Sensory input/overload question

[Sportster]

. . .

 

[Arashi222]

I think you're right. I think that we get lost in our passions and obsessions so the sensory overloading things maybe more bearable for a longer time. I love going to doll meets. I love being surround by all the dolls and the clothing, but I hate being surrounded by soo many people. So I can be at doll meet longer than say comic con or something like that. I often find that being the case.

 

[Arashi222]

Yeah, I imagine your doll conventions are quite similar; too many people and things happening. The motorcycle show probably has more lights and noise, but the idea is the same. There are certain aspects of being an Aspie that can be a real challenge.

In terms of dealing with it, the doll meets are less light orientated but more people orientated so its the noise level and the amount of people that show up that can be difficult. I used to love going to my ex-friends mini meets they were a much better size for me. But seeing as we aren't friends anymore I have taken to going to the larger meets. I find that we tolerate a little bit more than we are used to if it is something we love. If it is something we care about a lot we handle things little better not always I mean I know I have my moments even now at a job that I've had for almost 13yrs I still have issues with certain things.

 

[Sparticus]

Good question and observation. My boxing trainer used to yell encouragement & other stuff when we would spar others. I asked him why he did that. He said if we got into a street fight or the ring there would be people yelling at us, distracting us. It worked. His yelling faded into the background as did shouts from others. Since it was a passion of mine [I'd done Karate & self defense before boxing] it became easier to become absorbed & shut out noises/distractions.

I am wondering about the issue of ?sensory overload? and Asperger?s. Please bear with me while I try to convey what it is I?m trying to understand. I hate the sound of a barking dog, car horn, or the noise and lights of shopping in Walmart. In fact, I?ve memorized where everything is so I won?t spend any more time in there than needed. If my understanding is correct, these are ?sensory overloads.?

So, why is it I don?t unhinge at the International Motorcycle Show? It?s noisy, bright, crowded, everything that would be an Aspie?s nightmare, but yet I can stroll through without bother. In fact, I posted an image in one of threads taken of me at the show sitting on a police bike.

Is it because motorcycles (particularly Harleys) are my passion, so I am therefore lost in that world and am able to shut out everything else despite the fact that the noise, crowd, and lights are part of that interest?

I?m really curious, so input will be most appreciated.

 

[Mellotron]

I really hate loud noises and the overloading of senses like that (I always mute all noises on my phone), just too much for me. That said, I am a drummer and drums are very loud. I have played in bands at loud volumes and played shows and all that. I am completely not bothered by the act of making so much loud music, however if I am in a place with loud music on I find it difficult to deal with, unless I am at a concert. So I think Arashi222 is right that our passions allow us to bear with these sensory overloading more.

 

[Soup]

A new sensory input issue: right before falling asleep, I get groggy & introspective & my brain wants to zone out. Lately, Mr.Soup has adopted a weird habit that is out of character: he gets an attack of the rollicking blabbermouths right at that moment! He goes on & on philosophizing about all kinds of things: a string of verbose yammering that spins round & round in my head, making virtually no sense. I try to utter the odd 'hmmm...uh-huh, yep & I guess so' but he then asks questions that require a functioning brain to answer: at that point, I HAVE NO BRAIN! I've taken to diving into bed at least 20 mins before I expect him to show up so I can be (or appear believably) comatose by the time he arrives to motor-mouth me.

 

[Neat Hedgehog]

Hmm... come to think of it, I know I hate loud noises, loud music, talking, etc. Quite by contrast, I put a beefy speaker system in my car, pulled the catalytic converter, went to a high-flow muffler, and widend the exhaust. I don't mind the noise one bit. But the tire noise from my SUV? Horrible. Can't stand it, and it's no where near as loud as the exhaust on the car.

I wish the same thing worked with conventions, as others have mentioned. Closest thing to a "convention" I ever went to was a local LAN party, and I was always a little uncomfortable, though I did get to enjoy it. I still can't go to anime conventions; they're way too unstructured, so I never know what to do. All the milling, yammering people... egads, I don't know how anyone goes to them.

 

[Flinty]

The one that I handle well is, of course, Magic: The Gathering tournaments. I can handle those that have 1000 people or so, but doubt that the 4500-player event in Las Vegas would have been for me. Mind you, Las Vegas is not for me, period.

