[PlatyParty]

For about a year and a half now, I've been very sensitive to sounds like whistling, and repetitive motions like the sight of someone sitting in class, jiggling their leg out of boredom. Those are my two biggest triggers. They both induce similar reactions in me. I feel almost threatened by these things, even though I am aware that these actions cannot physically harm me. ...And yet, these stimuli conjure up a feeling of terror. It's absolutely a fight or flight response. If I cannot fight (I ought not fight. Punching people is not a nice thing to do, no matter how badly I might want to or feel I need to), I must somehow protect myself from either stimulus.

In the case of whistling, I usually end up:
A) attempting to endure it, and end up inflicting upon myself the desire to hurt the whistler- I usually hit my head or leg hard with my hand; B) Immediately lashing out at the whistler by yelling at them to stop; C) Furiously and expressively stomping my feet and/or throwing a punch at the palm of my other hand before high tailing it out of the room.

My responses to leg jiggling are not much better:
I feel threatened and get angry, and I'll make every attempt to cover my eyes in such a way as to block the motion while still maintaining visual contact with the prof/whoever is speaking. If this fails, as it often does, I might grab the skin of my upper arm in a tight fist until it stops, and I'll display typical panic symptoms.

As for whistling, I've done research online and it sounds like a condition called misophonia. There is a numbered scale that describes the varying intensities of people's experiences. Let's just say I've got it bad.

I haven't found a similar condition concerning visual annoyances.

Anyone else here experience this problem as a part of their daily lives? I'm more than eager to hear any insight this forum may have to offer.

[88Butterfly88]

Welcome to PC! Do the sounds hurt your ears? Are they too loud? I have high functioning autism and therefore have sensitive hearing so certain sounds are hard for me to handle. Just my experience.

[Skeezyks]

Hello PlatyParty: I'm sorry I do not really have anything to offer with regard to your concerns. I personally hate noise too. It can make me angry. But I don't have the kinds of reactions to it you describe.

I see this is your first post here on PC. So...welcome to PsychCentral… from the Skeezyks! I hope you find the time you spend here to be of benefit.

PsychCentral is a great place to get information as well as support for mental health issues. There are many knowledgeable & caring members here. The more you post, & reply to other members’ posts, the more a part of the community you will become. Plus there are social groups you can join & chat rooms where you’ll be able to connect with other PC members in real time (once your first 5 posts have been reviewed & approved.) Lots of great stuff! So please keep posting!

[PlatyParty]

Originally Posted by 88Butterfly88

Welcome to PC! Do the sounds hurt your ears? Are they too loud? I have high functioning autism and therefore have sensitive hearing so certain sounds are hard for me to handle. Just my experience.

Thanks! 🎉✨
I definitely am more sensitive to noise in general than others are. I cannot put myself in a concert type setting, no matter how much I like the idea. I think even the music at my church (which is much quieter than how I've been told concerts are) illicits these reactions in me. But I... don't think that I think the sounds are physically painful?
Someone I used to talk to mentioned the possibility of high functioning autism, but after a good deal of research online, I decided my experiences didn't quite match fundamental identifiers.

[Cyllya]

Originally Posted by PlatyParty

Thanks! 🎉✨
I definitely am more sensitive to noise in general than others are. I cannot put myself in a concert type setting, no matter how much I like the idea. I think even the music at my church (which is much quieter than how I've been told concerts are) illicits these reactions in me. But I... don't think that I think the sounds are physically painful?
Someone I used to talk to mentioned the possibility of high functioning autism, but after a good deal of research online, I decided my experiences didn't quite match fundamental identifiers.

There is a condition which is NOT in the DSM called Sensory Processing Disorder. Here is a symptom checklist and here is something I wrote about having similar symptoms. (I'm only self-diagnosed with it.)

It's (still!) not in the DSM because opponents are convinced everyone who seems to have SPD actually has some other condition that is already in the DSM (usually ADHD or ASD).

You could consider autism to be SPD + additional problems.

There is a non-diagnostic personal identity label called Highly Sensitive Person. That term is supposed to be for when it's NOT a disorder or impairment; about 20% of the population is an HSP. (By analogy, HSP is to the hypersensitive half of SPD as being a little slow to warm up to new people is to crippling social phobia.)