blue screen – A Is For Aoife Not Autism

Greetings Earthlings! 🙂

Leading on from my previous post about virtual autism, this week I’d like to take a more specific look at the impact of screen use has on people with autism.

Whilst screen use is largely seen as a negative thing for the general population, screens can actually have a positive impact for autists:

Communication, connection and social skills– screens can help autists to connect with peers and communicate without the pressure of face to face interactions. There’s no need for eye contact, and plenty of time to think about and edit your response, allowing autists to relax. Removing these social barriers will also help autists to develop their other social skills which can then be applied to the real world. In my work for example, I’ve found that AI chatbots can be very useful when I’m struggling to find the right words and tone to deal with an awkward email
Regulation– Screens can offer a calming, safe (at least perceived as safe to an autist) and familiar presence for autists in an overwhelming, out of control world, enabling them to manage anxiety and meltdowns. For example, one of my autistic friends whips out her phone to look at cute animal videos anytime she is anxious, helping her to re-centre
Accessibility and gamified learning– screen based technologies can be very helpful for autists struggling with learning issues and verbal communication. The use of augmentative and alternative communication devices (AACs) and speech-to-text/text-to-speech tools can be hugely beneficial for autists. Similarly, gamified learning can be used to encourage autists to learn through the use of educational games which can help autists who struggle in a classroom setting. While studying for my leaving cert French oral, I used to study my notes while I played Mario Kart, which somehow made the information stick a lot better in my memory 😂🙈
Life skills– the internet is filled with useful apps and videos that can help teach autists valuable life skills that they struggle with in the real world such as personal hygiene, cleaning, map reading, cooking and shopping. Online shopping has been a complete gamechanger for me as I can shop peacefully with no pressure or risk of sensory overload
Specialist interests– having access to a screen enables autists to easily explore their specialist interests which can further help them to regulate when overstimulated. Back in the early days of dial up internet, I would happily spend a couple of hours waiting on a page to slowly load on the ABBA website just to read the historical chart information for all of my favourite songs. I would have bored everyone senesless with ABBA facts had I access to a mobile phone back in the 90s! 🤣
Executive function- planners, reminders, alarms and body doubling ADHD apps (such as Dubbi) can be very useful to help autists who struggle with organization

However, there are also many negative implications for autists that overindulge in screen time:

Overstimulation– excessive exposure causes over stimulation of the brain, increasing stress levels and disregulating emotions
Addiction– as previously discussed, autists can be prone to addictive behaviours. As screens are highly addictive for neurotypicals, the risk can be even higher for an autist
Cyberbullying– autists are often an easy target for bullies, and granting them access to social media unchecked can have disastrous consequences. Growing up in the early era of social media, I didn’t know how to act appropriately online and often emulated those around me without thinking. This autistic tendency for masking and mimicry got me into hot water a couple of times, but if I were unsupervised and allowed to emulate the way users behave today, things would have been so much worse
Decreased focus and sleep issues– overuse of screens can impair concentration and attention spans for autists, which may be already impacted by co-morbid ADHD. The blue light emitted from these devices can also disrupt sleep patterns which are often dysregulated for autists. Sleep and screens is often an issue for me, especially if I have been watching content at double speed (it’s like listening to fast speech revs up the speed of my inner monologue which can overstimulate me before bed)

Some studies have also suggested that there is a link between screen usage before 2 years of age and the risk of developing autism, buuutttt it doesn’t look like this link is causal. Perhaps the link is coincidental given how virtual autism manifests.

As with most things in life, moderation is key for autists when interacting with screens. There’s no set amount of hours that one can follow, but monitoring your child’s screen use and it’s impact on their behaviour will help you determine how long is too long.

Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings!

Have a lovely weekend! 🙂

Aoife

Greetings Earthlings! 🙂

Did you know that between 40% and 80% of autists reportedly have sleep problems?

I have spent many a restless night tossing and turning whilst my mind races. Like a washing machine on the highest spin setting, my mind keeps going round and around when I turn out the lights.

