Oh absolutely: the entanglements of trauma and neurodivergence are so fucking complicated. Plus also the category "this experience would be traumatic for anyone but if I weren't neuroatypical this experience would not have arisen from this situation/the precursors to the experience", which is in and around mine a lot.
I also think that neuroatypicality and trauma can end up with one in the same place, and needing the same things, just from different angles (the super easy example being that both ASD kids and traumatized kids both need REALLY RELIABLE environments and life-patterns), and to some extent there's only any utility in trying to differentiate, on a personal level, when one is faced with a situation where the solution to a problem would be different depending on which is causative.
Which is, yeah, given the poison in our culture so often very easy to turn into "which need is valid?" but really isn't: whether one is freaking out at the crowd because of a trauma-response based in the arousal system, or freaking out in the crowd because THERE'S TOO MANY SOUNDS CANNOT PARSE, either need is EQUALLY valid.
And in both cases one probably most needs a coping strategy that allows one to sort out how to remove oneself from the crowd.
Only one is probably going to be ameliorated by putting earplugs in, though, and only the other is likely to be ameliorated by finding a wall to put one's back to in order to chart out the exits.
But if it's not that kind of situation, meh. And those can often be figured out through trial and error.
/ramble
Anyway. The POINT being: I fully endorse avoiding situations where you're trying to determine which need is Valid, as yes, it is not good for general wellbeing.
no subject
I also think that neuroatypicality and trauma can end up with one in the same place, and needing the same things, just from different angles (the super easy example being that both ASD kids and traumatized kids both need REALLY RELIABLE environments and life-patterns), and to some extent there's only any utility in trying to differentiate, on a personal level, when one is faced with a situation where the solution to a problem would be different depending on which is causative.
Which is, yeah, given the poison in our culture so often very easy to turn into "which need is valid?" but really isn't: whether one is freaking out at the crowd because of a trauma-response based in the arousal system, or freaking out in the crowd because THERE'S TOO MANY SOUNDS CANNOT PARSE, either need is EQUALLY valid.
And in both cases one probably most needs a coping strategy that allows one to sort out how to remove oneself from the crowd.
Only one is probably going to be ameliorated by putting earplugs in, though, and only the other is likely to be ameliorated by finding a wall to put one's back to in order to chart out the exits.
But if it's not that kind of situation, meh. And those can often be figured out through trial and error.
/ramble
Anyway. The POINT being: I fully endorse avoiding situations where you're trying to determine which need is Valid, as yes, it is not good for general wellbeing.