Autism and sensory overload: What my son faces every day

30 January 2025
Gayatri Vathsan Written by Gayatri Vathsan
Gayatri Vathsan

Gayatri Vathsan

Gayatri is an immersive writer and storyteller. She has over 10 and 5 years of experience in...


Click here to know more
Please login to bookmark Close

This is a personal essay written by the author, sharing their individual journey and experiences. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in this piece belong solely to the author and do not necessarily reflect those of MyndStories. This essay has not been professionally vetted or reviewed for clinical accuracy.

I started 2025 hoping to bring more sensitivity and awareness about Autism Spectrum Disorders.

In my previous columns, I wrote about what it is to parent an autistic child and the unique demands it places on us. Most of all, I have written about seeking acceptance, empathy, and understanding for Krishna, my autistic son. 

There’s much to learn about autism, and I am still learning. One of the biggest learning curves for me in parenting Krishan was understanding just how big a role sensory process issues or SPI play in his life.

Krishna isn’t alone. 

Many autistic children face sensory processing issues (SPI). This is often the root cause of other uncomfortable and downright debilitating problems:

SPI can result in poor sleep or insomnia

Children on the spectrum struggle to fall asleep and stay asleep. Picture this: you and your child have had an exhausting day crammed with work and activities. Both of you would just like to sleep. 

Autism and sensory overload: What my son faces every day

Doctors and therapists have told you all about bedtime routines and sleep hygiene. So you religiously follow both. Early dinner, post-dinner teeth brushing, switching off all screen and digital devices, dim lights, soothing music or gentle conversation or story time, relaxing in the fresh night air…

You then tuck your child in bed and pat or rock them gently. Your own eyes are heavy with sleep and every bone in your body hurts. You know you still have work to finish after your child sleeps, before you wrap up for the night. 

“Ma!”

Your child is looking up at you, eyes clear and wide open, not a trace of sleep. Whereas you desperately want to sleep. You switch on your phone and peer blearily at the time. 

1.00 am.

And thus begins the delight of a sleepless night.

Despite sleep medications, strict bedtime routines, and every effort to promote rest, sleep remains elusive—or constantly interrupted.

Gut issues like impaired digestion, food sensitivities, and Pica 

Autistic children are often picky eaters. They like only a certain taste, a certain color, or a particular texture. And sometimes, they crave inedible things (Pica) like mud, gum, paper, etc. Many children consume processed foods with a vengeance. Children on the spectrum are more sensitive to the chemicals and non-nutritional additives in processed foods.

Additionally, certain foods make them hyperactive, cause aches and pains, or have odd effects like itching without rashes. Some cause outright allergies.

The result?

Nutritional imbalance and deficiencies. Gut pain. Constipation or diarrhea. Obesity. Caries. Disturbed sleep. 

Autism and sensory overload: What my son faces every day

My son Krishna detests processed foods. He eats only freshly cooked food with plenty of vegetables. Still, he has severe gut issues, constipation, and caries. This is because his SPI causes him to pick out textures, discard tastes, and start playing with his food instead of eating it. He will mouth everything that caught his interest: twigs, leaves, bits of paper, stones.

As to food intolerances, eating chickpeas, for example, makes him hyperactive. He runs up and down the stairs at least 20 times at a go, jumps non-stop, laughs uncontrollably, and then collapses in tears with sheer exhaustion after hours of this. Drinking milk or eating curd renders him completely sleepless through the night and day.

High pain tolerance 

Many autistic children have a dangerously high tolerance to pain. Sometimes, they react differently to pain: I’ve seen children laughing hysterically after painfully scraping their knees or when they have a tummy ache. It does NOT mean they are happy to feel pain; their expression of it is wildly different.

Krishna coolly ignores cuts and scrapes. Once, he slipped and fell while playing, deeply cutting his chin. It was an inch long, bleeding heavily. He didn’t care. I was screaming and yelling over the blood, and he gave me a look that seemed to say,  “Ma, what’s the big deal?” 

He was just 5 years old.

And this child screams with gut pain and hits himself against hard surfaces, trying to distract himself from the internal pain with the self-inflicted one. 

Self-injury and/or aggression

When you’re overloading on a cocktail of distressing stimuli and pain, and have reached breaking point, what would you do? Perhaps scream? Break a plate or two? Curl into a ball and rock? Bang your head on the wall? Lash out at the person who is trying to control you without getting that you’re in extreme distress?

Aha, you’re being aggressive. You’re indulging in self-injurious behavior. 

And this, dear reader, is how the labels arrive.

I’ll share more next week. Till then, I hope this is what you’ll take away:

Sensory processing issues in autism often lead to challenges like sleep disturbances, gut issues, nutritional imbalances, high pain tolerance, and even self-injury or aggression. If a doctor blames you for your child’s challenges, please remember: It is not your fault.

Help support mental health

Every mind matters. Every donation makes a difference. Together, we can break down stigmas and create a more compassionate world.

Disclaimer: MyndStories is not a non-profit. We are a private limited company registered as Metta Media Pvt Ltd. We don't fall under Section 80G and hence you don't get a tax exemption for your contribution.