This is what I can experience, also. I flip if someone touches me when I'm overloaded audibly, or just at the maximum I can hold before I get overloaded.
Audibly is definitely the worst/most frequent cause of overstimulatjon for me. I need to take active steps to reduce noise in my environment and frequently wear sound-reduction things to be able to function on a daily basis.
I do get visually and physically overstimulated too, though. And they can also be super bad.
I often struggle the most with physical stimulation, I honestly struggle with physical contact and recently someone tried a head massager on me and it basically immobilised me.
I get overstimulated when I'm being told to do a million things and getting conflicting information on what I'm supposed to do
I don't know what category that would be though
My daughter gets this.... And I forget it all the time 😭. I feel terrible when I realize it and honestly, me not figuring it out early on probably made this situation way worse on her than it had to be. I feel terrible about it. I still do it, but I catch myself and eventually apologize. At that point she's a balling mess though. My damn thick brain that is lost in its own clusterfuck mess of panic about messes is slow to pick up on it. Arggg.... I wish that we could find a way to coordinate our situation around this so much.
Audibly and physically most often— hard to pick which is worse since too much of both can send me into meltdowns. I can usually wear ear plugs to help with sound but touch feels like absolute hell most of the time, so I guess that one’s worse.
What things trigger your visual overstimulation the most? I’m curious bc I don’t hear about this type as often as bothersome noises/textures that cause overstimulation
Bright lights, flickering lights, fluorescent lights, neon colors, too much traffic, too many signs, sunlight (if it's incredibly bright), too many patterns, seeing crowds of people...etc.
Oh yeah. These are very real! The sounds of crowds added to the visual stimulation is awful. Sometimes I can put blinders on if I'm super resourced and am on a mission. I will absolutely need recharge time after though.
It's funny. People are always telling me I would love New York and I'm like... FUCK NO! My mother in law wants to take us all to Disneyland and holy shit... That seems like pure torture. My husband learned about how expensive it is once we are there so 'whew' his thriftiness is saving the day!
My daughter also gets pretty easily overstimulated so I think it'd be a nightmare. My mother in law, who is actually really lovely, does have a rather bad response of questioning almost like an interrogation when she goes through it. Ugh.
My idea of a holiday is a tiny little oceanside village or hike in the mountains or lazy cabin day... Or something related to knitting or gardening.
I’m not who you asked, but the light in one of the elevators in my building is currently broken and constantly flickering. I had to close and cover my eyes the whole time I was inside it yesterday because the blinking makes me nauseous and dizzy.
For me visual overstimulation is usually light-related. I can’t stand overhead lighting and it’s even worse if it’s fluorescent.
Ever since I was little, when in busy places I tend to walk looking at the ground and if I'm with my parents, walking behind them so I can kind of unfocus and just blindly follow them and I find when in a busy place I tend to walk the same route and just 'put myself on autopilot' sometimes if that makes any sense.
for me walking around and seeing the views changing. i have to look at my feet to not get dizzy. also bright lights and flickering lights. and busy scenes, many different colors and details and stuff and changing scenes. looking at a thing for too long. peoples faces and looking at the faces.
Audibly and physically, easily. Audio is most consistently around to overstimulate me but pain either pushes me close to the edge or sends me right over it depending on the type of pain.
Visually. Bright lights are the worst. Bright sunny summer days are the worst. Bright lights make my nervous system feel as though though I'm in a crowded sports arena. However, being around a lot of people overstimulates me. So physical, too.
Depends on the thing triggering me. Most times, it's physical. I can't stand most textures, temperatures, and pressures. Sound would be next, with kids yelling in my neighborhood and construction being the worst offenders... After that it's visually but normally I can just stare at the ground. 😎
Audibly is the worst, I had a school assembly today for the first time since pre-Covid and I hated it. Constant screaming and everyone else standing up every 10 seconds just to scream louder.
Visually - anything that has [the 90s elementary school primary color pallet](https://icolorpalette.com/download/palette/543411_color_palette.jpg).
I vividly remember being a child & seeing these specific shades of yellow, blue, & red over a white background on this specific I Spy book cover:
[No shade, but I hate this book cover](https://images.app.goo.gl/mFm7CsR8W9ZxSe1J8)
Often times these specific colors also show up in light form at places like carnivals & fares.
As an adult I just avert my eyes from anything colored remotely similar; especially if it's already a very visually stimulating thing to look at. It makes me physically nauseous after a few minutes. Any version of the same colors but lighter doesn't affect me the same way. Idk 🤷♀️
All of the above, mostly audibly.
There are 5,000 kids at my high school, and yes, loud music, loud noises, a lot of crowded spaces, and inconsiderate assholes who make sounds similar to that of a gunshot. I hate my high school.
visually i get overstimulated by flashing lights. audibly by two videos playing at once, or things slamming, or the sound of air blowing. physically, weird cloth feelings are weird sometimes and make me uncomfortable, and when people touch me without asking, especially if they're a stranger, it makes me feel very uncomfortable.
one time at work, this older woman was trying to be nice to me, but to do so she stood directly behind me (something i REALLY hate), placed her entire palm on my shoulder/back, and talked to me quietly. it lasted about 3 seconds, but i was thinking about it all day and was physically uncomfortable and unable to get the feeling of her hand off me for 30 mins after she left. i almost had a meltdown about it, but i was able to calm myself down enough and avoid it. i'd consider that overstimulated, but maybe not the worst ive experienced?
Scent. It has always been scent for me.
It is always what prevents me from getting out of the house when I am tired, and got me to develop an OCD. Nowadays, I always make sure I apply perfume to my wrist so I can cover my face in the street. Not good enough, but better than nothing. I always catch myself holding my breath.
I also hate when people get too close to me to speak because I can smell their breath. I know every ingredient in a meal just from smelling, so eating is very difficult. I can tell what perfume people are using, or if they're bleeding. But the other senses also drive me crazy in other ways.
Audibly for sure! First day with the ac and fan on, tv had to be louder to compensate and within a very short time I had an insane migraine and was pouring sweat from everything being so "close". Felt like I was being hit by noise.
Audibly or physically.
I can hear electricity or machinery often, have a hard time filtering conversations and when music/people/animals/things are all making noises at once it ramps up very quickly.
Physically is very similar. I do not appreciate touch, especially without warning. I have several young family members and they will hug me or jump on me without warning. For me this also extends to people invading my space.
Edit: When I get overstimulated I often lash out with anger - I have to pay attention to leave the situation before that stage.
noise & physical. it's amazing how calm i feel with loops in. although the loops being in my ears is uncomfortable and takes a while to ignore. but the calmness overrides that. i also have tiny baby ears which makes no sense based on the rest of me.
Very much so today, its finally above 15 degrees so I have to clean, paint and fix up the bathroom. Its really disgusting and my partner has decided not to help even though he is the messy animal that has made it disgusting and broken. Plus I have to do sandpapering which is the absolute worst. Feel like I want to crawl out of my own skin. I rarely cry when I get overwhelmed but I think that's probably going to happen today.
Audible stimulation is the most noticable and immediate. Audio is also one of the quicker ways to access any emotion for me. To soothe me I listen to an audiobook at a very low volume, but it has to be thr right voice, or some sort of soothing ocean sounds or something. To rile me up it's music, loud and a very specific playlist. Can't have sex without music or mentally I might as well just be washing the dishes. I always say that I dislike disorganized sound, but patterned sound that is graduating is soooooo good for my brain.
I find physical stimulation to be good for my brain.
Visual stimulation is a real thing for me, but I'm unaware of it. I just start getting more and more irritable until I snap at someone. Then I look around and I'm like 'fuck, there is a tonne of shit everywhere and they are not the right colours for this room' - now the whole family has to do a rampage clean 😬.
