Which of the 5 senses dominates your autism sensitivity?

[Lilacleia16]

My tactile sense dominates my sensitivities. My skin has to feel just right in terms of wind, sun, and water and even touch. I can’t stand being touched unless it’s invited. What is your experience? Which of the 5 senses dominates your autism sensitivity?

 

[kriss72]

Sound-Light-Smell-Touch-Taste, in that order, Taste is probably under sensitive (hyposensitive?), where I need to shield my self for sound, light and smell. I don't think I'm more or less sensitive to touch than NT's, but that doesn't mean I like to be touched, it's as uncomfortable as looking into someones eyes for me.

Funny this came up today, had to leave a nail saloon as the smell became too much for me today, I didn't even have time to sit down, before I had to get out of there.

 

[kriss72]

But how about the balance sense, I like to spin around - I just have to remember to spin in the opposite direction in the end to keep the balance in the universe (joke), and it keeps me from becoming dizzy after (no joke).

 

[Aspychata]

It can change. Sometimes noise bothers me, sometimes it doesn't. I do always prefer comfortable material in clothes. I don't like strangers touching me at all. I can be sensitive to touch, so l get repulsed, then l talk to myself internally out of the repulsion. Sound affects me in the fact that l hate certain tones in voices, and will dislike you totally on that. I can get crabby about sensory intrusion, but l can usually wiggle thru it due to my age. My daughter only had soft material in clothes growing up. I never put her in anything else. I notice as an adult, she only likes soft comfortable material as her clothes preference.

 

[Lilacleia16]

But how about the balance sense, I like to spin around - I just have to remember to spin in the opposite direction in the end to keep the balance in the universe (joke), and it keeps me from becoming dizzy after (no joke).

I don’t know but I hate to spin. It’s more visual I think and I’m more tactile and it makes me want to throw up because I’m hypersensitive to light and dark changes and I hate the transitions. I used to be afraid of the dark too. Darkness can be felt like an evil but so can light like an Angel. But equally too much sun gives me a headache.

 

[Lilacleia16]

It can change. Sometimes noise bothers me, sometimes it doesn't. I do always prefer comfortable material in clothes. I don't like strangers touching me at all. I can be sensitive to touch, so l get repulsed, then l talk to myself internally out of the repulsion. Sound affects me in the fact that l hate certain tones in voices, and will dislike you totally on that. I can get crabby about sensory intrusion, but l can usually wiggle thru it due to my age. My daughter only had soft material in clothes growing up. I never put her in anything else. I notice as an adult, she only likes soft comfortable material as her clothes preference.

It sounds like you are tactile like me first. Are baths uncomfortable for you especially the transition to wet and dry?

 

[Misery]

Sound, primarily.

Really loud sounds can knock me for a loop, but at the same time I REALLY cant deal with silence. I need some sort of constant noise around so I dont go crazy.

Other than that, touch. I dont get particularly triggered by that particular sense (with the exception of certain types of clothes) but yeah, tactile stuff is important. It's one of the many reasons why I got into board games as a hobby, there's a lovely tactile element to that hobby that helps a lot.

Cant stand cold things/places though. So there's that.

 

[kriss72]

I don’t know but I hate to spin. It’s more visual I think and I’m more tactile and it makes me want to throw up because I’m hypersensitive to light and dark changes and I hate the transitions. I used to be afraid of the dark too. But equally too much sun gives me a headache.

I try to stay out of the sun, except when the sun is low, I never liked it - I always wear a hat and have my legs and arms covered unless it is unbearable hot. Bright (artificial) light in general is like filling my head with noise, I don't know how else to describe it - if it is turned off, I can feel a wave of calmness flow through me. I never had the sun go out on me, so don't know how that would feel

 

[Lilacleia16]

Sound, primarily.

Really loud sounds can knock me for a loop, but at the same time I REALLY cant deal with silence. I need some sort of constant noise around so I dont go crazy.

Other than that, touch. I dont get particularly triggered by that particular sense (with the exception of certain types of clothes) but yeah, tactile stuff is important. It's one of the many reasons why I got into board games as a hobby, there's a lovely tactile element to that hobby that helps a lot.

Cant stand cold things/places though. So there's that.

You’re right, sound is my second one and silence can be deafening literally. Also sounds go in and out for me…one minute the lull of the refrigerator is nice like white noise but the next minute in silence it’s annoyingly loud and I have to leave the room before I have a meltdown. I actually wrote a poem about it and imagined that must be how the elderly feel not receiving any visitors. I can also hear every sound all at once like each element rudely interrupting each other and sometimes I want to yell at them and say one of you at a time. Granted some are machines…lol.

 

[Aspychata]

Never thought about it, but yes, wet to dry definitely is irritating. I don't do well with zero noise, because then l concentrate on the stillness. So l tend to have the TV on low, to help me. Even not watching.

 

[kriss72]

Sound, primarily.

Really loud sounds can knock me for a loop, but at the same time I REALLY cant deal with silence. I need some sort of constant noise around so I dont go crazy.

