Neurodiversity and Burnout

By Maddy Lemaire | April 14, 2026

Recognizing the Signs & Addressing the Symptoms

What is Burnout?

Burnout has become a hot topic over the last several years as many of us struggle to find a balance between work, school, family, friends, and all the other demands and responsibilities of life. This lack of balance can result in prolonged stress that eventually leads to exhaustion and negative psychophysiological impacts that characterize burnout. As slowing down, prioritizing self-care, and reducing overall stress can be very challenging in the fast-paced, high demand world we live in, all of us are susceptible to burnout and its negative impacts.

For neurodivergent people, the risk of burnout is often amplified due to greater difficulties in recognizing the warning signs and the added strain of navigating a world that was not built for neurodivergent people. Neurodivergence is an umbrella term that refers to people whose brain processes differ from what is considered ‘typical’. This covers a range of diagnoses including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), dyslexia, Tourette syndrome, dyspraxia, and so forth (Tomczak & Kulikowski, 2023). Neurodivergent people have a wide array of different experiences, needs, challenges, and abilities, so for simplicity’s sake, this post will focus on burnout as it relates to the experiences of people with ADHD and ASD.

For people with ADHD and/or ASD, burnout can take on different characteristics than it does for neurotypical people. For instance, ADHD burnout is more so caused by prolonged, unmanaged ADHD symptoms, external stressors, challenges with executive dysfunction, and overwhelming emotional and cognitive demands (Neff, 2022a). For people with ADHD, the burnout from dealing with these factors can result in overwhelming exhaustion, reduced productivity, and increased difficulty in managing ADHD symptoms. For people with ASD, burnout, sometimes referred to as autistic burnout, is typically caused by chronic life stress and a misalignment between external expectations and individual abilities, especially when not able to access necessary supports (Mantzalas et al., 2023). Autistic burnout then leads to long-term, pervasive exhaustion, reduced functioning, interpersonal withdrawal, and reduced tolerance for stimulus.

Noticing, or Not Noticing, the Signs of Burnout

Burnout is easier to address when the warning signs are caught early on and steps can be taken to address the issue before it becomes even bigger and more overwhelming. However, people with ADHD and/or ASD are much more likely to have difficulties with identifying, recognizing, and describing emotions and bodily sensations, which is known as alexithymia (Kinnaird et al., 2019). For people with alexithymia, it is much harder to address burnout in its early stages as the mental, emotional, and physical cues that provide warning signs are more likely to go unnoticed (Neff, 2026). It is often not until burnout has reached a dire level and the symptoms have become too intense to ignore, that neurodivergent people with alexithymia will be able to recognize the issue and work towards recovering.

Alexithymia can also make burnout recovery more challenging for neurodivergent folks by making it harder to recognize the internal bodily cues that tell us what our minds and bodies need. In a physical sense, this might mean not noticing that you’re feeling hungry until you’re so hungry you feel lightheaded and shaky. Mentally and emotionally, this might mean not recognizing that you’re feeling anxious until you’re having a full anxiety attack. Burnout can also exacerbate these difficulties by reducing cognitive and physical functioning even further, creating a feedback loop of unmet needs.

Building Awareness for Warning Signs

Improving Interoception
While neurodivergent people may have a harder time recognizing and addressing the warning signs of burnout, this doesn’t mean that waiting until burnout symptoms become too big to ignore is the only option. Working to improve interoception, which is our ability to detect, interpret, and act on internal cues and sensations (Joglekar & Hopkins, 2025), can be a helpful starting point for neurodivergent people who struggle to recognize the warning signs of burnout. There are several different strategies and approaches for improving interoception that can be incorporated into your daily routine.

Body Scans have been shown to be useful for increasing interoception, especially with long-term use (Fischer et al., 2017). Body scans can be done independently or using a guided video or audio recording. Both methods involve taking a few minutes to sit or lay down in a quiet space, free of interruptions or distractions, closing your eyes if possible, and bringing awareness to each part of your body, typically starting at your feet and slowly working your way up, taking time to give mindful attention to each part of your body, noticing any sensations or feelings along the way (Fischer et al., 2017; Neff, 2023). There are all sorts of free guided body scan videos and audio recordings available online, such as this 15-Minute Body Scan – Guided Meditation by Shiori Lange, LCSW. While body scans can be very beneficial for strengthening interoceptive awareness, they can sometimes trigger intense emotional and physical responses, especially for people who have experienced body-based trauma. So, if this is the case for you, it is recommended to explore this strategy with a therapist or a mental health professional before attempting on your own (Neff, 2023).