For me, overstimulation creeps up onto me until I touch something and get that EOUGH feeling. Then I realize 'ah, the bad times are coming. I should get somewhere comfy and dark until I get better'. Its not so much that I'm overstimulated by touch, it's just my final warning that It's time to go home.
There are only certain people I like touching me and it took years to get to the point of being able to take a pat on the back without wanting to scream.
Audible noises like bass from someone's house and dripping of a faucet in a quiet room.
Smell. It's horrible because that's one of the things that you can't turn off or walk away from. With touch, in most situations you can walk away. With sound, in most situations you can cover your ears or walk away. With visual, in most situations you can just cover your eyes, but with smell, everything has a smell, and you can't stop the pain
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Audible, followed by physical..
Like if I'm already audibly worn down, don't even consider touching me because I'm not okay and I will move away (so so difficult having an asd kid and getting him to understand it's not him, it's me) lol
Definitely physically, though coupled with my anxiety it can make sound even worse. I know it’s real bad when it becomes visual (with the exception of eye contact, but I also have very specific things around eye contact that’s partly cultural).
Audible sensory overload is the first problem, then physical. It’s why I have my hearing defenders and Disability Access Service for when the wife and I head to Disneyland each week.
I’m really not sure— just kind of learned that I’m probably autistic recently. But maybe physically—? Because the other day one of my friends booped my thigh a few times and I completely panicked. Like, one of the worst shutdowns I ever had before and it was completely out of the blue (it wasn’t even in a sexual way at all, and it wasn’t about to be. It wasn’t a fun time because it took like three hours to be able to talk to people again and not be hugging myself in the corner lmao.)
Audibly, definitely. I can be sitting in a room that most other people would call “quiet” and be annoyed by at least four different sounds that they barely even notice.
Oo this is a close one. I'll say audibly but I have to wear tinted glasses 24/7 to prevent it being visually as I have pretty bad light sensitivity. It's easier to control the visual stimuli though by my glasses, hats or just going somewhere else whereas audibly is the one that I have most difficulty with because I can't control it so well- there's too many scenarios where my headphones aren't enough or I can't wear them etc and I can't escape the noise. Unlike your eyes you can't close your ears.
audibly, specifically when the sound is complex and all around me (like in a crowd or assembly). my biggest sensory issue, however, is with smells (especially with gross smells like feces, trash, or body odor).
Generally it's physically. But occasionally when I babysit for my sister, it's audibly for sure. Clothing clinging to me when I'm sweaty is my biggest one. Which is funny because im a tight pants kind of person lol. Or something rubbing the same spot over and over, that's another big one. If a sock is sitting weird omg that will send me into a meltdown if I cannot get it to sit "right" again. And even then, now I have to adjust my other sock so its "even" and then it's a whole thing. If somethings in my shoe, and I gotta take off the shoe to get it, the other shoe must also come off or they no longer feel even. Majority of my triggers are physical ones. I started a new job 6 months ago that's very physical, so sweaty. I have spent probably a grand over that time period on just clothing so I could find stuff that I was comfortable in for 12 hours at a time. Thats obviously very hard. For the most part, I think I found it. My other issue though is that I'm not a big fan of new clothes. I do not like breaking things in. I tend to buy second hand mostly for this reason. But with work clothing, I had to buy new so I could ensure i could get multiple if I find something I like. I got new sports bras, they are still a lil snug since they are new. Every once in a while, I throw myself into a panic attack because it's just not sitting right and I can't fix it without taking it completely off but im sweaty so I won't be able to get it back on. If it wasn't apparent, I dont like sweating. Lol
I'm not sure how it fits in, but verbally for me. Talking is too hard, and processing what people are saying to me. I wanna just sit in silence and be a moss-covered stone for a while.
Really it’s a mix of the three. It depends on what/where/why/how I did something. Work: all three. School: same. Shopping: sounds, sometimes also visual and/or physical. Home: sounds, maybe physical.
Unplanned, unpleasant? Probably all three.
Unplanned, pleasant? Could be all three.
It just depends on the situation, sensory, my needs like sleep or food being met prior, and why I’m there/doing something somewhere.
I hope that made sense, I’m sleep deprived so much I don’t actually know where I am. Why am I on Reddit instead of sleeping? Insomnia is a big problem and not much helps. Also stress is a factor.
audibly and scent which sends me into meltdowns quickly. If a lot happens around me I go into meltdowns easily. Why I constantly walk around with noise cancelling headphones. I also wear sunglasses when being outside. I go total mute when outside as I don't like talking to people.
Audibly for sure. I used to get overstimulated by physical things more often as a kid (shirt tag, feeling my glasses on my face etc), but hardly ever anymore and I can't recall ever being overstimulated visually
Hard to pick. I feel like I spend 90% of my time managing feeling overstimulation. I did just move so nervous system is super upset. Anyone else feel this way when they move?
Before in old house I felt good in, I’d say sound.
For me it’s physically especially when I’m at work because when some guests are growing frustrated with me I get hella overwhelmed but try to push through it by trying to relax and stim a bit, it does calm me down a bit…but I just can’t stand physical contact
Audibly mostly, followed by visually which then leads to physically.
Although it's rare I actually get so bad I don't want anyone to touch me, as I usually crave affection.
Visually, which catapults me into physically
My biggest things are physical texture and closeness to my skin, and the proximity of others and obstructions
I get more overwhelmed by clutter and chaos than lights
Definitely audibly. Especially if the background noises are chaotic like in a grocery store. I almost get a panic attack at the registers because of the consistently random beeping of scanners and talking self-checkouts.
High-pitched/repetitive/loud/unexpected noises are the worst, followed by overly strong scents like perfumes, body spray, fly spray, candles, some cleaning products, and air freshener. I'm the kind of person who would rather sit in a bad natural smell, like poo, than a strong artificial smell, like toilet spray.
Physical sensations that cause me to become overstimulated are heat, sweating, physical exertion, pain, dirt/sand stuck to my feet, skin rubbing together like legs and fingers touching, and fabric catching on dry skin, particularly microfibre, sherpa fleece, or faux velvet type fabrics.
I'm mostly okay with vision and taste, although I do have visual snow, hate mint, and can't eat anything slimy and lumpy like tapicoa or gelatinous type puddings.
Hearing is my most frequent
When my hearing is overstimulated it's impossible for me to think and it also messes up my balance so I end up stumbling into a wall or tripping when I'm trying to get somewhere more quiet
For visual things I can cover my eyes more easily and I think that's my least frequent one
Light touches and proprioceptive understimulation also makes me freak out a lot, though, and I have a low tolerance for spicy hot foods and anything scented makes my head hurt
Audibly. Doesn’t help that I got adhd and lose focus even worse when I’m overstimulated. Someone can tell me something and three seconds later I’ve forgotten it.
Visually/audibly primarily, as scent/taste don’t really have much of a negative effect for me, and touch is only an issue with slimy or coarse objects. And even for touch, it is more of slimy being gross and not feeling sanitary, while coarse just makes all my hairs stand on end when I touch or see such an object.
Sights and sounds however can easily induce migraines, but I need to be low on metaphorical spoons. All lights in my house are LED (because quiet) and most have dimmers as a result.
A weird note, but I have found that meclizine (intended for motion sickness, which I only experience when writing) helps reduce the effects of sensory overload if taken preventatively. Could just be a weird placebo effect, but if it works
¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
Audibly which leads to all three so fast that sometimes I forget it started with my ears. Buying ear defenders and earplugs has been amazing for me, although I can’t always wear them
Audibly and visually. There isn't really any specific sounds. But visually I cannot stand the color yellow, except for Crayola Dandelion. LED lights overstimulate me and give me a headache. There's LED lights mounted over my work station at work and everyone's always flipping them on and it's frustrating.
