seobion.blogg.se - Pathological demand avoidance in adults

Direct requests, such as “You have to make the bed”.

However, in PDA, it’s triggered by various requests that seem to be of no great importance. This kind of rejection, or fight or flight reaction can appear in anyone.

If they can’t evade the demand or regain control, or the other person insists, the individual may suffer a crisis or meltdown, due to their levels of anxiety.

For instance, using the previous example, the child might focus on repeatedly touching the object they were asked to stay away from.

Focusing on doing exactly the opposite of the request.Avoiding it by changing the subject, making excuses, or leaving it for later.Somehow, they feel like they’re losing control which leads them to do everything possible to recover it. This means their nervous system becomes dysregulated. Although for most of us, this isn’t a problem, the individual with PDA perceives the demand as a threat. On the other hand, the individual also feels that they’ve lost their autonomy as someone is directing them. For example, when a child is asked not to touch a delicate object. That’s because they think the other person is in a position of authority. But, why does it happen? In effect, when faced with a certain request or demand, the individual experiences the feeling that they’re on the losing side. This is the main characteristic of PDA which manifests during childhood and usually lasts until adulthood. Moreover, they use various strategies to evade or get rid of it. Faced with any daily demand, however small it may appear to be, the individual reacts with rejection. The concept refers to a constant resistance or avoidance of the demands of daily life. Then, it started to appear in scientific publications and was mentioned at conferences. However, it wasn’t until a couple of decades ago that it began to receive attention.

The term was first used by the psychologist, Elizabeth Newson. Therefore, the characteristics and needs of people with PDA aren’t well understood and attended to. The autistic spectrum encompasses extremely different realities about which we still don’t possess sufficient knowledge. Pathological demand avoidance falls on the spectrum of autism. PDA is considered to fall on the spectrum of autism.