Highly Sensitive Persons

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Was listening to this earlier

http://www.shrinkrapradio.com/2009/07/1 ... -ted-zeff/

This guy has an idea about some people having a 'highly tuned nervous system'

Now this sounds a lot like autistic sensory sensitivity to me.

Among the things he talked about
Sensitivity to foodstuffs... additives, stimulants
Insomnia
Learning differences

He also said we make great lovers

I wondered if anyone else had come across this idea, and what you make of it, especially in regards to autistic spectrum. Has he just picked up on some facets of asperger's/BAP/HFA or what?

HSP has nothing to do with autism, but SOME (but by no means all) people on the spectrum can also be HSP. It's a term used to describe people who are mostly introverted and highly sensitive, end of. Many neurotypical people have some sensory sensitivities but are nowhere near the spectrum.

I've met HSPs and I can tell you they are definitely NOT autistic. I have AS and I am also a HSP, my nervous system is wired up differently and I am exceptionally sensitive to just about everything, NOT fun to live with Before I got diagnosed with AS I thought my difficulties were attributed to being a HSP, but after talking to other HSPs I realized my problems went way beyond what they experienced. They had no difficulties interacting with people beyond some being a bit shy, they did not have any social problems or any of the symptoms of AS/autism.

My husband and son are both autistic and neither of them are HSPs, not anywhere close! My husband is more severely AS than I am, yet I have far more severe sensory problems than he does.

You're telling me.

Thanks for your input, Faery, that's very interesting. I think I have more problems than just HSP.

hi there,

I have fit the AS criteria, and wondered alot what "asperger" really is, and so far came to the solution that AS is really mainly related to a much more sensitive nervous system. This leads also to a different development of social skills starting at early age, and thus have have those bad social skills if not trained accordingly.

I feel sure: AS is just a highly sensitive nervous system. "sensitive" is a quantitave term, so its hard to compare, this complicates the thing where to say when is it HSP and when not, but not matter about that, AS is about highly sensitive people, and the root of their social problems lies in that.

thanks,
anton

I have many traits of a highley sensitive person.

the senses are complex and difficult to define in simple terms.for instance a bear can smell a dead moose carcus from ten miles away but a bear can take a massive physical beating that would kill a human.sensativity can be defined differently in different beings or peoples or whatever.autistics experience hyper and hypo sensativity at different times for different reasons.this is evident in our reaction to certain sounds and smells and also some of the repettive self abuse that some of us engage in,the term for this is hypotactile and some of our fears of physical affection is hypertactile