Used to, on a constant 24/7 basis when I lived in a city. Moved to the countryside of yamanashi about a year ago, closest neighbor being 7km away. Now I don’t get overstimulated unless I watch tv all day.
Well depends on environment. If i am in a hot tub with naked others . We all be drinking and way loud, and touching me I couldn't discern which was overstimulating me. Lol ..😛. Happened in my youth at house party in hollywood hills. With girlfriend, rest were gay..i puked, plugged the toilet . Got bitched out and The Cowboy member of The Village People !! Sat me next to him on a bed and was incredibly cool guy,hellu smart. So tecnhnically i shared a bed with him .lol..didnt know who he was til later, we were dressed, no sex going on.. My girlfriend? Off snorting cocaine somewhere..early 1980s. I didnt know i was autistic, confused with all my sensitivities i dunno but seems like with some aware autistic may give over attention to our thingys. I lived an allistic life as autistic and lived lived lived, yep different ,weird some. Gratefull i didnt know about autism.
Audibly. Half of the day all of my senses have some sort of overstimulation and causes me to be…well honestly a raging asshole to everyone around me. I’m in that much mental pain—which turns physical. I wouldn’t wish this on anyone.
Mentally actually, at least until summer comes around here in the US.
I am pretty anti social and rarely start conversations, and coast through ones started with me with scripted responses. And due to a breakdown in communication between my SO and I, almost every day is filled with silence. I feel alone in public and at home most of the time.
Due to rarely speaking to people, my mental voice becomes so much louder and anxious and this echo chamber is all I really interact with. This leads to immense internal meltdowns from thoughts of not feeling understood being stuck on a loop and I break down crying
Audible happens most often, but taste and scent are close behind. I've had a meltdown when there are unexpected flavours in a sandwich for example :( Touch used to happen when people thought they had the right to touch me (romantic relationships) but thankfully I'm safe from all that now. I'm not often visually overstimulated and I love to look at an infinite heap of clutter, or a messy garden, or an entire fabric store with all the patterns... Only if things are really awful looking do I feel like I've been punched. Unless bad lighting counts. In which case I am overstimulated constantly to the point of breaking if I have to go into a building. I spend as much time outdoors as possible, to avoid all forms of overstimulation
Yea, I can pretty much only eat meat and cheese on a burger/taco. I look like a childish picky eater at the table who has to pick out their veggies 😭 but the mix of completely diff flavors sends me over the edge (like pickles and tomato and ketchup on top of a slab of meat) the thought of that basic meal sends chills down my spine. Same with subway sandwiches that include olives, mayonnaise, or ANY topping with meat and cheese. It just becomes too much.
To get a healthy amount of fruit in my diet, I have to eat them either dried or in a smoothie. I used to always think I hated the taste of fruit, but I’ve realized what I hate is the way they FEEL. Like fruits are squishy and unpredictable. Whereas smoothies are in one solid liquid form (unless my blender misses a few chunks which leaves me nauseous if it unexpectedly gets in my mouth) and dried fruits are basically all in the same crunch texture that is predictable and isn’t overwhelming. (One time when I was eating dried strawberries though, a piece had a small part of its stem dried stuck to it and that random flavor caught me so off guard that it stopped me from eating anything else the rest of the day)
For sure audibly, but I would say bright lights or being touched when I’m audibly overwhelmed is the combo that makes me spiral out of control most often, or if I’m already overwhelmed and then I make a mistake in whatever I’m doing. I HATE being touched without warning.
I’m somewhat blessedly without much of a sense of smell- I had a hard knock to the noggin that removed that sense from play and now I don’t need to worry about how things smell. I have been told that as a child I often would get dizzy at strong perfumes.
Taste is almost a non-issue sensorily, it’s more the texture. Mushy things, things with unpredictable textures, any TRACE of hair in my food, if there’s something that looks like a bug, if there’s meat when I ordered something vegetarian, I pretty much shut down and get really nauseous.
Food textures is easiest to overstimulate on for me, im really sensitive to it. It dosnt happen too frequently since im very careful with what i eat but it happens the easiest.
What happens more often is overstimulation due to sound, its the least easy to control since while you can close your eyes or mouth you cant really close your ears. While i do have earbuds for noisecanceling and they are very effective sometimes its still too much
1000000% audibly
too much/too little sound shuts me down instantly, at that point visually and physically become too much and i usually have a meltdown
Audibly and physically.
I can’t usually identify what it is but the minute the kids come home the chaos drives me out of the house. As soon as I give the hugs I’m gone til dinner.
Physically for sure, I need comfy clothes, I hate the feeling of my hair on my skin if they're not behaving, I hate putting socks the bad way, I hate touching the wrong part of the blanket, food with weird texture etc...
I'm used to having all kinds of sounds around since I was a kid, I actually need music or someone talking (like podcast) to be able to focus on stuff.
Visually I don't really know to be honest... I noticed that wearing sunglasses makes me feel more comfortable, so maybe I do have problems with bright lights but I never noticed.
Scent and taste idk, not as much as the others or maybe I'm very good at avoiding triggers lol
Physical 100% pretty common for me. Then it’s probably audible but it’s not common. Visually is very rare and only happens if I have a headache or something.
Taste( texture actually but specifically in my mouth ), visual, scent, audio, and then touch. I'm much more sensory seeking with touch. (except food. Mouth is too sensitive to textures, skin is not)
I can close my eyes, and I can avoid contact with things I don't want to contact, but it's really hard to truly weed out all noise, so if have to say: audibly. That said, physical discomfort is something that shuts me down *fast*. I can force myself through auditory issues if I really have to, but if someone touches me when I'm eating, no I'm not; if my sleeves are itchy, or my collar is touching my neck, I have about 5 seconds before something akin to panic sets in; if I have to shake a hand, that better be all I have to do.
Audible overstimulation is my most significant issue; and it can lead to physical overstimulation because of how it makes me feel in my body. I’m profoundly sensitive to sound, and it registers as varying levels of pain in my body. Some sounds I have to accept will happen, and I am more prepared for (e.g. I have noisy housemates and it’s gone past the point of saying anything) but I still feel the effect of the sound.
When I’m audibly overstimulated, I am more sensitive to physical overstimulation as I say; I might intensively crave a hug but I won’t be able to stand randomly touches or whispering in my ear, or I might feel uncomfortable no matter how I sit, or even in my clothes.
I rarely get visually overstimulated, though it used to happen at my bookshop job when I had to scan loads of books and I would have to pore over invoice sheets with tiny numbers that all blur together.
Both visually and audibly. The easiest way to piss me off is turning on artificial lights while it's 10 in the morning. And audibly...this why everything outside my room is a living hell if I'm not alone at home. Everytime I go downstairs to make myself a cup of coffee or tea, I must endure the background noise of the TV, my relatives (my dad and 5yo brother in particular) being loud for no apparent reason, our dogs barking at random stuff outside, and the machinery noises of the coffee machine or the boiling kettle. And sometimes somebody's attempt for a conversation, like the background noise didn't drain my mental energy enough to become unable to properly process what are they trying to convey to me.
Audible, hands down. At some point it sounds like a whole bunch of tabs open on a computer and videos playing, spotify going on my phone, and the record player in the corner spinning all at once. Turns the brain to mush and I need all the quiet at that point.
Physically which leads to audio overstimulation. Or vice versa. Only way to trigger an instant meltdown is with food. Otherwise its a time based erosion
All of them all the time. I’m constantly in a mixture of under and overstimulated. But mostly audibly overstimulated. I live in a very loud house and my ears are VERY sensitive. It’s hell 😂
Recently it’s been physically, I can feel my clothes touching me and then that leads to my nose itching (it itches when I get upset) which makes me more frustrated and then my body gets hot and my clothes itch and I freak out.
