Autistic burnout is a common experience in the neurodivergent community and has been known and talked about for many years now. There is still however a great deal of ignorance among professionals working with autistic people and this too often leads to misdiagnosis and the wrong support being given to the individual. There are crossovers between Autism and certain personality disorders (EUPD/BPD especially) and autistic burnout can present as depression. But as the quote below from the Royal College of Psychiatrists says, it is vital professionals consider burnout before jumping to conclusions about a mental health condition/diagnosis, especially if they know or suspect the individual is autistic or if the individual self-identifies as autistic.

According to Judy Endow autistic burnout “is a state of physical and mental fatigue, heightened stress and diminished capacity to manage life skills, sensory input and social interactions, which comes from years of being severely overtaxed by the strain of trying to live up to demands that are out of sync with your needs”.

The Royal College of Psychiatrists describes autistic burnout as “a state of exhaustion, associated with functional and cognitive deterioration and an increase in autism symptomatology, as a consequence of coping with social interaction (including masking) and the sensory environment. It may be a short-lived state (as at the end of a working day), relieved by a relatively brief withdrawal from the stress. However, longer and more severe stress can produce a more sustained state (which entails some form of innate change) which has to wait on its natural remission. It overlaps symptomatically with anxiety and depression, and there may be a heightened risk of suicide.

Its anecdotal basis and the lack of systematic research mean that burnout does not have the status of a formal syndrome or disorder. Nevertheless, the concept captures the need to consider the effect of adjusting somebody’s setting, support, and style of life before assuming their malaise to be a recognised psychiatric disorder.” (Royal College of Psychiatrists, The psychiatric management of autism in adults).

​“Autistic burnout is a severely debilitating condition with onset preceded by fatigue from masking autistic traits, interpersonal interactions, an overload of cognitive input, a sensory environment unaccommodating to autistic sensitivities and/or other additional stressors or changes. Onset and episodes of autistic burnout may interact with co-occurring physical and or mental health conditions” (‘Investigating autistic burnout. Final report’, Dr S. Arnold, Julianne Higgins et al Feb 22)

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