Doing quick check-ins with yourself can also be easily incorporated into your daily routine if you don’t have time to do a full body scan or don’t have access to a quiet space. Check-ins involve simply taking a moment to bring awareness to your body and notice if there are any areas of discomfort or other internal sensations. This allows us to recognize patterns and encourages us to address our needs once we notice the internal cues. Incorporating quick check-ins throughout your day also helps build the habit of looking inwards and being mindful of internal sensations.

Practicing naming internal states can also help strengthen interoception by improving the ability to consciously notice and identify internal sensations and cues (Neff, 2023). This strategy is exactly like it sounds: when you notice a new internal sensation, take a moment to give a name to this sensation so that it can be easily addressed. Naming internal states often makes sensations feel more tangible and provides a foundation to move forward with intentional direction. For example, if you notice that your chest is feeling tight and you’re clenching your jaw, you might name this sensation as ‘stress’. Once ‘stress’ has been named, you can then work to identify the source of this sensation and implement tools to try and alleviate this feeling. This practice can also be incorporated into body scans by giving a name to the sensations that may arise during this process. If you find that putting a name to your emotions and feelings can be difficult, it can be helpful to use visual aids like an emotions wheel to pinpoint the specific name of your internal state.

Setting timers or alarms as reminders to check in with ourselves and our internal sensations can also be very useful, especially starting out in the process of improving interoception. For those of us who have difficulty recognizing and identifying internal states and may also struggle with things like time blindness and executive dysfunction, creating external cues can help reduce some of the cognitive load required for implementing new tools and strategies. Alarms or timers can be set throughout the day to remind you to check-in with yourself and notice any internal bodily cues, so that you can address the needs that these cues are indicating. You could also create more specific reminders such as setting an alarm at lunch time to ensure you’re having something to eat and drink or setting a timer to go off every few hours throughout your workday to remind you to take a moment to stretch and move a bit.

Recognizing Patterns
Looking inwards and improving interoception also lends a helping hand in supporting our ability to identify emotional and behavioural patterns that indicate heightened stress. Identifying patterns can make it easier to notice the warning signs of burnout and encourage early intervention. The specific patterns will be unique to each of us, but we can use the skills and tools for improving interoception to help us identify our specific stress-related patterns.

Identifying patterns can be hard when we feel like we don’t know where to start. As we become more comfortable using the interoception strategies outlined above, we can start to make connections between internal sensations and external behaviours. For instance, by doing daily body scans, you may notice that you hold more tension in your shoulders on days when you have stressful meetings. Noticing this pattern allows us to make the connection between tense shoulders and increased stress, so the next time you notice your shoulders tensing, you can quickly identify it as a stress cue. Some common patterns that can occur when stressed or entering into burnout include changes in sleep habits, heightened sensory sensitivities, increased muscle tension or soreness, withdrawing from socializing or avoiding responsibilities more frequently, and experiencing more self-criticism and ruminations (Neff, 2026).

Identifying Triggers
A frustrating aspect of burnout is that it is often caused, or at least exacerbated, by external and systemic factors that are outside of our control. For neurodivergent people, these factors can have an intense impact since so much extra effort and energy is required to function within a world that was not built for neurodivergent minds. On top of managing the demands of life, people with ADHD and/or ASD also have the added stress of dealing with things like sensory issues, executive dysfunction, and masking. Accessing accommodations to help manage ADHD and ASD symptoms can also be very challenging, leaving many people without the supports they need.

While there are many systemic contributors to neurodivergent burnout that we cannot control, it can still be helpful to identify the external factors that may act as triggers for heightened stress. Identifying these triggers allows us to prepare for the aftermath by implementing additional self-care tools to accommodate for added stress and makes it easier to avoid the triggers when possible. As with recognizing patterns, each of us will have unique triggers that add to the risk of burnout, but there are some more common things that can act as triggers for people with ADHD and/or ASD. These can include changes in routine, unexpected task transitions, having an unpredictable schedule, overwhelming sensory experiences, increased social demands, and masking for long periods of time (Khan, 2025).