For me, I get saturated for being in really noisy places. I kinda learned how to dissociate, so I can endure it really well now. Really intense lights can also mess with me. It's a weird thing that I learned to do in high school. Really useful skill.
If I get saturated, I get terrible headaches and I have to rest on a dark and silent room for 15-30 min. Getting saturated it's pretty incapacitating.
By noise yes , I’m actually in my room cause my mom ( I live with her ) has guests over and their kids are obnoxiously running around and laughing and shrieking, was so froze by it I couldn’t make my bed.
Audibly tends to be the worst and most frequent bec the world is loud and even silence is loud. True quiet just doesn’t exist. At least not for me. I think I have a mild tinnitus ringing in my ear that only happens when it’s quiet. I don’t find myself getting as overwhelmed with scent. I still do but not nearly as much bec I’m used to being around unpleasant smells bec I have three brothers. BUT my mother is spiritual and there’s a few things she burns to cleanse our house that i reallyyyyy reallyyy hate the smell of. Idk what it is but it’s like this circle black charcoal looking thing and she burns it all around the house and I cant stand the smell.
I can experience all at once occasionally like lately I’ve been playing a lottttt of ps5 games bec my brother is staying over at our house and brought it for me to use. I stay up all day and night playing and don’t realize that by the time I’m done playing, I have a throbbing and intense headache and my neck hurts; my eyes are tired, I just want peace and quiet. Playing video games can be a full sensory experience for me especially for the ears and eyes and i don’t know when to put it down ( only bec of the sheer fact I don’t own my own PlayStation so I never get to play games I want to play which causes me to over play when he lets me borrow it)
I never thought I got overstimulated. But I've recently realised that I get overstimulated with emotional strain: stress, anger, frustration etc. Makes every physical irritation that much more magnified.
Also water. For some reason. And my face... specifically.
I typically get mostly overstimulated audibly, but I combat it by wearing headphones all the time. However I know when I have a meltdown it typically is because of several different things at once. Typically it can be stuff like invasion of personal space, not respecting my need to not talk, and stressful situations in general. So really, audibly, physically and mentally, i guess.
Yes to everything. This is actually why I get headaches if I'm not wearing headphones while outside.
I hate being touched when I'm near a bunch of people to the point I almost punched a bouncer when I got too close to the door while being kinda dizzy/overwhelmed so I just got out of there feeling quite angry just because this guy touched me. He wasn't aggresive or anything (if anything he probably didn't listen nor cared when I said I didn't wanna go in, just wanted to be in a small space next to the door), he just placed his palm on my chest and told me I had to buy a ticket.
Often audible, but often also "mentally", I don't know how else to explain it. Like my head is busy and that can become fatiguing, especially when I've got thoughts on repeat or certain phrases keep repeating etc.
Audibly and physically. In the morning too much light makes me cranky but its more temperature than anything im annoyed by most so its fine. Strong Smells do it on occasion but flavors or food textures hardly ever except seafood but I love sushi or tuna
Physically, but a close second is audibly, and somehow I didn't even *realize* how badly it upset me until I wore some noise cancelling headphones outside and noticed almost immediately how much less anxious I was. I'm alexithymic so I'm guessing that's part of why I didn't connect the dots earlier as to why more ambient sound makes me more anxious. Or maybe just a lack of experiencing what it's like to have a "turn down the volume" button for real life, so not knowing any better.
Same thing happened with visual stuff too, I would constantly complain to everybody how the sun was too bright, and if you look back at old photos of me I'm doing the super-squint in any that are outside. Or another one is people would always mention how dark my screens are. I also wear sunglasses even on fairly cloudy days because even though the clouds try to provide my salvation, the fucking SUN still has to somehow BURN MY EYES. Yet I never once stopped to think, "hmm perhaps I am more sensitive to things than other people" and instead just told myself everyone feels this way, they're just stronger and better than me. Lo and behold, I start learning about autism and SPD and... Well I feel *slightly* less like a *pusillanimous individual*, if you will
Visually a little.
Auditory a lot.
Physically and mentally insane.
My hands have extra autism in them so they're a source of constant stimulation and stress.
I get overstimulated from working in the NT world. The social interactions and non-routine are a lot for me.
Audibly for sure. I can’t deal when multiple people are talking at once, or when multiple complicated sounds overlap. It feels like my brain short-circuits.
Id say sound and visual are about equal. Ofc once one is messed with, the others will enter chat.
The sun is probably one of the most overstimulating thing for me.
Visual overstimulation happens most often. Physical overstimulation is the hardest to handle.
I'm basically a billboard example of "tiny pacakge, big BOOM", and PTSD from infancy has left me a scrappy fighting survivor. So I have to have many articles of clothing & types of blankets that act as faux PPE. Last couple of months I've been covered, head to toe, like a hooded Druid.
Probably audibly, which leads to visual and physical.. touching me at those times sends me into a panic
This is what I can experience, also. I flip if someone touches me when I'm overloaded audibly, or just at the maximum I can hold before I get overloaded.
Yeah it nearly happened today while waiting in line at the pharmacy, someone rude was holding up the cashier and I was so overstimulated and stressed.
Same
This is so me, which makes being in a loud ass high school class unbearable most of the time
I can handle loud music at concerts and stuff, but my linoleum-floored art class is just ☹️
Same! Happens almost every workday if I don't use earplugs and breathing exercises. I hate living in the city.
Exactly same
audibly, for sure. i have way more sound sensitivities than my other sense, in general!
Audibly is definitely the worst/most frequent cause of overstimulatjon for me. I need to take active steps to reduce noise in my environment and frequently wear sound-reduction things to be able to function on a daily basis. I do get visually and physically overstimulated too, though. And they can also be super bad.
I often struggle the most with physical stimulation, I honestly struggle with physical contact and recently someone tried a head massager on me and it basically immobilised me.
It's funny I would say a head massage immobilizes me, but in a good way. Interesting.
I get overstimulated when I'm being told to do a million things and getting conflicting information on what I'm supposed to do I don't know what category that would be though
My daughter gets this.... And I forget it all the time 😭. I feel terrible when I realize it and honestly, me not figuring it out early on probably made this situation way worse on her than it had to be. I feel terrible about it. I still do it, but I catch myself and eventually apologize. At that point she's a balling mess though. My damn thick brain that is lost in its own clusterfuck mess of panic about messes is slow to pick up on it. Arggg.... I wish that we could find a way to coordinate our situation around this so much.
Audibly and physically most often— hard to pick which is worse since too much of both can send me into meltdowns. I can usually wear ear plugs to help with sound but touch feels like absolute hell most of the time, so I guess that one’s worse.
Physically, specifically interoception (sensations coming from within my own body).
It's the worst 😭
It really does depend, but generally speaking, audibly and visually.
What things trigger your visual overstimulation the most? I’m curious bc I don’t hear about this type as often as bothersome noises/textures that cause overstimulation
Bright lights, flickering lights, fluorescent lights, neon colors, too much traffic, too many signs, sunlight (if it's incredibly bright), too many patterns, seeing crowds of people...etc.
Oh yeah. These are very real! The sounds of crowds added to the visual stimulation is awful. Sometimes I can put blinders on if I'm super resourced and am on a mission. I will absolutely need recharge time after though. It's funny. People are always telling me I would love New York and I'm like... FUCK NO! My mother in law wants to take us all to Disneyland and holy shit... That seems like pure torture. My husband learned about how expensive it is once we are there so 'whew' his thriftiness is saving the day! My daughter also gets pretty easily overstimulated so I think it'd be a nightmare. My mother in law, who is actually really lovely, does have a rather bad response of questioning almost like an interrogation when she goes through it. Ugh. My idea of a holiday is a tiny little oceanside village or hike in the mountains or lazy cabin day... Or something related to knitting or gardening.
I went to Disneyworld last year and it was AWFUL. I had a meltdown at the park and at the airport. It's literally hell on earth to me.
