"Hyper" emotional?

[Kalinychta]

Many autistic people have an elevated or "hyper" sense of emotional (affective) empathy. I'm just curious: how many of you identify as such? How many of you feel that you have a normal amount of emotional empathy and how many a lesser-than-normal amount?

 

[Thinx]

I put 'moderate' but I think what I have is 2 types of emotional empathy, in one type the picking up of any emotional vibes is low and the empathy is achieved through noticing details of behaviour and knowing what these indicate, and how to appropriately respond. Sherlock Holmes empathy I call that.

In the other type, I will just suddenly feel emotions that seem to be the emotions of a person nearby. Like, burst into tears when someone else I am with has lost a family member, (lost through death I mean, not just lost them in the supemarket, I m not that sensitive).

So, I don't think this equates to the neurotypical way of emotionally empathising. I am on the whole not highly emotional, yet can sometimes channel the emotions of others, apparently, and have learned a lot about how emotions are expressed, and how to usefully respond to them.

 

[Progster]

I'm not sure how to answer this. I've been told that I'm not very good on picking up on other people's moods, but that may be because I don't know what to do with people's emotions. I don't know how to react, or can become overwhelmed or feel very uncomfortable with people's intense emotions. I tend to shut down.

Watching other people is like watching on TV or behind a screen, I don't get or 'feel' this exchange of emotions that goes on in a conversation, but that could be because I can't process them in real time, rather than a lack of ability.

I know I do have empathy though, because otherwise, why would I feel so much distress at seeing pictures of hurt or dead animals after a local forest fire, for example? Or why would I feel the need to help people in need?

 

[Kalinychta]

Reading the above responses reminds me that emotions are so difficult and complicated for autistic people. I’m extremely hyper-emotional but only when I see/feel that someone is in true pain. It’s difficult to explain, and isn’t exact. Also as @Progster said, when it comes to hurt or distressed animals... Honestly for me, it’s especially animals—I’m often so overwhelmed by their vulnerability and beauty. “Normal” people think that feeling this much is crazy.

 

[watersprite]

I checked the hyper emotion box.
It’s often not a fun place to live. Meditation and mindfulness have helped considerably. I’ve recently found myself able to produce again and that’s good. Painting is also at times draining: requires my intensity to be brought to bear in a focused process.
Form, pattern, color and light have forceful effects on my emotion which goes directly to images, and filed away with their concomitant emotions. Brain tattoos from my lifetime.
Animals’ and other critters’ plights affect me so powerfully that I have to keep my attention away or I’ll lose it - an utter wreck. Other people who lack understanding of this have insisted I should exert control over it. This, in the case of animals, birds, etc. is not possible.
You’d think that I’d pick up on other’s (human) emotions but unless I’m observing obvious body language I don’t.
If they tell me clearly & definitively, I believe them & can’t tell whether what they say is true or not.
Edited to add that I get angry easily and I forgive easily, I don’t like wasting energy on anger it’s not wise.

 

[SimonSays]

I forgive easily,

I also forgive easily.

Most of the time, my observational nature creates a detached space, so while there may be awareness that there could be emotion, there is no direct experience of it. Usually.

But that can change unexpectedly. Suddenly, I can really feel it, in real time, and it feels real, very real. I can be watching a good drama, for example, where I never identify with any character, because they're just a created character, when something touches me and tears are right there. I still don't care about the fictional character, but the feeling is so real. In that moment, I am realer somehow. More alive. My heart is open. I am sensitive, vulnerable, I feel and understand myself differently, better.

Was I closed before? Depressed? Distant? Now, I can feel again and empathise. It may have been triggered by something external, but I wish I felt more of it more often. Maybe there's just less that reaches me now, but when it does, it really does.

 

[watersprite]

I put an emotional work of mine into media. I think it depicts the familiar numb state.
I did it from a sketch done tanding on the edge, gazing down, over a chasm, when a weak thermal rolled up past my skin.

Is there a name for the emotion of equinimity combined with intellectualized dread? I couldn’t find it so I named it “updraft.”

 

[Wolfsage]

Anger and embrassment I pick up on. I also have a shell shock effect with yelling.

 

[Varzar]

Definitely low for me.
In drama-y TV shows some relationship issues I will watch and have to pause the show to ask my wife why the people are upset. She tries to explain, but I still won't get it.
Emotions are always very disconnected.
It works great for emergencies. Like when my neighbour got mauled by a bear, or my dad cut his hand open with a chainsaw. It's just like, "ok, time to go to the hospital now, let's go!".

