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Neurodiverse Mumsnetters
Does anyone else find summertime difficult?
Turkishdelightchocisace · 10/05/2022 15:22
I find it's something that I have to stay quiet about because people just accuse me of being a grump, but I find the summertime extremely difficult to cope with. It's like sensory hell with heat, bright sunshine and there are crowds everywhere. I also feel lonely when I see people going on holiday or sitting outside pubs and it makes me wish I could enjoy the same kinds of things as everyone else, it further just makes me feel like I don't fit in anywhere
I become very depressed each summer but even my GP doesn't understand and everyone tells me to just get out and enjoy the warm weather so it makes me further retreat into myself because I know nobody will understand. Does anyone else deal with this?
Megmargs · 10/05/2022 15:53
Had a big ugly cry last night with the whole loneliness thing so totally understand! I also feel a weird sense of guilt for being inside my own home when it’s nice outside, and I never know what the temperature is going to be so I don’t know what clothes to wear to not be uncomfortable and just blah. I’m with you!
BlackeyedSusan · 10/05/2022 19:38
Oooooohhhh. 💡
Now you mention it.
Burn to a crisp or sticky sunscreen or long sleeves/trousers and hat.
Too bright, too hot, too itchy, and getting darker in the evenings again.
I love spring and nights getting lighter. Autumn is pretty but I hate dark nights.
Florrey · 10/05/2022 21:57
I have the same problem OP. Too hot. Too bright. Too many people out and about. Can’t even stay at home in peace because the bloody neighbours make a noise in their garden having bbqs etc.
I have made peace with not wanting to go out in sunny weather. My Mum always used to guilt me for not wanting to go out. I felt like I should want to. Sometimes I force myself for the benefit of my child who does want to go out. But I hate it. I wear sunglasses and hat, long trousers and long sleeve top, and a ton of sunscreen, and I stick to the shade as much as possible. I won’t compromise on avoiding busy places though, I simply can’t do crowds.
TheVanguardSix · 10/05/2022 22:04
Absolutely! Solidarity fist bumps on repeat.
I get my SAD in summer- my DD too. I love spring. I’m fine until June. But even today, I felt that dark gloom sneaking up in me. I feel oppressed in summer. And I know that by next month, it’ll begin to kick in. August is the hardest month for me.
JuneJuly · 10/05/2022 22:17
I don't like the heat of the summer either. I think it's because when it does get hot in the UK it's mostly an oppressive humid heat.
@Turkishdelightchocisace your OP reminded me of this article I came across by Darren Adam (radio show host on LBC)...
www.darrenadam.com/hating-the-heat
bananaskinny · 10/05/2022 22:18
I had no idea disliking summer (crowd anxiety, having the FOMO feeling, feeling isolated, being incredibly uncomfortable with the heat/brightness, etc.) was to do with neurodiversity? What does it relate to? I've always thought of myself as neurotypical. Having said that, I'm quite unique in my social circle and known for my 'quirks' (straight talking, very black and white with very little grey, being rigid around routines, etc.)
BarrowInFurnessRailwayStation · 10/05/2022 22:55
Absolutely. I'm heat intolerant and can't cope with anything above about 20 degrees. Above that and I'm bad tempered and irritable. At 25 + I'm more or less non functional and just sit in front of a fan and pour with sweat whilst nursing a permanent headache 😣 I have Scandinavian genes, so I need the cold.
BeetyAxe · 10/05/2022 23:01
Absolutely! Solidarity fist bumps on repeat.
I get my SAD in summer- my DD too. I love spring. I’m fine until June. But even today, I felt that dark gloom sneaking up in me. I feel oppressed in summer. And I know that by next month, it’ll begin to kick in. August is the hardest month for me.
I have finally found my people, god I’m happy to read this. I hate the guilt I feel for not being outside “enjoying” the summer, absolutely love the first chill of autumn and darker days when I can finally feel at peace.
GiraffeInTheSky · 10/05/2022 23:18
I don't. I find summer lifts my mental health so much. The warmth, the sunshine. I am out in my garden as much as possible. I find the grey light and overcast skies of most of the year hugely oppressive and crushing. And the cold for me is a sensory nightmare. I do wear sunglasses all the time though!
However many of my neurodiverse friends are the complete opposite. They cannot stand even a little warmth and hate the light, and hide indoors with air conditioning for the few months when the weather is nice. 🤷🏻♀️ We are all different, it just really depends what your sensory issues are.
MrsLargeEmbodied · 11/05/2022 07:39
driving to the beach at the weekend i had a real fear it was going to be too hot, with ho sea breeze
i only like the beach if there is a breeze
i hate the awful heat, i have no sunglasses, or can never find them, or they are broken,
i love the month may so much, give me the woods and the trees, and the birds singing
BertieBotts · 11/05/2022 07:54
I find being outside difficult in both cold and heat. I wish it could be somewhere between 10 and max 28 all year around. I find it is so draining just trying to exist outside when it is too hot or cold. All my energy goes towards awareness of this uncomfortable temperature. I seem to sweat much more easily than other people too or other people seem completely unbothered whereas I'm having a really hard time 
I could never have a job where you have to be outside.
PearCherryApple · 16/05/2022 10:08
Spf is a big trigger for me 🤢 sticky, itchy, greasy, stings my eyes, feels ‘wrong’ but I have to wear it
wearing sandals and then bits of pavement dirt on soles of feet makes me shudder
wasps and the fear of them
brightness and heat and the expectation to be happy because of it
Thimbl · 16/05/2022 17:23
I don't like it when it's too hot. The crowds. Picnics and eating outdoors.
Near neighbours and their loud music, etc, in the summer, seems to be a common complaint on Mumsnet, though.
I like the clothes and moderate warmth, reading a book or walking/running somewhere quiet.
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