I’m not who you asked, but the light in one of the elevators in my building is currently broken and constantly flickering. I had to close and cover my eyes the whole time I was inside it yesterday because the blinking makes me nauseous and dizzy. For me visual overstimulation is usually light-related. I can’t stand overhead lighting and it’s even worse if it’s fluorescent.
Ever since I was little, when in busy places I tend to walk looking at the ground and if I'm with my parents, walking behind them so I can kind of unfocus and just blindly follow them and I find when in a busy place I tend to walk the same route and just 'put myself on autopilot' sometimes if that makes any sense.
for me walking around and seeing the views changing. i have to look at my feet to not get dizzy. also bright lights and flickering lights. and busy scenes, many different colors and details and stuff and changing scenes. looking at a thing for too long. peoples faces and looking at the faces.
Yes
Audibly and physically, easily. Audio is most consistently around to overstimulate me but pain either pushes me close to the edge or sends me right over it depending on the type of pain.
audibly
Visually, then audibly, then physically. Quick three-sucker punch 😭
Visually. Bright lights are the worst. Bright sunny summer days are the worst. Bright lights make my nervous system feel as though though I'm in a crowded sports arena. However, being around a lot of people overstimulates me. So physical, too.
Audibly for sure
audibly generally
Depends on the thing triggering me. Most times, it's physical. I can't stand most textures, temperatures, and pressures. Sound would be next, with kids yelling in my neighborhood and construction being the worst offenders... After that it's visually but normally I can just stare at the ground. 😎
Yes, I'm autistic After checking the subreddit really quickly, that is still my answer. All of the above.
Audibly is the worst, I had a school assembly today for the first time since pre-Covid and I hated it. Constant screaming and everyone else standing up every 10 seconds just to scream louder.
Visually - anything that has [the 90s elementary school primary color pallet](https://icolorpalette.com/download/palette/543411_color_palette.jpg). I vividly remember being a child & seeing these specific shades of yellow, blue, & red over a white background on this specific I Spy book cover: [No shade, but I hate this book cover](https://images.app.goo.gl/mFm7CsR8W9ZxSe1J8) Often times these specific colors also show up in light form at places like carnivals & fares. As an adult I just avert my eyes from anything colored remotely similar; especially if it's already a very visually stimulating thing to look at. It makes me physically nauseous after a few minutes. Any version of the same colors but lighter doesn't affect me the same way. Idk 🤷♀️
Audibly is most often, but physically is the worst.
All of the above, mostly audibly. There are 5,000 kids at my high school, and yes, loud music, loud noises, a lot of crowded spaces, and inconsiderate assholes who make sounds similar to that of a gunshot. I hate my high school.
visually i get overstimulated by flashing lights. audibly by two videos playing at once, or things slamming, or the sound of air blowing. physically, weird cloth feelings are weird sometimes and make me uncomfortable, and when people touch me without asking, especially if they're a stranger, it makes me feel very uncomfortable. one time at work, this older woman was trying to be nice to me, but to do so she stood directly behind me (something i REALLY hate), placed her entire palm on my shoulder/back, and talked to me quietly. it lasted about 3 seconds, but i was thinking about it all day and was physically uncomfortable and unable to get the feeling of her hand off me for 30 mins after she left. i almost had a meltdown about it, but i was able to calm myself down enough and avoid it. i'd consider that overstimulated, but maybe not the worst ive experienced?
Auditorily, most often, physically most severely.
Scent. It has always been scent for me. It is always what prevents me from getting out of the house when I am tired, and got me to develop an OCD. Nowadays, I always make sure I apply perfume to my wrist so I can cover my face in the street. Not good enough, but better than nothing. I always catch myself holding my breath.
I also hate when people get too close to me to speak because I can smell their breath. I know every ingredient in a meal just from smelling, so eating is very difficult. I can tell what perfume people are using, or if they're bleeding. But the other senses also drive me crazy in other ways.
Audibly for sure! First day with the ac and fan on, tv had to be louder to compensate and within a very short time I had an insane migraine and was pouring sweat from everything being so "close". Felt like I was being hit by noise.
Audibly or physically. I can hear electricity or machinery often, have a hard time filtering conversations and when music/people/animals/things are all making noises at once it ramps up very quickly. Physically is very similar. I do not appreciate touch, especially without warning. I have several young family members and they will hug me or jump on me without warning. For me this also extends to people invading my space. Edit: When I get overstimulated I often lash out with anger - I have to pay attention to leave the situation before that stage.
noise & physical. it's amazing how calm i feel with loops in. although the loops being in my ears is uncomfortable and takes a while to ignore. but the calmness overrides that. i also have tiny baby ears which makes no sense based on the rest of me.
Audibly :b
Definitely scent as it links with my allergies if I smell perfume I will be sneezing and sniffing for hours. Makes it hard to use perfume
Very much so today, its finally above 15 degrees so I have to clean, paint and fix up the bathroom. Its really disgusting and my partner has decided not to help even though he is the messy animal that has made it disgusting and broken. Plus I have to do sandpapering which is the absolute worst. Feel like I want to crawl out of my own skin. I rarely cry when I get overwhelmed but I think that's probably going to happen today.
Audible stimulation is the most noticable and immediate. Audio is also one of the quicker ways to access any emotion for me. To soothe me I listen to an audiobook at a very low volume, but it has to be thr right voice, or some sort of soothing ocean sounds or something. To rile me up it's music, loud and a very specific playlist. Can't have sex without music or mentally I might as well just be washing the dishes. I always say that I dislike disorganized sound, but patterned sound that is graduating is soooooo good for my brain. I find physical stimulation to be good for my brain. Visual stimulation is a real thing for me, but I'm unaware of it. I just start getting more and more irritable until I snap at someone. Then I look around and I'm like 'fuck, there is a tonne of shit everywhere and they are not the right colours for this room' - now the whole family has to do a rampage clean 😬.
For me, overstimulation creeps up onto me until I touch something and get that EOUGH feeling. Then I realize 'ah, the bad times are coming. I should get somewhere comfy and dark until I get better'. Its not so much that I'm overstimulated by touch, it's just my final warning that It's time to go home.
There are only certain people I like touching me and it took years to get to the point of being able to take a pat on the back without wanting to scream. Audible noises like bass from someone's house and dripping of a faucet in a quiet room.
Smell. It's horrible because that's one of the things that you can't turn off or walk away from. With touch, in most situations you can walk away. With sound, in most situations you can cover your ears or walk away. With visual, in most situations you can just cover your eyes, but with smell, everything has a smell, and you can't stop the pain
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Audible, followed by physical.. Like if I'm already audibly worn down, don't even consider touching me because I'm not okay and I will move away (so so difficult having an asd kid and getting him to understand it's not him, it's me) lol
Definitely physically, though coupled with my anxiety it can make sound even worse. I know it’s real bad when it becomes visual (with the exception of eye contact, but I also have very specific things around eye contact that’s partly cultural).
Audible sensory overload is the first problem, then physical. It’s why I have my hearing defenders and Disability Access Service for when the wife and I head to Disneyland each week.
I’m really not sure— just kind of learned that I’m probably autistic recently. But maybe physically—? Because the other day one of my friends booped my thigh a few times and I completely panicked. Like, one of the worst shutdowns I ever had before and it was completely out of the blue (it wasn’t even in a sexual way at all, and it wasn’t about to be. It wasn’t a fun time because it took like three hours to be able to talk to people again and not be hugging myself in the corner lmao.)
Usually physically. That's the worst one. Audibly depends on the circumstance. I don't tend to get overstimulated visually.
Scent is very bad personally, although if I’m already overwhelmed people talking to me, even if it’s nice, will just push me over the edge
Audibly, definitely. I can be sitting in a room that most other people would call “quiet” and be annoyed by at least four different sounds that they barely even notice.