Recovering from ADHD & Autistic Burnout

Addressing Sensory Needs
Sensory experiences can have both very positive and very negative impacts on people with ADHD and/or ASD, by either providing necessary stimulus or causing sensory overload. Building awareness for your specific sensory needs and attending to these needs can help reduce burnout by increasing exposure to positive, recharging sensory experiences and decreasing exposure to draining or overwhelming sensory experiences (Raymaker et al., 2020). Using the skills outlined above, we can practice recognizing when a sensory experience feels good and embracing these experiences more often. This could mean wearing clothes with sensory friendly material or playing with a fidget toy. On the other hand, reducing exposure to negative sensory experiences and taking sensory breaks throughout the day can limit sensory overload. This might mean taking bigger breaks every few days or weeks by setting aside a day or two to have quiet alone time to recharge or taking a few minutes throughout your day for a sensory break by turning off the lights and putting on noise canceling headphones.

Unmasking
Due to social pressure and neurotypical expectations, many neurodivergent folks learn from an early age to supress their neurodivergent traits and mimic the behaviours of others to fit in and protect themselves from ridicule. This is known as masking, and while it acts as a protective behaviour, it also requires significant energy to maintain and can lead to burnout, as well as other issues like identity confusion and mental health concerns (Manhattan Psychology Group, n.d.). Considering these negative consequences, it can be very relieving to embrace neurodivergent traits and reduce masking behaviours. Using interoception and self-awareness skills can help with noticing when you’re masking in social situations and provides the opportunity to make the decision to unmask in these moments. Unmasking might involve allowing yourself to not make eye contact, not suppressing stimming behaviour, or leaving social situations when feeling overwhelmed.

Since masking provides protection and security in social settings, the idea of removing this protective factor can be very scary. So, finding a community of people, or even just one person in your life, who are understanding and accepting and who you can feel safe when unmasking can be very helpful when starting this process. (Raymaker et al., 2020). Building community with other neurodiverse people who have shared experiences and understanding can also make is easier to unmask by providing an affirming and safe social environment.

Building Healthy Habits & Routines
There are many factors that can go into building healthy habits and routines to help recover from burnout. Establishing a routine that is consistent and maintainable makes it easier to manage day to day tasks and reduces the stress of unexpected changes or plans. With this, it is important to respect your limits and make space for rest and recovery by setting boundaries and give yourself permission to say ‘no’ (Raymaker et al., 2020). While prioritizing time for rest is important in recovering from burnout, it is also equally important to aside time to engage with mentally and emotionally fulfilling activities like passion projects, special interests, and hobbies (Neff, 2022b). Taking care of our physical health is also a key factor in burnout recovery. Fuelling our bodies by eating consistent meals, drinking enough water, getting restful sleep, spending time outdoors, and participating in physical activity helps recharge, both mentally and physically. Sticking to a routine can be hard, especially for people with ADHD, so it’s important to give yourself grace if you have setbacks and let yourself start again.

Accommodations & Professional Supports
While there are lots of things we can on our own to recover from burnout, seeking external support is often a necessary step. Reaching out to friends, family, and/or peers can be a beneficial first step in gaining additional support. Opening up about your needs and experience can provide deeper connection and helps other people understand how they can best support you. Being open with others can also make it easier to set boundaries and attend to your own needs by helping people to understand why you may need to do things like cancel plans or take on fewer responsibilities.

When possible, accessing accommodations from work or school can provide much needed relief and support in these environments that often have high demands. While there can be barriers to accessing accommodations, such as requiring a formal diagnosis, it can still be helpful to express your needs in these spaces to open up the conversation and determine what options are available to you. Lastly, working with a neurodiversity affirming and informed counsellor can provide support in exploring and understanding your needs, implementing tools and coping strategies, and embracing vulnerability.

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References

Posted in Therapy, Approaches to Therapy, Individual Psychotherapy