An Introduction to Energy Accounting

Photo by Claudio Schwarz on Unsplash

Living in a world that isn't always designed for autistic people can be exhausting. Often, you are trying to meet demands that exceed your current resources. Energy accounting is a simple strategy to help you manage your energy levels and, as a result, reduce overall stress. 

While this article is aimed at autistic adults managing their own energy, it is also a powerful tool for parents helping their children understand their own internal batteries. 

What is Energy Accounting? 

Think of your personal energy like a bank account. Everything you do throughout the day is either a withdrawal (drains energy) or a deposit (restores energy). 

The goal of energy accounting is to keep your account balance healthy, so you have enough resources to cope with daily life without becoming overloaded. 

• Withdrawals: These are activities that are tiring or stressful. They might include socialising, meetings, or unexpected changes at work. 

• Deposits: These are activities that make you feel recharged and calm. They might include stimming, spending time with animals, gaming, or reading.  

Your starting balance each morning depends on the day before. If you had a very draining day or poor sleep, you might start the next day with a negative balance. 

Why Use It? 

For adults, this is a tool for self-management and autonomy. For parents, it is a way to understand why a child might be struggling and how to proactively support them. By tracking energy, you can: 

• Identify exactly what is draining you or your child.  

• Ensure that energy-draining activities are always balanced with recovery time. 

• Predict potential meltdowns or shutdowns before they happen by noticing when the energy account balance is too low. 

How to Start Using Energy Accounting 

Energy accounting is a personal system, and you are encouraged to make it your own. Here is a recommended approach to getting started:  

1. Create Your Lists 

Create a document listing your deposits and withdrawals. Don't overthink it—just start noticing what makes you feel tired and what makes you feel better.   

• Adults: Write your own list of deposits and withdrawals.  

• Parents: Observe your child and note which activities seem to soothe them and which make them irritable or tired. 

Top Tip: Treat your list as a working document. Your needs will change over time, and an activity that is a deposit one day might be a withdrawal the next, depending on the context. 

2. Optional: Allocate Scores 

Some people like to give activities a score out of 10 or 100, whereas others find this overly complicated. If you are interested in trying scoring, here is an example: 

• A difficult social event might be a -80 withdrawal. 

• An hour of a favourite hobby might be a +40 deposit. 

Scoring helps you see if you have planned enough recovery to pay back a big energy drain. 

3. Use Energy Accounting for Proactive Planning 

The long-term goal is to use energy accounting to help you plan well. For example: 

• Balance the day: If you know Wednesday has a big energy withdrawal (like a meeting or a doctor's appointment), plan for Tuesday and Thursday to be low-demand days filled with deposits. 

• The “Rumble” response: If you notice your energy (or your child's) is flagging in the moment, stop and prioritise a deposit activity immediately to prevent overload.