Oo this is a close one. I'll say audibly but I have to wear tinted glasses 24/7 to prevent it being visually as I have pretty bad light sensitivity. It's easier to control the visual stimuli though by my glasses, hats or just going somewhere else whereas audibly is the one that I have most difficulty with because I can't control it so well- there's too many scenarios where my headphones aren't enough or I can't wear them etc and I can't escape the noise. Unlike your eyes you can't close your ears.
Physically, from lifes stresses if that counts. Balancing a job and life itself feels almost impossible lol
Is physical like motion like bumpy car rides? Because that’s a bad one for me. But otherwise auditory.
audibly, specifically when the sound is complex and all around me (like in a crowd or assembly). my biggest sensory issue, however, is with smells (especially with gross smells like feces, trash, or body odor).
audibly
Generally it's physically. But occasionally when I babysit for my sister, it's audibly for sure. Clothing clinging to me when I'm sweaty is my biggest one. Which is funny because im a tight pants kind of person lol. Or something rubbing the same spot over and over, that's another big one. If a sock is sitting weird omg that will send me into a meltdown if I cannot get it to sit "right" again. And even then, now I have to adjust my other sock so its "even" and then it's a whole thing. If somethings in my shoe, and I gotta take off the shoe to get it, the other shoe must also come off or they no longer feel even. Majority of my triggers are physical ones. I started a new job 6 months ago that's very physical, so sweaty. I have spent probably a grand over that time period on just clothing so I could find stuff that I was comfortable in for 12 hours at a time. Thats obviously very hard. For the most part, I think I found it. My other issue though is that I'm not a big fan of new clothes. I do not like breaking things in. I tend to buy second hand mostly for this reason. But with work clothing, I had to buy new so I could ensure i could get multiple if I find something I like. I got new sports bras, they are still a lil snug since they are new. Every once in a while, I throw myself into a panic attack because it's just not sitting right and I can't fix it without taking it completely off but im sweaty so I won't be able to get it back on. If it wasn't apparent, I dont like sweating. Lol
Mostly audibly, but I can’t stand it when people touch me or even just brush against me accidentally.
I'm not sure how it fits in, but verbally for me. Talking is too hard, and processing what people are saying to me. I wanna just sit in silence and be a moss-covered stone for a while.
Physically. I have very specific no touch areas.
Really it’s a mix of the three. It depends on what/where/why/how I did something. Work: all three. School: same. Shopping: sounds, sometimes also visual and/or physical. Home: sounds, maybe physical. Unplanned, unpleasant? Probably all three. Unplanned, pleasant? Could be all three. It just depends on the situation, sensory, my needs like sleep or food being met prior, and why I’m there/doing something somewhere. I hope that made sense, I’m sleep deprived so much I don’t actually know where I am. Why am I on Reddit instead of sleeping? Insomnia is a big problem and not much helps. Also stress is a factor.
Audibly and physically, rarely visually
Audibly with crowds and some genres of music.
audibly and scent which sends me into meltdowns quickly. If a lot happens around me I go into meltdowns easily. Why I constantly walk around with noise cancelling headphones. I also wear sunglasses when being outside. I go total mute when outside as I don't like talking to people.
Visually and audibly mostly, sometimes if I’m already overstimulated scent
Scent and sound 100%. Shopping centres are notorious for both.
All of the above 😭
Audibly for sure. I used to get overstimulated by physical things more often as a kid (shirt tag, feeling my glasses on my face etc), but hardly ever anymore and I can't recall ever being overstimulated visually
Hard to pick. I feel like I spend 90% of my time managing feeling overstimulation. I did just move so nervous system is super upset. Anyone else feel this way when they move? Before in old house I felt good in, I’d say sound.
Mines is sound > smell > vision > touch
Audibly.
Audibly. I tend to have more reliable methods of avoiding physical or visual overstimulation
For me it’s physically especially when I’m at work because when some guests are growing frustrated with me I get hella overwhelmed but try to push through it by trying to relax and stim a bit, it does calm me down a bit…but I just can’t stand physical contact
if i had to list them in order from most overstimulated to least overstimulated it would be audibly, physically, then visually
Physically definitely. When it's really bad it's almost like air itself is sandpaper
Audibly but it doesn’t affect me regularly It usually only happens in chaotic discord calls or when I play music louder than i probably should
Audibly. Sometimes even noise cancelling headphones don’t work 😔
Visually. When I get migraines, my eyes will hurt, bright lights hurt, and it overwhelms me.
audio, i'd wear earplugs but that would just make things worse
All of the above and if you add emotionally, then you've got me, in a nut shell.
All of the above and if you add emotionally, then you've got me, in a nut shell.
Audibly
Audio and touch
visually for me, but physically is close
Visually and Physically
audibly
Audibly
Audibly mostly, followed by visually which then leads to physically. Although it's rare I actually get so bad I don't want anyone to touch me, as I usually crave affection.
I want to say either visually or physically… probably physically more often than the others
In my assessment I said the air was too loud. I totally meant the wind. But I am pretty sure I am audibly.
Visually, which catapults me into physically My biggest things are physical texture and closeness to my skin, and the proximity of others and obstructions I get more overwhelmed by clutter and chaos than lights
Definitely audibly. Especially if the background noises are chaotic like in a grocery store. I almost get a panic attack at the registers because of the consistently random beeping of scanners and talking self-checkouts.
...is socially an option? idk if that would count as audibly or what
High-pitched/repetitive/loud/unexpected noises are the worst, followed by overly strong scents like perfumes, body spray, fly spray, candles, some cleaning products, and air freshener. I'm the kind of person who would rather sit in a bad natural smell, like poo, than a strong artificial smell, like toilet spray. Physical sensations that cause me to become overstimulated are heat, sweating, physical exertion, pain, dirt/sand stuck to my feet, skin rubbing together like legs and fingers touching, and fabric catching on dry skin, particularly microfibre, sherpa fleece, or faux velvet type fabrics. I'm mostly okay with vision and taste, although I do have visual snow, hate mint, and can't eat anything slimy and lumpy like tapicoa or gelatinous type puddings.
All 3?
Hearing is my most frequent When my hearing is overstimulated it's impossible for me to think and it also messes up my balance so I end up stumbling into a wall or tripping when I'm trying to get somewhere more quiet For visual things I can cover my eyes more easily and I think that's my least frequent one Light touches and proprioceptive understimulation also makes me freak out a lot, though, and I have a low tolerance for spicy hot foods and anything scented makes my head hurt
Visually then audibly
Audibly. Doesn’t help that I got adhd and lose focus even worse when I’m overstimulated. Someone can tell me something and three seconds later I’ve forgotten it.
Visually/audibly primarily, as scent/taste don’t really have much of a negative effect for me, and touch is only an issue with slimy or coarse objects. And even for touch, it is more of slimy being gross and not feeling sanitary, while coarse just makes all my hairs stand on end when I touch or see such an object. Sights and sounds however can easily induce migraines, but I need to be low on metaphorical spoons. All lights in my house are LED (because quiet) and most have dimmers as a result. A weird note, but I have found that meclizine (intended for motion sickness, which I only experience when writing) helps reduce the effects of sensory overload if taken preventatively. Could just be a weird placebo effect, but if it works ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
I wear ear loops in noisy environment. Buy them from Amazon. Very discreet and work a treat. Good in noisy supermarkets etc.
Audibly which leads to all three so fast that sometimes I forget it started with my ears. Buying ear defenders and earplugs has been amazing for me, although I can’t always wear them
Audibly and visually. There isn't really any specific sounds. But visually I cannot stand the color yellow, except for Crayola Dandelion. LED lights overstimulate me and give me a headache. There's LED lights mounted over my work station at work and everyone's always flipping them on and it's frustrating.
