Touch, Texture, and Pressure.
17 Nov 2010 8 Comments
in Asperger's, autism, senses Tags: Asperger's, autism, senses, sensitivity, sensory overload, texture, touch
Touch, texture, and pressure are things I have been sensitive to since I was young.
Pressure: I enjoy having covers pressing down on me. My mother always made beds that were firmly tucked in at the foot and even the sides. I like the feel of weight on me and so I am unable to sleep if I have only a sheet on top of my pajamas. I usually have a sheet, one blanket (at least), and a comforter. Lately, since switching to a long queen size mattress, I have found that the weight of the comforter and blanket puts sufficient pressure on my feet that I no longer need the sheet and blankets tucked in at the foot. This is because my six-foot-one-inch frame no longer overhangs the foot end of the bed. I think if my feet still hung over, it would be essential to tuck in the sheet and blanket. I also prefer, when lying on my side, to have the covers drape down and completely cover my back and front with no air gap. I seem to need to be in a cocoon. (Rachel has a post on a weighted blanket).
Texture, especially of food, is also important to me. A few days ago my wife made a lovely squash soup. It had chopped onions in it which added to the flavour. But there was also chopped parsley in there and I could not handle the texture of this. I had to remove the tiny morsels from my mouth and then spoon around the remaining parsley in the bowl. I also dislike the sensation of wool against my skin. Cotton is my favourite fabric. I dislike having polyester blended in because a shirt made of a blend feels to me like a plastic bag. I want my clothes to breathe.
Touch has been an issue all my life. I remember many a physical exam when the physician tried to check my liver, spleen, etc., by poking his fingertips into my abdomen. I found this so unbearably ticklish that I would recoil. And my mother had the habit of getting my attention by lightly touching my arm with her fingertips. I found this irritating, but did not know why at the time and therefore never thought to ask her to not touch me lightly. Now that I have reached retirement age, my nerves seem to be degenerating (neuropathy) and I find I am much less sensitive to touch.
This pickiness, or sensitivity, may seem trivial compared to the pain caused by glare or the confusion caused by noise at a lunch table. But it is among many other things that made me feel different. One reason for writing these posts is to document my experiences and open them to scrutiny (comments). Perhaps some of this is just unique to me and not part of the spectrum. But by exploring my past in these posts, I am gaining understanding and insight about how and why my life unfolded as it did. Hopefully this process will enable some readers to relate, and feel a little less alone, just as I did when I found this blogging community.
Noise
16 Oct 2010 2 Comments
in Asperger's, autism, senses Tags: Asperger's, autism, noise, senses, sensitivity, sensory overload
Noise. What most people refer to as sound is often experienced by me as unpleasant noise.
Before I had to go on Long Term Disability benefits many years ago, our team at work would occasionally go out to a restaurant to celebrate someone’s birthday. The noise level at the table was very high and we were surrounded by tables with similar high decibel conversations. When trying to listen to an individual near me at the table, I would not be able to filter out the other conversations. All the sounds just blended in to one confusing noise. If I cupped my hand to my ear I might be able to grasp a bit more of what was being said to me. I am sure they all thought I was quite deaf.
My hearing actually tests out as very good when I am in one of those sound-proof rooms and the audiologist feeds me one word at a time. My hearing falls apart when I have to separate a word from a jumble of words all coming at me at once. My specialist (ENT) says this is a problem in my brain (higher processing level) as my ears are fine.
When my family is sitting around the table socializing I often need to have some “down time”, so I go upstairs and try to read. Unless I put in earplugs or wear ear protectors, I have a very difficult time reading because the words coming in my ears get all mixed up with the words on the page. This also happens if the radio or TV is playing.
If the text reads:
Look! See Dick run. See Jane skip. See Spot jump.
it will come out something like this if the radio is on:
Look! Do you See think North Dick Korea will run See develop nuclear Jane skip weapons and See Spot bomb jump us?
except the colours aren’t there, which makes it even more confusing.
Trying to read under such conditions just sucks all the energy out of me and I am left exhausted with my head hurting and all my brain circuits flooded. I have to put the book down because my mind just can’t cope.
Not all sound is noise to me. I find I can hear one-on-one conversations in a quiet space. And I do enjoy some music very much. There is a tea-room in a small town not far away. The owner plays Baroque or Renaissance music, or nature sounds, at a soft level. I find it soothing. It enhances my enjoyment of the meal.
But when I was at the ENT specialist a couple of weeks ago there was a pop radio station, with a motor-mouthing DJ, playing through a ceiling speaker. I was trying to read a magazine. I felt like asking the receptionist if they had ever surveyed patients’ preferences as to sound bombardment. I didn’t ask because I have grown accustomed to being the odd man out. 
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