People with autism can have difficulty identifying emotions, but this does not mean that we don’t feel them and cannot recognise certain emotions.

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I Feel Emotions

My emotions can be very intense, and the emotions of others can affect me. I am also sensitive to negativity. Mean words or actions would always make me cry when I was young. I don’t like confrontation, which can be especially distressing. It increases anxiety, and it is unpredictable.

When I get angry, I need time away from people to calm down, and sort issues out in my head. With life experience, I have learned to control my emotions and express them only in certain situations.

I Can Recognise Emotions, Especially Negativity Towards Me

Most of the time I have been good at picking up on negative vibes directed at me. I recognise basic emotions such as anger, happiness, and sadness. Yelling expresses a person’s anger. However, sometimes it can take me time to identify them, depending on the situation. I am not so good at identifying people’s subtle, or fake emotions such as pretending to be happy, or saying they are fine when they are not.

I can recognise people’s behaviour, especially if the behaviour changes when I have said something. I can’t always pinpoint why they have changed their behaviour, but I can detect that something is wrong with them.

Throughout my life, there were times people criticized, bullied and excluded me for many reasons, which made me more wary of negative behavior. I notice facial expressions like eye-rolling or frowning. These are more obvious, but I don’t notice the more subtle ones. I notice insults and when I am being ignored in conversations or being talked over.

I have become very aware of rejection and hostility, and those are the emotions I notice the most. However, a lot of neurotypical people are great at hiding their feelings, and that makes things complicated. The mental energy coping with this behaviour is exhausting.

Final Thoughts

I am very compassionate towards others, and I have empathy. I can recognise certain emotions, especially if they are direct. It’s easy to tell when someone is angry, especially when they are upset or shutting me out. If the behaviour is more subtle, I don’t notice it so well. I have learned to be hypervigilant about people’s reactions through learning and life experience.

For more information

• Dolly Bhargava, M. (2025) Autism and emotional dysregulation: Understanding the link, Autism Parenting Magazine. Available at: https://www.autismparentingmagazine.com/autism-and-emotional-dysregulation/ (Accessed: 15 August 2025).