Hi! I have a question regarding your recent posts on catatonia. This is actually something I’ve been wondering about for a while now and I hope you have an answer. At first, it seemed like catatonia and autistic shutdowns where the same. I read that catanonia mostly occurred in people with schizophrenia, but could also be a symptom of autism, so I thought they were synonymous. Then I read that they weren’t, and I understood that the difference was in severity with catatonia being more severe and also lasting longer (hours to days). What you’ve described in your recent posts sounds a lot like what I thought were autistic shutdowns (which I’ve experienced in a similar way) and less like what I understood what catatonia to be. This isn’t me trying to tell you you’re experiencing a shutdown instead, I genuinely think I’ve misunderstood something and I’m hoping you could clear it up for me since I’ve clearly not had much luck with my own research. What is the difference between catatonia and autistic shutdowns?
Hey anon! This is a very good question that I didn’t really know the answer to for a hot minute.
So with my catatonia, I’ve been diagnosed with it. A doctor has confirmed it is indeed catatonia I’m experiencing and not something else. So there’s not really a doubt in my mind that it is catatonia. However, I do have autistic shutdowns as well, they’re actually more common than meltdowns for me so I can tell the difference pretty easily.
The difference for me, is that autistic shutdowns are caused by extreme emotions. They’re basically the opposite reaction of a meltdown. A lot of people refer to them as internal meltdowns cause they’re caused by extreme distressing things.
For me, catatonia can literally happen at any time. I could just be sitting there and boom, catatonia. Although it’s very common for me to have it when I’m starting a task. When I’m starting a task, I don’t feel every which way, it just sorta happens. My brain gets stuck.
Catatonia CAN get worse with intense emotions, and it can happen if you’re having an intense emotion, but that doesn’t mean you have to be having an intense emotion to experience catatonia. My catatonia gets worse with stress, but that doesn’t mean that my catatonia is a shutdown. Also to me, my catatonia is far more frequent than a shutdown. While a shutdown I have maybe once a week, I have catatonia maybe a few times a day.
From my understanding some doctors believe that shutdowns can lead to catatonia, but they still have a very distinct difference. Catatonia also comes with a variety of other symptoms, like no reaction to mild pain. While in a shutdown, I will personally react to mild pain.
Catatonia also comes with other issues, and my catatonia is really complex. From having semi-catatonic states that make me feel like I’m going through quicksand, to mutism, to so many other things. The lasting affects of catatonia are also not the same. While someone with a shutdown will eventually come out of their shutdown, catatonia can be more complex then that. From lasting hours to not being able to talk even after your catatonic episode.
I hope this explains some things! I’d also google “autism catatonia” there’s a few articles that explain it well! Many autistics with catatonia have lasting effects, like diminished social interactions and social isolation, and diminished ways that the person just behaves in general.
They’re very different and I hope this explains some! Im still not sure and my psych isn’t even sure if my catatonia is caused by my autism or by my Schizoaffective so we’re just shrugging our shoulders. Have a lovely day anon!
