Monotropism, Young People and Autistic Burnout
Helen Edgar (Autistic Realms) examines how the theory of Monotropism provides a lens for understanding the challenges Autistic, ADHD and AuDHD young people face in the education system and at home, and how their needs can be better supported to avoid burnout.
What is Monotropism?
Monotropism is a theory of autism developed by Murray, Lesser, and Lawson in their article; Attention, monotropism and the diagnostic criteria for Autism, (2005). This theory suggests that autistic people focus more energy (resources) on a smaller number of channels of attention at any one time. This can lead to intense experiences and difficulties shifting attention resources, affecting sensory, physical, cognitive, social and communication interactions and responses, basically everything!
Autistic, ADHD and AuDHD people are likely to be more monotropic than people who are not autistic / ADHD (Garau et al., 2023). Monotropic people hyper-focus on events and experiences inside their attention tunnel, and things happening outside their attention tunnel may be missed or not fully picked up on. This could explain many difficulties autistic / ADHD/ AuDHD people have with executive functioning, hyper/hypo-sensory experiences, and differences in social and communication interactions. Being monotropic can have an impact on physical and mental health, and a better understanding of monotropism could improve the well-being of many autistic/ADHD and AuDHD people.
Monotropic Learners and School
The theory of monotropism could help explain why many young neurodivergent people find busy environments like school difficult and overwhelming and why so many struggle with school attendance. Research from Connolly et al. (2023) showed that 92% of those with school attendance difficulties were described as neurodivergent, and 83% were autistic. These statistics are significant as neurodivergent people are also likely to have stronger monotropic tendencies.
Understanding monotropism can help to provide a better understanding of the feelings of overload and afterschool ‘meltdown/shutdown’ that so many parents/carers describe and young people experience after they have perhaps appeared ‘fine’ in school all day. These after-school meltdowns/ shutdowns are likely due to masking and trying to hold things together at school as much as possible (consciously or subconsciously) in an environment that does not meet their needs. It is a sign that children are struggling and need more support and a different, more neurodiversity-affirming approach.
Monotropism and Balance
Monotropic people are likely to have very strong interests, which can last weeks, months or even years. However, they may also be much shorter, intense moments of a completely immersive sensory experience. If the curriculum is tailored to children’s interests, being monotropic can be a wonderfully positive experience and lead to deep knowledge and new skills. Children with a monotropic learning style can become engaged and be more intrinsically motivated to learn and reach their potential if learning is planned around their interests. Children can feel empowered if they are interested in a topic they feel strongly about and are more confident and comfortable with. Learning will become easier and smoother if they have something to ‘hook’ their attention and draw them in. It can be comforting and reassuring diving deeper into an area of interest and discovering new things within the safety of a familiar topic.
The current education system is not set up for monotropic learners and this could be a reason behind why more neurodivergent children struggle in school environments as they get older and the curriculum becomes more rigid compared to early years, and then again, primary settings and school attendance and mental health difficulties spike as they enter secondary education ( Education Policy Institute, 2023 & TES ‘The attendance crisis: are pupils voting with their feet?’ 4th Jan 2024). However, self-directed learning and a more interest-led educational curriculum and environment can be much more difficult to set up and manage in mainstream secondary settings; this is highlighted in the work of Fisher, ‘A Different Way to Learn’ (2023). This may be why so many neurodivergent children benefit from alternative settings or home learning environments that enable this way of learning that embraces monotropism.
Being monotropic can lead to an imbalance between the pull towards interests or what is described as the ‘inner drive towards passions’ (Rapaport et al., 2023) and the demands of everyday tasks. If a person has more demands than their attention tunnel can manage, they will experience overload, which eventually, without enough time to recover, could lead to autistic burnout.
The research by Rapaport et al. (2023) focused on autistic adults’ experience of hyperfocus, flow states and monotropism. They “revealed the all-encompassing nature of task immersion experiences, and how it could be difficult to ‘‘find the balance’’ between the joy and other aspects of everyday life”. Understanding monotropism and having a deeper awareness of your neurodivergent identity (framed through an affirming lens), learning ways to balance energy levels and manage flow states at school and home could help reduce and prevent autistic burnout for young people and improve well-being.
Autistic Burnout & Young People
Arnold et al. (2023) state, “Autistic Burnout is a debilitating syndrome preceded by an overload of life stressors and the daily challenge of existing in a neurotypical world.” They also concluded that “autistic people experience exhaustion, withdrawal and problems with concentration and thinking”. This shows that autistic burnout is closely related to the stress experienced by autistic people that accumulates over time. This research focused on adults, but similar experiences of autistic burnout are likely to be felt by young people, too, as the research by Phung et al. (2021) highlighted.
