Sent into hysterical laughter by certain sounds and sights (languages, etc); anyone else have this?

[Brook]

Im wondering if anyone else on here has this phenomena, for lack of a better word.

For as long as I can remember, when I've heard certain sounds (for example, a tonal language like Chinese or Vietnamese), it strikes me as funny and can send me into hysterical laughter. Another example is a memory I have from when I was a teen of listening to a certain song that had a guitar solo at the end. The guitarist used the "whammy bar" to make the guitar sound very quirky, and I remember laughing so hard at it I gagged, as did my friend who was listening to it with me! LOL It seems that certain sounds just "tweak" my brain in a certain way and it can send me into a laughing fit. If i'm honest, I don't like it, because it makes me feel like a weirdo. Sometimes the laughter can hit out of nowhere when the sound does, and as you might imagine that can make for some awkward moments if I'm not in a place where laughter "matches up" with what's going on at the moment!


So can anyone else commiserate? I'm thinking this is a feature of my Aspergers. If not the Aspergers, then my ADHD. HAS to be.

 

[maycontainthunder]

Yep, certain sounds will make me laugh or remembering them does. You are not alone!

 

[Rodafina]

I think sometimes laughter can be a response to situations that make us anxious or uncomfortable. In counseling training we learned that laughter is a common response for people who are talking about difficult topics and sharing strong emotional experiences.

https://www.healthline.com/health/mental-health/nervous-laughter
But also, there is the pseudobulbar affect:

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/pseudobulbar-affect/symptoms-causes/syc-20353737

 

[Tom]

I have heard several describe laughing at what seemed in appropiate moments and that it wasn't concious, but more an involuntary action. I remember one saying she felt impelled to laugh at funerals. (!)

So I think it's a thing, but not common. But i couldn't say either way whether it's due to autism or something else, like the many co-morbid conditions that often accompany autism.

 

[Judge]

I'm well aware of the concept of nervous laughter. Though pathologically speaking it's not something I do. In such cases I'm more likely to go mute and not make a sound.

 

[Brook]

It is neither nervous laughter or pseudobulbar. It doesn't happen randomly, along with cryin, like in pseudobulbar, and it doesn't happen when I'm nervous. As I said, it happens whenever certain sounds occur and it's like it tweaks my ears and my brain and sends me into laughter.

 

[Misty Avich]

I can't do hysterical laughter any more because it just comes out as a forced loud shout and people go "sshh!" Being told to sshh in that way just lowers the mood.
I forgot NTs had such sensitive ears to loud laughing? /Sarcasm