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Poll: Do you have sensory issues?

Do you have one or more sensory hypo or hyper sensitivities?

  • Yes

    Votes: 47 87.0%

  • No

    Votes: 1 1.9%

  • Uncertain

    Votes: 5 9.3%

  • Other

    Votes: 1 1.9%
  • Total voters
    54
the_tortoise

the_tortoise

autie; means well; struggles w/words; self-expert
V.I.P Member
I understand not all spectrumites have sensory hyper or hypo sensitivities.

So...poll.
 
They have pretty much ruled my life. But they've also enabled me to earn a decent living, stay safe, and do some things I love. So in a real way, they've both aided me and made my life more difficult at times.

My hyper-sensitive hearing stopped someone from breaking into my neighbors apartment in the city, and it helped me when I worked at a camp teaching nature study. I heard the sound of someone faintly calling for help once, in a ravine, after a car accident and was able to help them.
I can also hear faint bird calls from quite a distance away (like the cranes I heard high up in the atmosphere making their way south one clear night), animals as they move though the woods and many other sounds that give me great pleasure. The negative side of which can be poor sleeping patterns, anxiety and difficulty concentrating.
 
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I remember my sensory issues being worst in my childhood years. When I hear a lot at once my mind can't handle it like a crappy CPU and I spacd out.
 
Yes, mainly with sound, also tactile. Mild in comparison to other people, sensory sensitivity rather than sensory integration issues.
 
I wasn't sure what "hyposensitivity" meant so I found this useful.

https://mcfaddenchiropractic.com/uploads/Signs_of_Sensory_Under-Responsivity_(Hyposensitivity).pdf

It gives examples of Visual, Vestibular, Proprioceptive, Auditory, Olfactory,
Tactile, and Taste hyposensitivities.

Here is a sample:
Proprioception
•Seeks out jumping, bumping, and crashing activities; loves roughhousing, tackling, wrestling.
•Kicks feet on floor or chair while sitting at desk/table.
•Prefers tight clothing; likes heavy blankets.
•Likes to be squeezed/hugged tightly.
•Clenches or grinds teeth.
•Likes to push, pinch, bump, hit others.
•Likes to chew on things such as lip, straws, pencils, shirt collar/sleeve, etc.
•Loves jumping off high structures/furniture.
•Frequently falls on floor intentionally

Auditory
•Little or no vocalizing/babbling as an infant.
•Often speaks in a loud voice and/or excessively.
•Likes excessively loud music, games, TV.
•Difficulty with verbal cues or to name being called.
•Difficulty understanding or remember-ing what was said.
•Needs instructions repeated often, or will say, “What?” frequently.
•Talks self through a task, often out loud.
•Appears oblivious to certain sounds.
•Often disoriented/confused about where a sound is coming from.
 
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Have some hyposensitivity traits. Love loud music but not a fan of loud TV. Can talk myself through emotions and stressful tasks. I can oblivate (l know not a real verb), sounds on a as needed basis. But l am getting much better at verbal clues finally. Love tight hugs, in fact a great friend body smashed me and l just loved it because it made me smile. But l am not a fan of stranger coming in my personal space.
 
Smells can affect me as well... yesterday, a network/TV provider guy came to the house to set something up, and he was wearing an aftershave of some kind, and I literally couldn't stand to be in the same room as him, luckily my partner was at home to deal with him. It made me feel nauseous and I had to open all the windows after he left.
 
It's worth remembering that "sensory issues" include far more than sight, sound, smell, taste & touch. Our senses are far more sophisticated than that simplistic template.
Do you have difficulty knowing when you are tired, hungry or thirsty? That's a sensory issue.
Do you have poor balance or are you clumsy? Very likely tied to a sensory issue.
Is your response to pain or certain kinds of pain different from what you are led to believe others experience? That's a sensory difference.

We've even seen it on this forum, wherein someone doubts their autism because they're not sensitive to bright lights or loud noise, but sensory differences are a much broader subject than many people understand.

I explained the basics in this, now fully subtitled for anyone who has auditory hypo or hyper-sensitivities.

 
I have noticed, at (thankfully few) times, an amplified (if theoretical) sense, pheroception. I have been hyper-attracted to and hyper-repulsed by women strangers for no (other) apparent reason.

When attracted, it wasn't that I just thought that she was hot. I would have impulsively kissed her, if I didn't forcibly restrain myself. I'm married and not looking for anybody else. That feeling went away as I put distance between me and her. This effect has never happened with a photo, video or figure of a woman, no matter how attractive I consider them to be. Nor does it happen with every pretty woman that I meet, in person. That is why I suspect that pheromones are at play (which are supposed to be odorless).

NTs seem to be more reserved in this response, generally.
 
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I am not bothered by normal sounds, but people talking for an extended period of time (30 minutes of more) gives me headaches. This is something I don't understand, because it depends of the situation; classrooms are fine, hearing other people talking is okayish, having someone talk to me is tolerable with effort, hearing the voice of some people in my family makes me want to take my brain out and chop it to pieces.

Not sure if I have sensory issues or a ****** family. Could be both.
 
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Progster said:
Smells can affect me as well... yesterday, a network/TV provider guy came to the house to set something up, and he was wearing an aftershave of some kind, and I literally couldn't stand to be in the same room as him, luckily my partner was at home to deal with him. It made me feel nauseous and I had to open all the windows after he left.
Click to expand...

l defintely suffer from this. l will run out of a room choking from certain smells.
 
According to the exelent information given by Tree and Autistamatick i can say i have more then a few of those as well i a big mix
 
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Lots of issues with sound and noise, both hyper and hypo. I really struggle with understanding what people say, major struggles with any sort of accents too. I keep tv loud but also with subtitles. My hearing itself is normal (had it tested). The beeping of monitors and pumps at work makes me nuts and i have to turn them off right away, whether it's my patient or not.

I love certain textures . Soft things, fluffy. Certain colors and combinations of colors stop me my tracks. This is a positive sensory thing.

As a child, i hated being touched. Made my skin crawl. Of course no one understood it was a symptom of autism.
 
My hyper sensitivity became worse as an adult, I’d assume because I am in more situations with people and leaving my apartment/house than when I was younger.... I became the weirdo with noise cancelling headset.

I also have ultra sensitive smell (except myself) and I have no idea what to do with that...
 
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