Monday, April 15, 2013

Aspergers & Weather

I'm not sure if there is a connection here or not, so I'm hoping my other Aspie friends will chime in here, but I'm going to share my connection with weather, and how it affects me, and maybe some of you will feel the same?

I know many people are affected by the weather. SAD is a real disorder connected to the lack of sunlight in winter seasons around the world.

It causes me to wonder, though, if certain people are affected more than others, or if there are people who are more predisposed to being affected by it than others.

I can tell you my personal experience is that I am directly and completely connected to the weather, what it does, what it doesn't do, what it's like. My best days are sunny days, my worst are cloudy. I think this is almost always determined by what it is like when I wake up in the morning. Some cloudy days can be okay if it was sunny that morning. If I open my bedroom curtains to some morning sunshine, then I can manage to make a good day.

If it rains, it makes me sad. If it snows, it makes me mad. If it snows past the "expiration date" of snow (or what I think it should be - you know, sometime late March is tolerable, but mid April is NOT) then it makes me rather annoyed past the point of anger. 

I have been really cranky lately. Yeah, I'm pregnant and pregnant women are often cranky and touchy. But where I live, it is still snowing as if its December. The hardest part is that my "high season" is summer, and summer is short enough here to begin with. Every single day that goes by with snow and cold is one less day of summer. One less day of warm. One less day of jacket free, boot free fun. One less day of comfort. One less day of the very thing that keeps me going. 

So maybe you think that its just silly, that I should just "get over it" or "get used to it - you live in Minnesota" or whatever. Those comments do not help, and no, I can't just "get over it", or I would already. Do you think I would purposely go out of my way to feel like this if I could do something about it? People have been saying "You can be depressed all you want but here's a list of positive things about this.....". Well, those people have never struggled with depression.

For many people, depression is a part of the diagnosis. It comes as a "free gift" with the package. I don't think people know that. In addition to depression, anxiety and a bit of OCD is included as well. See, this time of year I was planning on having a bunch of my boxes over here to sort through. With the amount of snow we have, I can't even get to the boxes right now, forget haul them to a vehicle to get them to my house.

I feel like I have a deadline to do this kind of stuff because of the baby, and I wanted to spend April doing it before I got too pregnant to handle it. I think I'm hitting that point already. It is annoying. I've got stuff to do! I made plans darn it! Weather messing with my plans? Does not compute!

One minor side note: in the summer we often get thunderstorms. You would think based on what I said that this would depress me too, but really, I'm a weatherbug! I'm a weather nerd! I love exciting weather. Things like thunderstorms, that's great! When I was a kid I was terrified of thunderstorms. As an adult, I'd almost dare to say I would storm chase if I lived on the prairie! Someday, from far away, I'd like to see a tornado. So, there is an exception in there I suppose!

Anyway, Aspies, how does weather affect you? Do you feel that your mind is made up for you based on what the weather is doing? What are your thoughts?

4 comments:

  1. From the sounds of your weather, we may live in the same depressing part of the country. My Aspie status is also not confirmed, but I hope I'm still allowed to answer. :)

    Basically, the weather affects me much the same. I've suspected that I may have SAD for most of my life. The sun is my link to all things good. It makes me happier, gives me energy, and generally makes me a better person to be around. (I lived out west for three years and can say my "quality of life" was probably at it's highest during those years.) Cloudy days, however, drain me completely and I struggle through them only because I have to. I've never been a big fan of rain, but on occasion if I know I have the day to myself I can enjoy it on the couch reading. Snow is my enemy.

    I'm a list maker. I make lists for every day of the week and I actually plan what I'm going to do on each day based on the weather. Most people think it's insane, so it's refreshing to know I'm not alone. But like you, if I've made a plan and the weather does not cooperate I'm furious, and find it difficult to salvage the day.

    I also find that the weather affects me physically. The slightest change in air pressure, or going from humid to dry or dry to humid will cause headaches and sinus problems. I find the cold and wet days affect my joints as well, but could also be just age. :)

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    1. im totally with you there! absolutely!

      you can most definitely answer and post your thoughts evven if not confirmed/diagnosed! :) :) thank you for your comment!!

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  2. I have aspergers and adhd i am usually very loud and energetic but when it is a very hot day i dont cope well i tend to go tired and quiet and just moody refusing to do anything i dont feel like doing it isnt much the sun and cloud that give me my moods its more the heat with me when it just gets too hot, i dont cope well when its a sudden heatwave out of no where which over where i live we have random times of heat and sun out of no where so i dont cope with sudden change of weather either.

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    1. agree. my son has overreaction to heat as well, and just doesnt want to do anything. worse, if i have to go somewhere, they cant get watched at my house with AC. so he ends up overheated and it just builds and builds until he is very low.

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