To ask you about your sensory issues?

[Wednesdayafternoon]

Just that really. My eldest son has some sensory issues with textures, and I can really relate to his frustrations. He's overcome ALOT but easily gets frustrated with his socks, shoes and underwear. Anything that's tight. Getting dressed is not fun!

I've never really thought about it before but I have a few sensory issues myself. For example...

• Wearing a polo neck, even through i wear them all the time if it touches my neck in the wrong place it will make me feel unwell!
• socks, if they're too short and baggy it will literally spoil my day because it makes my whole body feel so uncomfortable
• bedding that is baggy... so irritating. Can't get over it
• panty liner... I absolutely hate them. I had to wear one the other day and in my head it just made my underwear and jeans too tight. I was on edge until I could remove it.

That's it really. I even feel on edge typing them up!
I've never really thought of these things as sensory issues before just things that made me feel so irritated and I never knew why but realising it actually feels good!

Oh and feathers!

Isn't it crazy how SO many of us are uncomfortable with socks, wooden forks and labels!

My son can't deal with socks at all. He has a completely meltdown with them. I literally don't know what to do or how to support him! I think it's all about finding the right type of sock. I only like one brand...

Things that make my teeth hurt
The sound of cardboard
Using a wooden pencil or even touching one
Chalkboards being written on

Things I get I frustrated by easily
Seams in socks, waistbands

Things that make me feel like I’m being suffocated and I need to rip it off immediately
Any clothing with a collar or that touches my neck in any way.

I will not touch a wet sponge or cloth that has been sitting for more than a few seconds. I have to get a dry cloth to even pick it up.

No, I am not NT

The sound when people scratch their tights gives me the shivers.

Polystyrene -even just thinking about it- makes me cringe. I can't bear to be near it. I don't know if it's necessarily a sensory thing, but I can run my eye quickly over a tightly packed rack of clothes in TK MAXX (similar stores are also available) and unerringly pick out all the clothes made with 100% natural fibres. Unlike many here, I prefer natural wool and other natural fibres- the idea of knitting with acrylic or wearing it gives me the ick. I am drawn to slightly scratchy fabrics (low-level obsessed with linen sheets and duvets but also not keen on wet wool.
Can't work with any background noise.

I’m a bit hypersensitive to certain textures. My skin cannot tolerate polyester or wool. I cannot bear the thought of polyester bedding. It’s so scratchy I swear it hurts.

I hate bras (have only one brand/size I can tolerate) and jeans. OMG jeans….. how can anybody wear them? To me everything about them is uncomfortable.

I’m also very sensitive to noise. Raised voices, TV slightly too loud, motorbikes, the tinny sound, that comes from a phone, crowded rokms, babies crying, dogs barking….. it all hurts my ears and triggers anxiety.

I do have a history of repeated ear infections and a perforated eardrum which has never fully healed. I can hear at normal volume but very often my hearing feels distorted, like I’m not quite tuned into the radio station properly. When I go to the gym they play really loud music and I don’t stand a chance of making out what people are saying.

I was never like this as a child, in fact I think it ramped up massive after having my first baby.

Does anyone else absolutely detest being stroked lightly or/and repetitively?
E.g. DP (absent-mindedly) stroking the side of my arm or back of my hand gently... It’s like all of my senses tune in on that bit of skin and it almost hurts? I HATE IT. I’d rather be roughly gripped than that! I’m not a cuddly person as it is, so when I’ve told family or friends about this I think they assume it’s just part of that prickliness and tell me I’m weird.

I can’t wear jewellery- I’ve tried many times as I’d love to be able to wear it- but the minute I put it on I can’t bear it… I can’t even wear my wedding ring

I have misophonia, an aversion to certain sounds. For me, it's the sound of people constantly sniffing or clearing their throat.

I can't stand wool (or fake variants) touching my fingernails or fingertips. Even thinking about it makes me feel queasy. Yes, I get very cold hands in Winter.

The sensory quadrant is even wider than you might think! See pic for more detail

I’m a huge sensory seeker and really related to the poster above who talked about deep pressure input. Constantly touching things or chewing things.

But also I hate repetitive noises - I take the batteries out of clocks if I’m sleeping over at another person’s house and there’s one where I’m sleeping.

And the thought of any material of any kind being in my mouth is repulsive to me. Even thinking about something like a wooden fork, my clothes or cotton wool in my mouth makes my toes curl and my mouth feel strange.

Loud music (unfortunately what I consider loud, most people seem to consider normal volume.)

Bright light

My main issues are touch.
I can't have anything on my skin, so I can't use sun cream or moisturiser or alcohol hand gel or anything. I can wash with soap though as I rinse it straight off.
I can't wear any jewellery at all.
I can't bear loose hair. Even other people's loose hair stresses me out, let alone my own.
I cut out all labels.
I don't like waistbands, but I hate dresses, they make me feel suffocated.
I don't like tight clothing
I hate cuffs that are too loose or too tight.
I hate clothing that I consider scratchy. I only buy clothes that feel smooth to the touch - basically cotton or bamboo only.
I have to change my socks multiple times a day because they get baggy.
I can never find shoes that don't hurt me.

I struggle to eat or drink from utensils that feel or smell wrong. Paper, plastic or wooden cutlery, plates, cups etc I really struggle with, but some made of ceramic or glass are wrong too. I'd rather not eat or drink than use them.
I can't find a reusable water bottle that I can tolerate.

Some food textures I just can't tolerate at all. I can't even bring myself to type their names.
I really like fizzy water, but if it's not quite fizzy enough I find it disgusting.

There are loads more, but those are the ones that affect me day to day.