The bear one was quite amusing cause the town doctor was actually there for the event as well. The three of us went to the clinic in his truck. But it was the doctor, of all of us, that seemed the most panicked. There were several occasions I considered asking him if he'd like me to drive instead (cause he was shaking). I felt like I was trying to calm him down more than anything.
I guess he was used to patching people up after an event like that, but not being there for the event itself.

 

[Aspychata]

Yes, same here, animals injured send me over to extreme sadness. On some days l seem over sensitized. If a movie turns out violent, it heads to the trash. But l like to analyse movie plots and l really like certain directors.

Yes, l can channel emotions without even being aware it's happening. So that's not good.

The people at the retirement home that always smiled and seemed happy taught me a valuable lesson, to be the same. I enjoyed waiting on them and helping them out. The ones that weren't happy required kindness too.

I have bike tracks in my brain. I like to stay on the logical path, sometimes l fall of my bike into the murky emotional abyss, but it's taking less time to climb out. This is how l relate to this excellent question posed by @Kalinychta.

 

[Amy Stone]

Very low. I was surprised at how low when I took the EQ test and scored a 12 The good part about it I am very good in emergencies

 

[ForestGumpett]

Anger and embrassment I pick up on. I also have a shell shock effect with yelling.

Yelling is horrible for me. I physically had the crap beat out of me by a couple of men was raped by another and have cPTSD form growing up in insanity - Yelling or violence on TV can put me into a ball in the dark closet corner shaking. It’s freaky.

This is how children grow up when they have absent parents, I think, not sure.

Don’t understand anything anymore, just exist.

 

[watersprite]

It is weird, abnormally strange even; maybe I don’t fit any boxes ar all. I have assisted &/or been the only calm person at a few emergencies involving people. Some switch is thrown and cold logical functioning takes place.
But I now have ptsd concerning several of those experiences, so the emotions must’ve been crumpled up and stashed somewhere.

 

[watersprite]

@ForestGumpett This is a safe albeit virtual place. I hope you have peace and safety wherever you are physically now.

 

[ForestGumpett]

@ForestGumpett This is a safe albeit virtual place. I hope you have peace and safety wherever you are physically now.

Thank you, you have been very kind while I’ve been here, so thank you. I do not feel safe here at all, quite honestly this is about the most uncomfortable forum I’ve ever visited and have strongly considered an exit - but you and a few others have been kind.

I am very safe now thank you. I’m old with ill health and weak, but happily married to a big strong man and our hobby is shooting. I grew up doing it so now that it’s a hobby you have no idea how safe I am, if you were with me you’d be safe too - I’m a pretty darn good shooter now after 40+ years of it.
Not sure where you live, but if offered it’s a great equalizer when your a woman up against men.

 

[Au Naturel]

There's affective empathy, somatic empathy, and cognitive empathy. I am fairly low with affective, almost no somatic, and fairly decent in cognitive empathy.

 

[Au Naturel]

It is weird, abnormally strange even; maybe I don’t fit any boxes ar all. I have assisted &/or been the only calm person at a few emergencies involving people. Some switch is thrown and cold logical functioning takes place.
But I now have ptsd concerning several of those experiences, so the emotions must’ve been crumpled up and stashed somewhere.

I've been in perhaps an unusually large number of genuine serious emergencies. I am the guy who thinks it out while everyone else is running around emoting. I probably look really useless to them, maybe disinterested or confused. And then I fix the problem.

No PTSD, though I've seen people die up close and personal, while I held them.

I am rarely sad because I see someone sad. Only if it is someone very close to me. I'll usually be sad about the situation that caused the sadness.

 

[watersprite]

No PTSD, though I've seen people die up close and personal, while I held them.

I’m grateful my experiences have not included this one.

Sometimes people cannot help because, if I understand correctly, their amygdala has taken over. Executive functioning has temporarily halted.

I do however have trouble meaning severe reactions to certain situations such as crowds, very noisy places and when circumstances are socially a “pressure-cooker.” Basically I just exit, I withdraw, whether appropriate or not.

Almost done reading the book, The Body Keeps the Score. It’s got good information about trauma & PTSd is well written.

 

[Fino]

I'm very confused by my empathy. Typically, especially with children, and especially when I'm working as a therapist, I feel tremendous empathy for people, sometimes bordering on the excessive. But sometimes, I can be entirely indifferent to someone's suffering, and I don't know. I can't think of an example, but sometimes I just feel nothing, and I could watch them slowly die and feel nothing.

 

[watersprite]

@Fino I’m very curious what you think might be the cause of the total indifference.
I think that happens to me, or something very like that, when I’m processing something else & my brain won’t or can’t deal with the empathy response. It’s like something blew the fuse.