Monday, November 3, 2014

Hyposensitivity or Did you feel that?

Hyposensitivity is when a person has difficulties processing input through the senses. This means more stimulation is needed to properly register a sensation.

Hi, my name is Brigid and my tactile sense is completely hyposensitive. This means my sense of touch is not as defined as other people's. Yes, this is the reason why corsets are relaxing to me and deep pressure in the form of weighted blankets or crushing bear hugs are so comforting.

So when I was younger I broke my arm. Now the problem was, I didn't realize my arm was broken.
For 3 days I didn't know it was broken.
It was not until it had swollen up completely and my mother insisted on taking me to the hospital. See, the problem was I could not actually register the pain of a broken arm. For people like me, this can make doctor appointments very complicated because the pain scale of 1 to 10 does not really make much sense. I don't know what a pain rating of 10 would be for the average person. I don't even flinch when I get tattoos or piercings. See the issue?

For those who are hyposensitive, we search out sensory input. For those of us who have a hyposensitive vestibular system, we can spin around forever on those teacup rides at amusement parks and never feel like we are going to loose our lunch. It is only with the extreme sensations do we have a little more comfort in our own bodies.

One of my favorite sensory accommodations is a weighted blanket. I'm currently working to afford one because I've noticed they can help calm me down in record time. This summer I was under a total of 30 pounds of weighted blankets and then asked my mom to sit on my lap, it was a stressful time but it completely regulated me. Until then, I'm currently sleeping under several thick blankets and full sized pillows to get the same feeling.

No comments:

Post a Comment