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Sensory sensitivity

ifiwerewrongidknowit

ifiwerewrongidknowit

Well-Known Member
V.I.P Member
I'm experiencing the following (just a few examples) :
On a bright sunny day I squint constantly even though I'm wearing my baseball cap and sunglasses.
When people talking too loud and a lot around me I feel I need to cover my ears to block them out. I know it can look rude so if I have no option to put in my earphones the best way to deal with it is to run away from them. It's the same with babies and little kids crying on the train or bus close to me.
Certain perfumes and BO can also make me feel very anxious.
I'm not sure if these things are considered sensory sensitivity.
If you have sensory sensitivity could you tell me about how you experience it?
I don't know, but for me it's a little hard to express my feelings, sometimes I don't even know what I feel exactly.
Your input is appreciated.
 
I have these issues, too. If you are noticing them where other people are not, and they are bothering you, then yes, they can be considered sensory sensitivity.
 
Are you having issues with all 3, vision, audition and olfactory?
For example I have no problem with different types of materials touching my skin.
And yes, they do bother me unfortunately. But the hardest part is when I have no option to block it out or escape from it.
 
I have sensory sensitivities, but after a lifetime of living with them, they do not bother me that much any more. There are things that used to really bother me, that are just annoying now.
 
I can get some bad days with light sensitivity, where the sun is just too bright for me even with sunglasses - which are pretty much required for me to travel on my motorbike most of the time.

Usually I'm okay with sounds, people yelling and screaming does tend to upset me and make me anxious and hit the panic button but I've never reacted to it so far. Loud sounds do tend to make me jump, I remember once I jumped out of my skin watching Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azakban in the cinema because the sound from the next scene was just so unexpected.

On the other end I think I'm also hyposensitive to smell. Mines not the strongest ever and there have been odours which go completely over me.
 
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Its sound for me. And not human voices which I have a hard time hearing. But depending on my mood I can hear fans, refrigerators, room tone, etc. Drives me crazy at times.
 
ifiwerewrongidknowit said:
Are you having issues with all 3, vision, audition and olfactory?
For example I have no problem with different types of materials touching my skin.
And yes, they do bother me unfortunately. But the hardest part is when I have no option to block it out or escape from it.
Click to expand...
Yes, all three, also touch, but mainly with sound.
 
I have big issues with tactil. Seams and tags on clothing bother me. If a shirt is to tight in the arms i get driven crazy. I like loose fitting clothing like swetpants or loose athletic shorts. For swimming shorts i cant stand the white mesh inside. For years i would not wear jeans. Logos or lettering that are sewn into shirts aggrevate me. I tend to get stuck wearing similar clothes all the time because i get used to the feeling. If i could i would have all the same things for clothing like steeve jobs did. Life would be simpler that way. I hated socks the seams at the front corners. When i was a kid i would not wear underwear until around 6th grade. I remember many timed where my parents would force me to wear things i didnt want to and i would not be able to concentrate the entire day....i would sit there all day thinking about what i can do to get rid of the issue, times where a shirt was to tight in the arms i would constantly pull the sleeves apart to try to stretch them. I would scratch at my skin constantly all day. The list goes on it was hellish....

The main issue with tactil im having nowadays is with my damn glasses and with my shoes. :/

Its pretty much like instead of me getting multiple sensory issues i got an excess of one. I might have a touch of auditory or visual as well but its not noticable enough for me to know for sure. I feel bad for those who have multiple sensory issues to the extent of my tacil issurs....
 
I hate any kind of fluorescent lighting and fake natural lighting, crowd noises (especially loud children), and I tend to go towards wearing short sleeved/sleeveless shirts and either track pants or shorts.
 
Harsh light, loud and/or high-pitched sounds get my goat. I also will flee the room if someone's hearing aid squeals, or if they're eating cantaloupe.
 
I have a hard time charging my gameboy, as the charger makes a high pitch buzzing noise that really hurts my ears. One sound in particular that always makes me flinch is the sounds of someone typing. This bothers me so much that I have a hard time going to my campus library.
 
I have several sensory issues. I dislike being touched, hugged or held. Only exception is if I initiate it and for only as long as I want it. Usualy just a few moments, mostly when I am sick with the flu ect. Bright light is painfull, I have to wear sunglasses when outdoors if its sunny out or if a room is to brightly lit. Loud sounds are also an issue for me, or trying to listen to a conversation when there is lots of background noise. I wear a headset when my wife and I go to the nascar race in Indianapolis or to music concerts. I also dislike loud exhaust on motorcycles, hence my Honda GL500 has its stock exhaust and I try to stay ahead of loud Harleys when I ride in a group. I do love the solitude when I ride my motorcycle. Just me, the white noise of the wind and the road. I find it wonderfull to take a long route to home after a long stressful day at work. Mike
 
Too many to list.

So much so, that more often than not I feel like I've got a tight rubber band around my head. Like pins and needles.
 
peoplesrjames said:
Its sound for me. And not human voices which I have a hard time hearing. But depending on my mood I can hear fans, refrigerators, room tone, etc. Drives me crazy at times.
Click to expand...

