficulties through the developing relationship between you and your therapist. You then apply these insights to ongoing situations.
 
 
2. Medication can help with co-occurring clinical problems, such as depression, impulsiveness and anxiety. Medications may include antidepressants, antipsychotics and anti-anxiety drugs.

Living with frequent and severe mood swings is difficult. You may realize your behaviors and thoughts are self-destructive or damaging, yet you feel unable to control them. Treatment can help you learn skills to manage and cope with your moods.

You can help manage your moods and feel better about yourself if you do the following:
  • Attend all therapy sessions if you are in counseling
  • Don't blame yourself for being chronically “moody,” but do recognize your responsibility to get it treated
  • Get treatment for related problems (e.g., substance abuse)
  • Keep up a healthy lifestyle (e.g., eating a healthy diet, being physically active, engaging in social activities)
  • Learn about mood disorders so that you understand their causes and treatments
  • Learn what may trigger angry outbursts or impulsive behavior
  • Practice healthy ways to ease painful emotions and prevent impulsive behaviors (e.g., self-inflicted injuries)
  • Reach out to other AS and HFA adults to share insights and experiences
  • Stick to your treatment plan if attending counseling
  • If you are on medication, take it as directed and report to your doctor the benefits and side-effects that you experience

Remember, there's no one right path to recovery from wild mood swings. Usually, the best results come from a combination of treatment strategies. Excessive moodiness seems to be worse in older adolescence and young adulthood, and may gradually get better with age. 
 
Many AS and HFA adults with this condition find greater stability in their lives during their 30s and 40s. As the individual’s inner distress and sense of misery decreases, he or she can go on to maintain loving relationships and enjoy meaningful careers.

==> Living With Aspergers: Help for Couples

=> Skype Counseling for Struggling Individuals & Couples Affected by Asperger's and HFA 

40 Ways Asperger's Husbands Can Improve Their Relationships

  1. Accept her apologies. If you've been arguing, and she makes an attempt to reconcile, don't rebuff her.
  2. Apologize for something you never apologized for, even though you knew it was your fault.
  3. Ask her what she was like when she was a little child.
  4. Bathe together periodically.
  5. Compliment something that she's improved upon.
  6. Cook a meal together. Divide up the tasks so you can both be in the kitchen working at the same time.
  7. Cover her with a blanket. If you're up in the middle of the night or have to leave early in the morning and you see your spouse has tossed the comforter off, take a minute and tuck her in.
  8. Do her chores. Do the dishes or vacuum the carpet – even if it's not your turn or your job. 
  9. Don't react when she says something annoying.


  10. Get her a subscription to a magazine she likes.
  11. If she holds a notable position in her field (or even if not) remind her of how splendid she is at her job and how it intensifies your admiration of her.
  12. If there's a secret you've been wanting to share with her, write a list of five reasons you're afraid to say it, five ways you could phrase it, and five possible reactions she could have. Then pick one phrase and do it. 
  13. If you're feeling anxious about something, ask your spouse to be your stress-reliever. Ask her to listen as you explain what you're worrying about. The catch is that she doesn't have to say anything—no reassurances or offers of assistance. She just has to pay attention to what you're saying. As you're talking, imagine your stress dissipating as the words leave your mouth. 
  14. In the middle of the day, send her a text message that says, " thinking of you."
  15. Leave an open bottle of wine and an empty glass in the kitchen for your wife after a long, hard day. Join her for a glass.
  16. Make a her special snack. Even if you're on a diet, there's always room for a little treat once a week. Maybe it's a food from her childhood (e.g., the smores her father used to make when he made a campfire) or something that reminds her of your first date (e.g., eating at a hotdog stand on the beach) – and snack that will show you're thinking about the two of you.
  17. Make breakfast for her. It's more unexpected than lunch or dinner.
  18. Massage a part of her body that you wouldn't usually pay attention to (e.g., forearm, shoulder, calf, feet, etc.).
  19. Next time you're at the corner store, pick up her favorite candy or gum.
  20. Order a book from Amazon from an author you know she loves.
  21. Pack her a lunch to take to work. Put it in a paper bag with a love-note. Include a small piece of chocolate.
  22. Come up with some pet names. Sure, you can call each other ‘baby’ or ‘honey’, but coming up with a nickname only you two get is cute and provides a little laugh. Studies have shown that nicknames are a sign of a strong relationship. 
  23. Pray together. If you're comfortable talking about it, discuss what you pray about.
  24. Repair something of hers that she hasn't gotten around to fixing (e.g., an old watch battery or a broken bracelet clasp).
  25. Say something positive—anything at all. Researchers have found that happy couples have a ratio of five positive comments to each negative comment.
  26. Send flowers to her office. It doesn't have to be expensive – anything fresh-cut will look pretty on her desk and remind her that you care. 
  27. Set out her coffee cup next to the coffee pot with creamer and sugar in the morning so all she has to do is pour and get out the door.
  28. Set time aside every day for mutual silence.
  29. Take out her yearbook. Ask about the people in it and what they meant to her.
  30. Tell her she looks sexy in that dress (pants, shorts, insert the appropriate item of clothing).
  31. Tell her she makes you a better person, and then tell her how.
  32. The next time a member of her family calls and you answer the phone, stay on the line and chat a minute before handing off the phone. She'll be touched that you want to speak to her relatives.
  33. The next time she does something that makes you mad, before you say something about it, stop and ask yourself, "What am I really angry about?" Little things can often be masks for deeper issues. If you decide it's a larger issue, hold your tongue and bring it up when you have calmed down. 
  34. The next time you hug her, reach around and squeeze her butt. It's the little things that keep it hot. 
  35. The next time you wake up before her, turn off the alarm clock and rouse her by kissing her forehead.
  36. Think of one quirky thing she does that you love and tell her about it.
  37. Use your body language (e.g., hands, eyes, mouth, etc.) to show her you're paying attention and listening when she talks to you.
  38. When she tells you something about her schedule, put it on your calendar so you can remember to ask about it (e.g., a big meeting at work, a doctor's appointment, lunch with an old friend, etc.).
  39. When she's tired from a long day of work, offer to watch a movie she loves but one that you wouldn't normally watch with her.
  40. Write love notes and put them places you know you're spouse will find them (e.g., coat pocket, jewelry box, silverware drawer, laptop keyboard, etc.).

==> Living With Aspergers: Help for Couples

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