If you’re autistic, your brain uses more connections to process information than someone who is not autistic. That’s why ordinary life activities can lead to burnout and exhaustion. One primary goal in therapy for autistic people, is to discover ways to lower your cognitive load each day. That means reducing inputs.
Inputs and the brain: a metaphor
Imagine the brain as a pinball game. Every sound, task, interruption, etc. makes the paddle hit the ball. These are the inputs.
When “the average person” gets an input, the ball bumps into 5 objects in the game. For example, a phone rings. The sound input hits the paddles, and the ball hits 5 objects, and then the person realizes it is a phone ringing. The cost of energy in this game is 5.
When the autistic brain has an input, the ball bumps into 50 objects along the way. The cost of energy in this game is 50.
But, lets say all humans burn out at 500, no matter what kind of brain they have. So the goal of the game is to have lower points.
In order to manage burnout, the autistic person needs to figure out how to reduce inputs. This is what it means to create an accommodation. This is just like using a wheelchair, cane, glasses, or other tools.
At work, that can look like:
Limiting sound inputs: Noise cancelling headphones, foam earplugs, solo/quiet office, working from home.
Limiting visual inputs: Using non-florescent lighting, wearing light filtering glasses, non-cluttered workspace, visually predictable workspaces (organized workflow, simple visual cues for tasks).
Limiting interruption inputs: Creating blocks of schedule that are for deep focus (more complex tasks with no interruptions), creating blocks of time to expect interruptions (less complex tasks and more interruptions)
Limiting social/emotional inputs: Similar to interruptions, but creating times when you are “off the hook” for being socially aware, and clear times when you are expected to be more interactive or aware of others needs.
In therapy sessions I work with clients to figure out custom accommodations and how to communicate these to others. There are a lot more aspects to working with autistic people in therapy such as exploring your personal sensory profile, identifying your communication barriers, dealing with anxiety, trauma, and depression, and navigating interpersonal dynamics and relationships. Non autistic people can benefit from many of these input-reducing strategies as well!