The emotional part of your brain is hijacking the frontal lobe and the cognitive function. You’re right, you can’t really stop it in the throes of it, but have to wait for your brain to recover.
It’s an amygdala hijack:
Relates to flight or fright, but is essentially a freeze.
I think knowing what’s happening and learning to recognize when it’s coming can help you to step away from situations before they get that intense… sometimes.
Penny
ADDitude Community Moderator, Parenting ADHD Trainer & Author, Mom to teen w/ ADHD, LDs, and autism