Meltdown

A meltdown refers to an intense, outwardly visible reaction to being overwhelmed, which may manifest, for example, as crying, screaming, strong emotional outbursts or physical restlessness. Meltdowns occur when stress, stimuli or demands exceed an individual’s ability to cope. Like shutdowns, they are neither controllable nor deliberate, but rather an expression of an acute stress response by the nervous system. Unlike a shutdown, however, the reaction is directed more towards the outside world. Meltdowns are often misunderstood and mistakenly interpreted as inappropriate behaviour.