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Joe90
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11 Nov 2010, 4:11 pm

I've just asked the question in the title. Why do Aspies have sensitive ears? The doctors said my ears are small and narrow inside. Why? I thought AS was just a condition in the brain, not diverting the physical inner appearence. It's an annoying thought what has been baffling me for years.


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LostAlien
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11 Nov 2010, 4:18 pm

Joe90 wrote:
I've just asked the question in the title. Why do Aspies have sensitive ears? The doctors said my ears are small and narrow inside. Why? I thought AS was just a condition in the brain, not diverting the physical inner appearence. It's an annoying thought what has been baffling me for years.

Some of us do and some don't. Being sensitive to something is 'normal' enough on the Spectrum, to my knowledge hearing and/or touch seem to be the most usual (well, most mentioned anyways).



SteamPowerDev
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11 Nov 2010, 4:22 pm

It's not super hearing, it's more selective hearing. We tend to notice the odd little noise that might just drive us nuts. Also there are internal filters, of the brain, that can block out background noise, that people on the spectrum have a difficult time doing. Being in a large room with a lot of people talking would make it hard for someone on the spectrum to concentrate and listen to one conversation, it's next to impossible.



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11 Nov 2010, 4:33 pm

And it's not our ears that are sensitive, it's how the brain interprets the sound. Along with our different overall wiring, many Aspies also have some differences in the areas of the brain that regulate senses. My already very sensitive hearing has given me an especially hard time at school this week (I went home early on Monday, had a hard time when walking home on Tuesday, then didn't go yesterday). I think it's because people are getting ill with the colder weather.



Joe90
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11 Nov 2010, 4:56 pm

Good advice already. I've learnt something now. I only have sensitive ears - nothing else is sensitive or undersensitive. Bright lights don't affect me, nor smells. Well, they do affect me, but not in a Aspie way, if that makes sense. And also I don't mind being touched. It doesn't bother me (unless someone pokes me, but that's annoying to everybody).

I think having sensitive ears is the worst thing of all to be bothered by, because it's something you cannot control unless you put earplugs in, but that can become a pain in the arse sometimes. If you're sensitive to light you can either put sunglasses on, close your eyes, or buy dimmer lightbulbs if you're indoors. If you're sensitive to smells you can either hold your breath, or hold your nose. And anyway, most things don't really make a smell. But a lot of things make a loud noise. I only have to walk down the road and I'm overhearing a range of loud noises. You can't always escape loud noise unless you lock yourself in a cupboard all day, which I've never done in my life and I don't intend to start now.

It's annoying when my brain is always trying to hear noise I don't want to hear, and blocking out noise I do want to hear. I've discovered NTs hear things just as good as we do, but they don't get as bothered or affected by the noise as we do. It'd be nice if they invented some sort of drug to calm that part of AS down, to help us cope better with loud noise. I think it will make a vast difference in everything if I was more better at enduring loud noise.


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Chronos
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11 Nov 2010, 5:31 pm

Joe90 wrote:
I've just asked the question in the title. Why do Aspies have sensitive ears? The doctors said my ears are small and narrow inside. Why? I thought AS was just a condition in the brain, not diverting the physical inner appearence. It's an annoying thought what has been baffling me for years.


Having AS has nothing to do with the shape of your ear canal, as far as I (or science for that matter) knows.



jmnixon95
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11 Nov 2010, 5:33 pm

Chronos wrote:
Joe90 wrote:
I've just asked the question in the title. Why do Aspies have sensitive ears? The doctors said my ears are small and narrow inside. Why? I thought AS was just a condition in the brain, not diverting the physical inner appearence. It's an annoying thought what has been baffling me for years.


Having AS has nothing to do with the shape of your ear canal, as far as I (or science for that matter) knows.


Yeah, I didn't really read the original post but, to elaborate, as Chronos said, Asperger's does not affect the way your ears were formed. It affects how you interpret the sound because of your brain. They can be small and narrow inside for a reason other than AS.