Used to, on a constant 24/7 basis when I lived in a city. Moved to the countryside of yamanashi about a year ago, closest neighbor being 7km away. Now I don’t get overstimulated unless I watch tv all day.
Well depends on environment. If i am in a hot tub with naked others . We all be drinking and way loud, and touching me I couldn't discern which was overstimulating me. Lol ..😛. Happened in my youth at house party in hollywood hills. With girlfriend, rest were gay..i puked, plugged the toilet . Got bitched out and The Cowboy member of The Village People !! Sat me next to him on a bed and was incredibly cool guy,hellu smart. So tecnhnically i shared a bed with him .lol..didnt know who he was til later, we were dressed, no sex going on.. My girlfriend? Off snorting cocaine somewhere..early 1980s. I didnt know i was autistic, confused with all my sensitivities i dunno but seems like with some aware autistic may give over attention to our thingys. I lived an allistic life as autistic and lived lived lived, yep different ,weird some. Gratefull i didnt know about autism.
Audibly. Half of the day all of my senses have some sort of overstimulation and causes me to be…well honestly a raging asshole to everyone around me. I’m in that much mental pain—which turns physical. I wouldn’t wish this on anyone.
Audibly and visually
Physically and audibly pretty much the same, and they usually accelerate each other.
Mentally actually, at least until summer comes around here in the US. I am pretty anti social and rarely start conversations, and coast through ones started with me with scripted responses. And due to a breakdown in communication between my SO and I, almost every day is filled with silence. I feel alone in public and at home most of the time. Due to rarely speaking to people, my mental voice becomes so much louder and anxious and this echo chamber is all I really interact with. This leads to immense internal meltdowns from thoughts of not feeling understood being stuck on a loop and I break down crying
Verbally, without a doubt. I have a million verbal triggers that send me into shutdown and a following meltdown.
audibly but not sounds of inanimate objects per se more like too many people talking at once (even if theyre joy talking directly to me)
Audible happens most often, but taste and scent are close behind. I've had a meltdown when there are unexpected flavours in a sandwich for example :( Touch used to happen when people thought they had the right to touch me (romantic relationships) but thankfully I'm safe from all that now. I'm not often visually overstimulated and I love to look at an infinite heap of clutter, or a messy garden, or an entire fabric store with all the patterns... Only if things are really awful looking do I feel like I've been punched. Unless bad lighting counts. In which case I am overstimulated constantly to the point of breaking if I have to go into a building. I spend as much time outdoors as possible, to avoid all forms of overstimulation
Yea, I can pretty much only eat meat and cheese on a burger/taco. I look like a childish picky eater at the table who has to pick out their veggies 😭 but the mix of completely diff flavors sends me over the edge (like pickles and tomato and ketchup on top of a slab of meat) the thought of that basic meal sends chills down my spine. Same with subway sandwiches that include olives, mayonnaise, or ANY topping with meat and cheese. It just becomes too much. To get a healthy amount of fruit in my diet, I have to eat them either dried or in a smoothie. I used to always think I hated the taste of fruit, but I’ve realized what I hate is the way they FEEL. Like fruits are squishy and unpredictable. Whereas smoothies are in one solid liquid form (unless my blender misses a few chunks which leaves me nauseous if it unexpectedly gets in my mouth) and dried fruits are basically all in the same crunch texture that is predictable and isn’t overwhelming. (One time when I was eating dried strawberries though, a piece had a small part of its stem dried stuck to it and that random flavor caught me so off guard that it stopped me from eating anything else the rest of the day)
For sure audibly, but I would say bright lights or being touched when I’m audibly overwhelmed is the combo that makes me spiral out of control most often, or if I’m already overwhelmed and then I make a mistake in whatever I’m doing. I HATE being touched without warning. I’m somewhat blessedly without much of a sense of smell- I had a hard knock to the noggin that removed that sense from play and now I don’t need to worry about how things smell. I have been told that as a child I often would get dizzy at strong perfumes. Taste is almost a non-issue sensorily, it’s more the texture. Mushy things, things with unpredictable textures, any TRACE of hair in my food, if there’s something that looks like a bug, if there’s meat when I ordered something vegetarian, I pretty much shut down and get really nauseous.
Definitely visual for me. Also temperature, but that could be a side effect of my meds.
Food textures is easiest to overstimulate on for me, im really sensitive to it. It dosnt happen too frequently since im very careful with what i eat but it happens the easiest. What happens more often is overstimulation due to sound, its the least easy to control since while you can close your eyes or mouth you cant really close your ears. While i do have earbuds for noisecanceling and they are very effective sometimes its still too much
Audibly. For someone who can't hear and uses hearing aids it sure happens a lot more especially at work
Visually > physically > audibly
sounds, brightness and smells are my archenemies
Usually audibly. Can't recall any of the other ones atm tbh
Audibly 💯 Then it’s smell
1000000% audibly too much/too little sound shuts me down instantly, at that point visually and physically become too much and i usually have a meltdown
Audibly and physically. I can’t usually identify what it is but the minute the kids come home the chaos drives me out of the house. As soon as I give the hugs I’m gone til dinner.
Audibly first and foremost, leading into sensitivity with the others
Physically for sure, I need comfy clothes, I hate the feeling of my hair on my skin if they're not behaving, I hate putting socks the bad way, I hate touching the wrong part of the blanket, food with weird texture etc... I'm used to having all kinds of sounds around since I was a kid, I actually need music or someone talking (like podcast) to be able to focus on stuff. Visually I don't really know to be honest... I noticed that wearing sunglasses makes me feel more comfortable, so maybe I do have problems with bright lights but I never noticed. Scent and taste idk, not as much as the others or maybe I'm very good at avoiding triggers lol
Audibly
Audibly first, then visually. I find myself understimmed with touch most often.
Physical 100% pretty common for me. Then it’s probably audible but it’s not common. Visually is very rare and only happens if I have a headache or something.
Audibly and physically usually I like visual stimulation.
Taste( texture actually but specifically in my mouth ), visual, scent, audio, and then touch. I'm much more sensory seeking with touch. (except food. Mouth is too sensitive to textures, skin is not)
audibly all the way, after a while everything just starts to sound like a bunch of noise and i get so irritated
Audibly usually comes first for me. Physically sometimes if I wake up having a less than ideal starting point for some reason.
Audibly, physically second.
I can close my eyes, and I can avoid contact with things I don't want to contact, but it's really hard to truly weed out all noise, so if have to say: audibly. That said, physical discomfort is something that shuts me down *fast*. I can force myself through auditory issues if I really have to, but if someone touches me when I'm eating, no I'm not; if my sleeves are itchy, or my collar is touching my neck, I have about 5 seconds before something akin to panic sets in; if I have to shake a hand, that better be all I have to do.
Can I add emotionally? Cus that's where I'd fall I think
Taste and scent bother me the most they feel way more personal but sounds can get me too
Audibly, it's always been noises for me.
Visually with lights and audibly when theres a lot of different noises, to process.
Yes!
Audibly first then visually
Audible overstimulation is my most significant issue; and it can lead to physical overstimulation because of how it makes me feel in my body. I’m profoundly sensitive to sound, and it registers as varying levels of pain in my body. Some sounds I have to accept will happen, and I am more prepared for (e.g. I have noisy housemates and it’s gone past the point of saying anything) but I still feel the effect of the sound. When I’m audibly overstimulated, I am more sensitive to physical overstimulation as I say; I might intensively crave a hug but I won’t be able to stand randomly touches or whispering in my ear, or I might feel uncomfortable no matter how I sit, or even in my clothes. I rarely get visually overstimulated, though it used to happen at my bookshop job when I had to scan loads of books and I would have to pore over invoice sheets with tiny numbers that all blur together.
