The "S" Word...STRESS!

I thought that this post should be about my least favorite "s" word, stress. It's going to be about what happens when I have stress and what I do to lower my stress level if I get too stressed.
As a nineteen year old with Autism, I always believe that the best perspective and source of information about Autism is from the Autistic person. I thought that since I'm currently stressed out right now about something, I figured I'd talk about it.
Stress is not my friend. Stress is my enemy. When I feel stressed, I tense up ten times worse than the average person. It's even worse when I'm tired and only have 4-7 hours of sleep (that case is today, did not sleep too well last night). How I react to stress is different than how the next Autistic person may react. Some might yell. Some might cry. Some might actually get violent. However with me, I have a meltdown. I cry for a while and squeeze my fingers. If I'm not crying, I'm rocking myself back and forth (which I am currently doing as we speak). I bite my fingernails. I feel like I want to pull my own hair out. I feel tense. I don't want to be messed with. It's a horrible feeling. And all the information that is being sent to my brain all day, every day, as well as my intense senses, do NOT, I repeat, DO NOT, help one bit. Again, some people are more and/or less Autistic than I am, so everyone reacts differently.
Since I'm so sensitive and vulnerable, it's hard for me to feel 100% better in 10-15 minutes, half an hour, or an hour. It sometimes goes on to three hours, happens off and on throughout the day, sometimes it can make feel stressed and grumpy all day and all night. In my life, I did manage to discover a few tips and things I can do to lower my stress a little bit. For example, a stress ball is great. If you do not have a stress ball, I HIGHLY recommend Play-Doh. I use Play-Doh as part of my "self therapy," but I mainly use it for stress. It works great because you're able to squeeze it and it works like a stress ball. Next thing I do, I punch a pillow. I don't punch my stuffed animals or my stuffed horse, Midnight Sheffield, that's not nice and I'll hurt their feelings (I was a kid when I first said that, don't judge me). I use a pillow. I want to take out my frustrations and stressed and take it out on my poor pillow, and that helps. Listening to music helps. That's all when I'm at home.
When I'm in public, let's say at school or at the grocery store, that's a whole different story. The messages being sent intensify. The noise is too much. So much is going on. I have to take very deeps breaths if I'm stressed out. I also count to ten in my head. Sometimes, I go up to 50. No matter where I am, one thing that really does help is talking to my mom, because she knows what stress is, and she can help me feel better. Even a hug from her would make me feel a little better. My dad is a great help, too. I also color and draw when I'm stressed, and it makes me feel a bit better.
Like I said, that's all how I feel and how I cope. Calling all Autism parents: what do YOU do when your Autistic child gets stressed? Leave comments below on the blog.
Thanks for reading this, guys.