This is a fairly accurate (and cute) representation of my efforts to sleep at night:

I struggle to get comfy and start thinking and stressing about my day, about tomorrow, about that embarrassing time when I got an answer wrong in class and everyone laughed at me…and it keeps rolling on in a similar never-ending loop. The pillow starts heating up (did you know that thoughts produce heat? ), I start stressing about not sleeping and how soon the alarm will go off, get frustrated and inadvertently end up even more awake than before!

Eventually I pass out, and when the sun comes up the next morning…

….I wake up feeling like death in a tangle of bedclothes, wearing my sheet as a scarf! 😛

It doesn’t happen every night, but on occasion, especially if I have to be somewhere important or catch a bus early the next morning. I spend so much time thinking about needing sleep that I end up chasing away any tiredness! 😛

But why are we prone to disturbed sleeping patterns?

As with many aspects of autism, it’s unclear why exactly we struggle with sleep, but the experts have a few theories on the subject:

Melatonin, the hormone which controls sleep and wakefulness, is thought to contribute to sleep issues in autism. The amino acid tryptophan is needed for the body to produce melatonin, an amino acid which research has shown can be either higher or lower than normal in people with autism. Ordinarily melatonin is released in response to darkness (to induce sleep) with levels dropping during daylight hours (to keep us awake). However, studies have shown the opposite in some autists, where higher levels of melatonin are released during the daytime and lower levels at night. So that explains why I’m often inexplicably dying for a nap in the middle of the day!
Sensory issues are also thought to contribute to these sleep problems. Many autists have an increased sensitivity to such stimuli as touch, light, noises, etc. During my first year in college I became somewhat of an insomniac due to city noises, late night fire alarms and paper thin walls…
A number of autists, such as myself, are night owls. Recent brain imaging scans have shown that there are physical differences in the brains of night owls and morning larks. Night owls show signs of reduced integrity in the white matter of the brain (fatty tissue that enables brain cells to communicate with each). This compromises the speed of transmission between neurons which can cause insomnia, daytime sleepiness, antisocial personality disorder and interfere with cognitive functioning. Differences in the integrity of white matter have been linked to ASD’s, so this could explain why we struggle to sleep at night. But it’s not all bad- some studies have shown that night owls are more productive, have more stamina and can display greater analytical and reasoning abilities than morning larks! 🙂
Anxiety problems are also thought to contribute to troubled sleeping

So what can you do to improve your sleep?

Weighted blankets are often recommended to help manage autism. As I’ve discussed previously, autists have higher levels of stimulatory neurotransmitters and lower levels of calming neurotransmitters. Weighted blankets contain metal or plastic beads in the quilted layers to apply deep, calming pressure to the user- like simulating a hug. This pressure is designed to stimulate the release of serotonin (which helps regulate the sleep cycle and temperature) and dopamine to relax and calm the mind and to better help us to sleep.

Some studies have shown that weighted blankets do not noticeably improve sleep for autists, however many people, neurotypical and neurodiverse alike, have found that they get a much better night’s sleep from using them- so it’s worth a try!

Personally, I’ve discovered that using screens too close to bed time can make it harder for me to nod off at night. Scientists have found that the blue light emitted by most screens can interfere with the production of melatonin, making it more difficult to fall asleep. If melatonin disturbances are indeed contributing to your sleep issues, it would be wise to decrease screen time in the night time.

Aoife’s Top Tip: Ditch the laptop before bed, read a book instead! 😉

Experts also recommend avoiding caffeine, getting more exercise, establishing a routine and taking measures to manage stress.

In my experience, stress management is key to getting a good nights sleep. My memories of being an angsty teenager are littered with sleepless nights spent fretting about everything! Once I got on top of my stress, peaceful sleep was quick to follow 🙂

Sleep will come, you just have to find what works for you.

Goodnight dear Earthlings, I’m feeling a nap coming on 😉

Enjoy the weekend!

Aoife

Tag: blue screen

Autism and Screens

Sleep and Autism

A Is For Aoife Not Autism