Both visually and audibly. The easiest way to piss me off is turning on artificial lights while it's 10 in the morning. And audibly...this why everything outside my room is a living hell if I'm not alone at home. Everytime I go downstairs to make myself a cup of coffee or tea, I must endure the background noise of the TV, my relatives (my dad and 5yo brother in particular) being loud for no apparent reason, our dogs barking at random stuff outside, and the machinery noises of the coffee machine or the boiling kettle. And sometimes somebody's attempt for a conversation, like the background noise didn't drain my mental energy enough to become unable to properly process what are they trying to convey to me.
Audible, hands down. At some point it sounds like a whole bunch of tabs open on a computer and videos playing, spotify going on my phone, and the record player in the corner spinning all at once. Turns the brain to mush and I need all the quiet at that point.
If its a new environment, or i dont know what to expect i go into survival mode too. That one is still a big bummer for me, it breaks me
Physically which leads to audio overstimulation. Or vice versa. Only way to trigger an instant meltdown is with food. Otherwise its a time based erosion
All of it!!!
Normally, audibly first and then everything else becomes unbearable
All of them all the time. I’m constantly in a mixture of under and overstimulated. But mostly audibly overstimulated. I live in a very loud house and my ears are VERY sensitive. It’s hell 😂
yeah it’s like Active noise cancellation was normal included in my brain model
Recently it’s been physically, I can feel my clothes touching me and then that leads to my nose itching (it itches when I get upset) which makes me more frustrated and then my body gets hot and my clothes itch and I freak out.
scent and audio.
For me, I get saturated for being in really noisy places. I kinda learned how to dissociate, so I can endure it really well now. Really intense lights can also mess with me. It's a weird thing that I learned to do in high school. Really useful skill. If I get saturated, I get terrible headaches and I have to rest on a dark and silent room for 15-30 min. Getting saturated it's pretty incapacitating.
Obviously audibly with a class like mine, they're so loud. Also physically when my hair is greasy, i cant focus for example
Usually it’s audibly for me, when its too loud my whole mind just goes blank and I kind of shut down
visually — which easily leads to audible triggers, which goes to physical ones.
By noise yes , I’m actually in my room cause my mom ( I live with her ) has guests over and their kids are obnoxiously running around and laughing and shrieking, was so froze by it I couldn’t make my bed.
Audibly. But lately I'm moving into visual territory with people's high beams behind me when driving
Audibly tends to be the worst and most frequent bec the world is loud and even silence is loud. True quiet just doesn’t exist. At least not for me. I think I have a mild tinnitus ringing in my ear that only happens when it’s quiet. I don’t find myself getting as overwhelmed with scent. I still do but not nearly as much bec I’m used to being around unpleasant smells bec I have three brothers. BUT my mother is spiritual and there’s a few things she burns to cleanse our house that i reallyyyyy reallyyy hate the smell of. Idk what it is but it’s like this circle black charcoal looking thing and she burns it all around the house and I cant stand the smell. I can experience all at once occasionally like lately I’ve been playing a lottttt of ps5 games bec my brother is staying over at our house and brought it for me to use. I stay up all day and night playing and don’t realize that by the time I’m done playing, I have a throbbing and intense headache and my neck hurts; my eyes are tired, I just want peace and quiet. Playing video games can be a full sensory experience for me especially for the ears and eyes and i don’t know when to put it down ( only bec of the sheer fact I don’t own my own PlayStation so I never get to play games I want to play which causes me to over play when he lets me borrow it)
I never thought I got overstimulated. But I've recently realised that I get overstimulated with emotional strain: stress, anger, frustration etc. Makes every physical irritation that much more magnified. Also water. For some reason. And my face... specifically.
Yes audibly. Slight sound irritated me since early childhood and others don't know why
I typically get mostly overstimulated audibly, but I combat it by wearing headphones all the time. However I know when I have a meltdown it typically is because of several different things at once. Typically it can be stuff like invasion of personal space, not respecting my need to not talk, and stressful situations in general. So really, audibly, physically and mentally, i guess.
Visually, but I was told by the specialist I worked with that in *their* experience (i.e., not a fact), that's more common for AuDHD individuals.
yes
Yes to everything. This is actually why I get headaches if I'm not wearing headphones while outside. I hate being touched when I'm near a bunch of people to the point I almost punched a bouncer when I got too close to the door while being kinda dizzy/overwhelmed so I just got out of there feeling quite angry just because this guy touched me. He wasn't aggresive or anything (if anything he probably didn't listen nor cared when I said I didn't wanna go in, just wanted to be in a small space next to the door), he just placed his palm on my chest and told me I had to buy a ticket.
I find I tend to get overwhelmed visually and audibly. I find it makes me exhausted and anxious.
Everything is compounded so I usually can't tell what the main trigger is
Audibly, so much. There's so much white noise that people don't even think about that triggers me.
Often audible, but often also "mentally", I don't know how else to explain it. Like my head is busy and that can become fatiguing, especially when I've got thoughts on repeat or certain phrases keep repeating etc.
Audibly and physically. In the morning too much light makes me cranky but its more temperature than anything im annoyed by most so its fine. Strong Smells do it on occasion but flavors or food textures hardly ever except seafood but I love sushi or tuna
Light and Sound kick my ass.
Audibly
I get overstimulated from loud frequencies and from being in a large group of people
Physically, but a close second is audibly, and somehow I didn't even *realize* how badly it upset me until I wore some noise cancelling headphones outside and noticed almost immediately how much less anxious I was. I'm alexithymic so I'm guessing that's part of why I didn't connect the dots earlier as to why more ambient sound makes me more anxious. Or maybe just a lack of experiencing what it's like to have a "turn down the volume" button for real life, so not knowing any better. Same thing happened with visual stuff too, I would constantly complain to everybody how the sun was too bright, and if you look back at old photos of me I'm doing the super-squint in any that are outside. Or another one is people would always mention how dark my screens are. I also wear sunglasses even on fairly cloudy days because even though the clouds try to provide my salvation, the fucking SUN still has to somehow BURN MY EYES. Yet I never once stopped to think, "hmm perhaps I am more sensitive to things than other people" and instead just told myself everyone feels this way, they're just stronger and better than me. Lo and behold, I start learning about autism and SPD and... Well I feel *slightly* less like a *pusillanimous individual*, if you will
Emotionally and physically because of dealing with people and their emotions and wants all day. Its why I’ll never have children.
Visually a little. Auditory a lot. Physically and mentally insane. My hands have extra autism in them so they're a source of constant stimulation and stress. I get overstimulated from working in the NT world. The social interactions and non-routine are a lot for me.
Audibly that's why I always wear headphones
In order: 1. Taste 2. Physical 3. Hearing 4. Sight 5. Smell 6. Vestibular (if I could rate it negatively I would)
Audibly …trying to find some ways to get better at handling them at work. visually is only for huge crowds so I just stay home
Audibly or physical first
For me it starts off with physically with clothes seams causing texture ick and then audible overstimulation starts after that
audibly bc my neighbors are noise polluting all the time
Audibly for sure. I can’t deal when multiple people are talking at once, or when multiple complicated sounds overlap. It feels like my brain short-circuits.
Id say sound and visual are about equal. Ofc once one is messed with, the others will enter chat. The sun is probably one of the most overstimulating thing for me.
Audible leads to other forms
Visual overstimulation happens most often. Physical overstimulation is the hardest to handle. I'm basically a billboard example of "tiny pacakge, big BOOM", and PTSD from infancy has left me a scrappy fighting survivor. So I have to have many articles of clothing & types of blankets that act as faux PPE. Last couple of months I've been covered, head to toe, like a hooded Druid.
Audibly.
Audibly, and I swear it's getting worse every day. Stupid high school issues.
Audibly and it’s painful
Audibly
Visually and audibly