@bellac11

Dont get me started. I have tested out ASD screeners and score very low (I get them from work) so I know Im not high on the spectrum but my god am I fussy when it comes to things like this

Noise, bright lights, particular pronounciations from people who say their 's' in a certain way or if I can hear peoples mouths moving on the radio (there was a doctor who used to be on Jeremy Vines show whose mouth did this, nearly crashed the car a few times).

I also HATE duvet covers that end up with empty bits and the duvet slips down inside it.

Also people with quite gravelly or mucasy (thats not a word) throat voices, like the man that used to do the Mr Kipling voice over, awful, almost a bit gargly.

Omg Yes! Dr Sarah Jarvis on a Monday. Still hear her saliva.

Baggy socks, makes my feet feel ' dry /hot' i have to get them off fast and put lotion on my feet. I can only wear certain socks.

Trousers in bed. Makes behind my knees feel pressured.

Long sleeve t shirts with jumper makes me feel im wearing too many layers and claustrophobic

Wooden cutlery like from a chip shop

Cant eat a cold dessert, ice cream, yoghurt with a metal spoon. Has to be like a kids plastic or disposable plastic type. If none available i wouldn't eat.
Yet cold cereal would be metal spoon!

Teddy fleece. Cant stand it gives me goosebumps

Socks in bed. Cant do ever!
Walking around barefoot has to be socks or slippers.

Cant wear any top that's higher or on my colar bone. Definitely nothing touching my throat. ( previous DV and it makes me so panicky.)..

Coats! Hate them feel trapped. If i do need to wear one i can only wear a t shirt under. Too claustrophobic otherwise.
I think ive worn a coat maybe 5 times in 12m. Id sooner freeze than feel trapped. I have many coats various fits, thickness length all same effect on me.

Omg yes to the stroking thing. Dh does it and ive said oww before. He thought i was on a wind up

Loads. I suspect ADHD. Most of it is to do with competing noises and visuals and concentration.

-Cannot hear the TV and have to have subtitles on
-Feel panicky if two people talk at once I have no idea what to do
-Hate the blower on in the car, hate wind both get inside my head but rain is calming
-I have to concentrate really hard to hear things so competing noises make me really upset. My hearing is fine.
-Flashing lights out of context
-The old Abercrombie and Fitch shops that were like a nightclub made me want to cry. Weirdly I have no issue with nightclubs (probably because I’m not trying to concentrate on looking at clothes at the time)
-Loads of fabrics upset me and I would like to live in loungewear

Can't wear
polo necks
Wool
Velvet/velour
Sparkles/sequins
Wrap around

Don't like-
Sudden loud noise
Too much noise
Bright light
Nodding
Spinning
Things moving quickly at side of me

Can't stand
Nose pickers
Farts

I can't
Recognise people if I see them in different place to where I know them from
Remember small talk
Answer on spot questions accurately

Comforting to find out that I am not the only one who can't stand toothbrushes/toothbrushing sounds, I also can't stand the thought of toothbrushes being dry to the extent I dip the whole families in boiling water numerous times a day.

Wet wool or anything synthetic knitted, the thought of them being near a mouth yuk..

Labels, even cutting the label off my duvet and in a cover it still has to go on my husband's side.

Plastic bottles being screwed up for recycling makes my ears physically hurt.

Polystyrene.

Certain fabrics like velvet, fake velvet, some fleece fabrics I can't bear. Those squishville toys I can't touch, they're just evil, there are probably many more, like that synthetic cotton wool.

I'm a replenishment filler and I do have to leave some things on my cage that I can't touch, luckily my line manager understands and will jokingly say "let's see what blue can't touch today?"😂

I dread supporting tills as I then have to actually touch the bloody things🤮

I can relate to a lot of these. No way can I wear a polo neck or even a top that touches my collar bone, although I do wear scarves.
Can't bear wool. Hate bright lights at night, also background noise/radio if I'm trying to talk to someone. Hate music in shops as I can't concentrate.

I find a lot of things irritating - itchy clothes, clashing noises, tops with high necks, other people's hair, and umpteen other things. I wouldn't call those 'sensory issues' though. I think everyone has certain textures, sounds etc that they really dislike and clothes that they find uncomfortable. I know it can be an extreme trait in people with ASD, but I also think pretty much every neurotypical person also has these preferences without it being any kind of condition.

Polystyrene
The feel of kitchen roll / certain loo roll
Rice pudding
Gristly chicken ( makes me gag)
Bits in yoghurts
Velvet
Juice with bits in
Too much of certain noises / beeping
High neck tops / tight around the neck

Not diagnosed but there's definitely something neurodivergent going on ( had ARFID as a child)

@Iwanttenofthose

I can't stand the idea of metal touching my teeth. If I accidentally touch my fork / spoon to my teeth when eating it ruins the meal, and going to the dentist is a real issue.

My DD finds tights very problematic and we frequently have tears in the morning because they're hurting her legs. She's a real girly girl though and point blank refuses to wear trousers. Fortunately she barely feels the cold so she only wears them in the coldest part of the winter!

Have you looked up snags tights ? Better size variation might be more comfortable

Sensory seeking with chewing cloth, and eating/drinking

Can't stand light touch nor people touching my face.

Clothes labels and seams irritate. But I like socks, until I don't then they have to come off pdq.

Noise: can't tune out from background noise. Get sensory overload and meltdown quickly.

Vestibular and proprioception and interoception are poor.

Can't regulate my temperature. Usually run cold but can get too hot.

Far too many to list. I get on the best I can as I can't spend my life avoiding all these things.

Since I lost my hearing, putting on my hearing aids for very long is awful. Everything is so very loud. I even asked my audiologist if that's what things really sound like and he assured me it was.
I wear them if I have to or if I am out in nature but prefer, the near silence.