Autistic Burnout and School
Busy classrooms and tight timetables at school with frequent changes in subjects/teachers may feel overwhelming for many young autistic people as it means a constant shift of gears and re-alignment of thought processing as they try to move between attention tunnels throughout the day. Without the flexibility and opportunity to rest and regulate recharge, young people may feel like they are living in a constant state of fight/fight/ freeze/fawn. They may feel they are never in the right comfortable, safe zone for effective learning.
To be able to learn effectively, you have to feel safe and in control of your environment and yourself; if a young person is anxious and living in a state of hypo/hyperarousal and always on alert, ready to change attention tunnels, they will likely not be the best state for effective learning. In the long term, this can affect physical and mental health and cause many difficulties, seriously impacting educational outcomes and well-being.
Being in a safe environment and being able to hyper-focus can enable a wonderful restorative flow state. Kotowicz (2022) describes this as being in ‘safe mode’, which can lead to deep learning, meaningful play and immersive sensory experiences. However, if you are monotropic, this natural way of thinking monotropically could also leave people stuck in ‘loops of concern’ consumed by negative thoughts, as described by Hallet (2021), which can lead to mental health difficulties.
Autistic Inertia and Flow
Autistic inertia (Buckle et al., 2021) is a feeling of being ‘stuck’; it is when people find it hard to either start or stop activities. To help young people thrive in a monotropic way, they may need support to keep a flow going between attention tunnels. Interest-led learning is highly beneficial, and giving children more autonomy over their learning can help keep things moving smoothly. Other ideas, such as visual timetables, checklists, gentle prompts, and more flexibility, can also help manage different demands and support transitions.
At home, it will help to be more flexible and plan with your children when possible. Giving children a sense of autonomy can help reduce anxiety. Maintaining routines can help make life more predictable and manageable; reducing as many demands as possible and prioritising tasks depending on circumstances will help manage energy levels and attention resources. Demands from homework and extracurricular clubs may be one attention tunnel too many to navigate for some children. It may be a better use of their time to restore energy by engaging in their monotopic interests to help them regulate ready for the next day rather than adding more demands than they have the capacity for. If you have younger children, it may help to engage in playing alongside them (parallel play); this can feel less demanding and enable them to fully engage in their monotropic play yet still feel supported and create a sense of togetherness with you.
Access to a sensory tool kit can be a helpful starting point to enable a better flow and smoother path to navigate attention tunnels and the demands of a busy day. This may mean using ear defenders to tune noise out or fidget toys to add extra sensory input to help keep a more regulated flow going. Some children may benefit from a safe, quiet den at home, while others may need time with physical activities such as trampolines to help balance their body, mind, and energy levels. It is essential to accept the young person’s monotropic way of experiencing and responding to the world and people around them so they feel cared for and understood and have a sense of belonging with those around them. (Anna Freud, National Autism Trainer Programme, also echoes this humanising approach towards care and education).
Embodied Education & Connections
The young people in the study by Phung et al.(2021) “placed a very high value on compassionate support and understanding from the adults around them” and being able to collaborate with an adult (e.g. parent or education support). They suggest that collaborative regulation goes beyond co-regulation, and it acknowledges a shared responsibility, mindful and deliberate planning, and consideration of the physical, sensory, and social environment.
My experience of being monotropic is a whole mind and body way of being, processing, experiencing and responding to the world. Phung’s young participants described burnout as a ‘whole person experience, encompassing physical, cognitive, and emotional components.’ We cannot separate a person from their experiences; we need to help children re-ground themselves, help them regulate their minds and bodies and support them to feel accepted, create a sense of togetherness, help them make sense of their personal journey and validate their inner experiences (McGreevey et al. 2023).
In their book ‘Embodied Education: Creating Safe Space for Learning, Facilitating and Sharing’ Kay and Dan Aldred (2023) share the importance of being a ‘space holder’ to create a feeling of safety for young people. Unless children feel safe, they cannot learn; by developing trust and enabling a deeper connection with the young people we care for, we can support them to feel validated when they feel ‘exhausted, out of control or frozen.’ Being together and valuing autistic communication and authentic ways of being can help address the double empathy problem (Milton, 2012) and help children feel better understood, which will support better mental health.
Having a better understanding of monotropism will help to support the well-being of many autistic and ADHD young people and could help to reduce and prevent autistic burnout. Much more research is needed in this area, but lots more research is has also been emerging, especially over the past few months. It feels promising that so many people are now sharing stories and their own inner experiences of being autistic across social media platforms and there is more research being led by neurodivergent researchers too. This will help open more conversations; it is a big step forward in the right direction for a more accepting neurodiversity-affirming future for our young people.