Sounds (!) familiar, I wear nc-headphones most of the time in my home to shield me, but at the same time I listen to music - when outside I have earplugs and then nc-headphones, lets me turn the volume up a notch, and makes it more bearable to take the headphones of when I need to communicate e.g. when shopping.

 

[marc_101]

Sound and light (fluorescent lights are the devil). Loud people make me cringe.

 

[Jumpinbare]

I would have to rank touch and sound coequally.annoying. Clothing is basically "all tag" to me. There's no way to move without be bothered. And FORGET hugs and handshakes. But noise is just as bad, and when things are quiet my permanent tinnitus becomes super annoying. I have literally never heard silence

 

[thejuice]

Touch, Sound, light, smell, taste in order.of most disabling

 

[Lilacleia16]

Leia’s 5 Senses Perspective Theory

How do you see the world as an autistic person? There are 5 options and they are each governed by one of the five senses. Explain your perspective. 1. Stereovision 2. Vibration vision 3. Picture vision 4. Smell pictures 5. Taste visualizations...

www.autismforums.com

Read my blog on this site about my 5 Senses Perspective Theory & tell me your thoughts on it over there. Thanks.

 

[Angular Chap]

Sound is number 1 for me. But only certain sounds and not the volume. I don't actually mind things like fireworks, thunderstorms and most power tools, but I get pretty bad misophonia, so eating noises/mouth noises, rubbing hands together or rubbing clothes really get to me like nothing else. "People noises" might be the best way of putting it.

 

[Dendrite]

For me, it's sound primarily. Loud noise alone, regardless of the type of sound, can genuinely cause me so much distress. In fact, there are times where it only takes one instance of something like a loud car or motorbike, a balloon bursting or someone shouting (regardless of whether it's even at me or if I'm just near somone shouting loudly) to completely ruin my day. I literally never leave home without earbuds/earphones and my phone, so I can play music or sounds to reduce the risk of this happening; monotonous sounds like white/pink/brown noise and recordings of rain are often what I listen to when I get overstimulated, they can often calm me down or at least reduce the panic and stress that comes with sensory overload.

I'd say touch is my second most sensitive, as there are certain textures that I will actively avoid touching because they distress me, such as surfaces like old brick walls that have a chalky or dusty residue.

Also, I'm very specific with a particular aspect of smell, as I will outright not eat something if it smells a certain way (regardless of whether the taste of the food even resembles the smell). When I was a child I used to have to sniff pieces of bread before a parent made a sandwich for me for schooll, as an example.

 

[Lilacleia16]

For me, it's sound primarily. Loud noise alone, regardless of the type of sound, can genuinely cause me so much distress. In fact, there are times where it only takes one instance of something like a loud car or motorbike, a balloon bursting or someone shouting (regardless of whether it's even at me or if I'm just near somone shouting loudly) to completely ruin my day. I literally never leave home without earbuds/earphones and my phone, so I can play music or sounds to reduce the risk of this happening; monotonous sounds like white/pink/brown noise and recordings of rain are often what I listen to when I get overstimulated, they can often calm me down or at least reduce the panic and stress that comes with sensory overload.

I'd say touch is my second most sensitive, as there are certain textures that I will actively avoid touching because they distress me, such as surfaces like old brick walls that have a chalky or dusty residue.

Also, I'm very specific with a particular aspect of smell, as I will outright not eat something if it smells a certain way (regardless of whether the taste of the food even resembles the smell). When I was a child I used to have to sniff pieces of bread before a parent made a sandwich for me for schooll, as an example.

I sniff bread too and if I smell mold I won’t eat it. My Mom says it smells fine and eats it so I don’t think neurotypicals can smell mold.

 

[Misty Avich]

Noise tops the list. I have misophonia, and perforated eardrums, and add sensitive nerves (easily startled) to the mix.

I think touch comes next, when it comes to clothing tags, but that might be because I have a bit of a phobia of clothing tags (nothing to do with sensory issues, if you look up "fear of buttons" you'll see that's a real thing, and my fear of tags is the same sort of thing as that though it seems to be rarer than fear of buttons). So if I can feel a clothing tag it not only distracts me to discomfort but reminds me that there's a clothing tag there, ewww!!!

I don't generally have a problem with smells, but when I'm on my period some unpleasant smells can make me want to retch. Otherwise I can actually filter out smells. In fact, due to my sinus problems I don't smell things others can so much.

Bright natural light (sunshine or lots of white clouds) can trigger a sneeze, but otherwise light doesn't bother me. In fact I prefer bright lights. I feel dimmed light in a room makes my eyes feel uncomfortable.

Taste is my least. Yes there are some foods I don't like but everyone I know has foods they don't like, and my disliking to certain foods isn't related to sensory issues.

The sixth sense (literally) is emotions, not just to my own but to everyone else's too. I can be so sensitive to other people's moods, thoughts, feelings and behaviours, that it makes life unbearable for me. A lot of Aspies seem to think I should be able to switch this off but I can't.

 

[kriss72]

I sniff bread too and if I smell mold I won’t eat it. My Mom says it smells fine and eats it so I don’t think neurotypicals can smell mold.

I don't know if they can't or choose to ignore it - NT's sometimes do things I really don't understand. (Not that own my brain doesn't do things that I don't understand myself)