I can also handle being a spectator at a large sports event, but then I don't often have to handle conversing with the people around me.

Otherwise, please please please keep me out of crowds.

 

[Sparticus]

When my female friend puts on a cop show...:cold: I'm both overwhelmed + PTSDed out...remembering when I was arrested, and arrested again and again...ack! :help: Some police shows I like the characters and it goes over smoothly. Other times she likes the volume real LOUD... :bruised: Once I arrived at her place and she was watching surgery on TV... :sick:

I try to kid her on that but she gets upset. "I don't watch surgery anymore..." Uhm...ok...let's watch butterflies kissing each other. layfull:

 

[Cyanide Lollipop]

It is definitely much easier if it is something you enjoy. Last week I enjoyed sitting in a pub, listening to a live band for a few hours and had no problems whatsoever.

I've just finished typing up some minutes for a 2 hour meeting held last week and I'm now feeling almost as drained as I did when sitting through the actual meeting! It is the most draining of all my meetings, since I have a large verbal input to this meeting and there is a very challenging personality who continually interrupts with negative comments that add no value to the discussion. That meeting was about 30 minutes longer than it needed to be and listening to it again, I understand why I emerged from it feeling utterly drained until bedtime (it commenced at 10am!). I could hear my voice becoming more and more agitated at the difficulty I had listening to relevant comments and providing answers to questions, all the while trying to ignore the nuisance comments and remain polite. Fortunately my manager is very supportive of my AS and he is also the chair of that meeting. He understands that my only mechanism of dealing with sensory overload is to remove myself from the source but I cannot do that in the middle of the meeting. He has agreed to keep this person under better control in future.

 

[King_Oni]

Oh this applies to me as well. There's specific things I can deal with in terms of noise, but there's a lot that's just way too much and I rather avoid to not get irate and near combustible.

Right now there's a 4+ week music festival going on in my city, so there's bands playing everywhere daily including the park which is barely a 5 minute walk. Sometimes I have to go through there just to get to a bus or get some neccesities from the store. So far I managed to keep my cool and just went on. So I guess I can deal with it... if it's a short amount of time. I for one will not be in the crowd checking those bands out (or even stopping by on my way to or from the mall).

On the other hand, I don't really have a lot of problems going to a big music festival I choose to go to. I've been to a few that had easily close to 100.000 people attending over a weekend. So I guess it's where I can focus on what I care for.

Similarly I don't deal well with crowds in stores. But if I head out to one of the stores I actually want to go to since it sells product X, I don't mind sticking around for a bit and having a chat with employees about whatever product they have on the shelves.

I will say this, and Neat hedgehog kinda pointed it out ..."I still can't go to anime conventions; they're way too unstructured..." and while I don't visit anime conventions (since I'm not into anime), there's similar conventions I've went to in the past and they flat out annoyed the F out of me and got me close to being "I want to leave so badly". Not necessarily because of crowds and noises but more so because the organisation and planning of said event was a mess and that kinda messed with some stable structure I much needed to feel fine. But that doesn't even have to be a big thing even. Even a small event where I feel the organisation is more like "whatever" annoys me way too much to feel at ease.

 

[oscar2012]

I dont do noises iand i dont like it when things arent organised to it drives me mental :banghead:

 

[King_Oni]

I’m the same when I go shopping. I’m okay when I first arrive, but by the time I get to the dairy section I’m ready to run out of the store. I feel like the people are crowding me in, the place becomes too noisy, and there just seems to be too much happening. I’ve tried going at different times of the day, but it’s always the same. The only difference is instead of shoppers, I have to deal with workers stocking shelves, running floor machines, etc.

Heh.. yeah, I usually go either when the store just opened or is about the close... do run into a lot of employees that stock shelves again and/or floor machines. I usually have my ipod with me, so that makes it a bit more beareable, heh.

 

[fredvizsla]

I don't go to Walmart; Home Depot is even worse. You can't find what you want. These stores are designed to make you wander around and buy things you didn't come for. No employees to ask for help. Shopping for clothing drives me nuts: everything's mixed up, not organized by size; can't find your size. Then there aren't enough checkouts open. Often I just leave! I'll pay more at the local hardware, but they have the opposite problem: employees pestering you constantly! Ditto at the grocery - I just want buy what I need and get out of there, but no! It's a gauntlet of pestering employees.