Exactly this.

Clocks, rain, fridge, lighting, kids screaming, cheering on tv, I have tinnitus too.
 
My sense of pain is hyposensitive in some areas, hypersensitive in others. I can very easily accidentally hurt my hands. Holding something too hot for too long causing them to burn, cutting myself on something sharp and not noticing until I feel the blood dripping, scratching myself until I bleed because I can't feel I'm hurting myself, etc. Yet you pull my hair, I will hit you. I'm not kidding. My scalp is sensitive, and pulling my hair, even lightly by accident, will hurt so much and puts me into fight or flight mode, usually being fight, and I will hit without thinking. Brushing my hair is a fun activity. I keep accidentally activating it on myself and will hit out at myself.

Being touched unexpectedly also causes me to freak out. I was in the city closest to where I live today (I'm not saying where), and we were in a busy supermarket. Someone bumped into me from behind and I just froze for a few seconds, but it did feel like minutes. That incredibly spaced out feeling, like around you is unreal, fast breathing, you get the idea. I did manage to snap out of it somehow though. But yeah, don't touch me from behind with no warning, don't like that.

I am sensitive to light, but it's less immediate than the ones above. It isn't going to cause me to be fight, flight, freeze. More of a too bright for too long sort of thing. Unless it's flashing light, can't stand that for any amount of time. But for sunlight it's just having the curtains closed, and for when I clean the windows then wearing sunglasses.

I was in the past very sensitive to tags in clothes. Had to have them all cut out. I'm more used to them now, unless it's a sharp edge on the opposite side to the bit sticking out, in which case I'll cut the edge off.

Noise is the worst one for me though. I can't cancel out noise. I find pretty much everywhere to be too loud. The longer I'm in a noisy place, the worse it is for me. It does cause me to shut down. Most recent time that happened was driving on the motorway closest to where I live (not telling this either) and it was just too loud I guess, because when I parked up for my parents to go into the supermarket closest to where I live (nope) I just shut down. I was fine by when they'd finished shopping though. I do carry ear plugs in loud places. They don't make it go away, but it makes things slightly more bearable.

Not sure if that's everything, just what comes to mind.
 
I can't stand, if anyone is touching me. It feels like an electric shock.

Noise wise I hate any white noise from ticking clocks, refrigerators to rain. My bedroom is sound proof with no electronic devises plugged in, so that I can get some sleep. A snoring or even heavy breathing person shouldn't be anywhere near me for their own safety.

The worst sounds though that drive me insane are hearing running engines when the cars are stationery and when cars drive on wet surfaces or puddles. That's a hard one for me, as I work in my gallery with the doors open to the road to attract pedestrians.

There are a few smells I don't like, but none really drive me crazy. But since early childhood I could come into our house and was able to 'sniff out' who has visited my family during the day. My older brother didn't like that too much when I asked my parents if his girlfriend has been here because I could smell her. Not that the people stink, but everyone has their own scent which I have learnt over time.
 
ifiwerewrongidknowit said:
I'm experiencing the following (just a few examples) :
On a bright sunny day I squint constantly even though I'm wearing my baseball cap and sunglasses.
When people talking too loud and a lot around me I feel I need to cover my ears to block them out. I know it can look rude so if I have no option to put in my earphones the best way to deal with it is to run away from them. It's the same with babies and little kids crying on the train or bus close to me.
Certain perfumes and BO can also make me feel very anxious.
I'm not sure if these things are considered sensory sensitivity.
If you have sensory sensitivity could you tell me about how you experience it?
I don't know, but for me it's a little hard to express my feelings, sometimes I don't even know what I feel exactly.
Your input is appreciated.
Click to expand...

You sound exactly like me. At night I wear foam ear plugs and headphones over those. I can watch television as I get ready for bed and not hear most of the outside noise. I have found no solution for noise or bright light though I have black felt that I have on all my windows that goes behind the sheer curtains.
 
The older style CFLs/strip lights from the 80s and 90s used to affect me so badly that they would trigger migraines and vomiting. I couldn't go shopping with my family for years because of this. Thankfully the newer types are a lot better but still not perfect, thankfully a lot of places are now switching to LEDs which cause me no problems. Also the detergent/cleaning products aisle in the supermarket it still gives me a 'poisoned' feeling in my throat that is just horrible, even if just going past the aisle. Perfume and air fresheners can have the same effect. It's not as bad as it used to be but it is still an issue. I smell things that nobody else can smell, especially bad odours and burning.

Clothes, skirts they have to be elasticated waist, I can't wear trousers at all-they just make me feel odd and don't stay up on me, I can wear leggings but there are only a few I have tried that don't feel itchy or give me electric shock sensations. Socks I tend to have to wear them inside out. Labels I have to cut them out.

Sounds I can sometimes hear the phones and TVs in neighbouring houses and apartments even though we have really good soundproofing. I hear building work going on down the street as if it is happening in my house. I am a light sleeper but can't wear any type of earplugs (have tried so many) as they annoy me too much, gah!
 
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