AS and sensory sensitivity?

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People with AS, have you had/to what extent have you been sensitive to certain textures/materials/noises/smells/lights at any point in your life? I've heard that it's not actually part of the diagnostic criteria for AS which surprised me because I always kind of thought that everyone experienced it to some extent. Any explanations would be good

Are there any people with AS who haven't experienced this at all?

If you have, what kind of things affected/affect you and to what extent?

I am extremely sensitive to bright lights, loud noise with vibration (booming car stereos, revving engines, thumping footsteps that I can feel in the next room, flashing strobe lights, high pitched noises like smoke alarms, dentists drills, squeaky noises like chalk on a board, metal scraping metal, certain violin music, etc) I cannot tolerate the feeling of certain fabrics like suede, velvet, and silk. My sense of smell is very acute, as is my sense of hearing. Sometimes painfully so. I don't care for the texture of jello or of okra. I tried to eat lychee fruit once and almost gagged. Milk affects me the same way.

I voted severely and have AS.

Noise above all, severely.

Used to be fabric also up to age 10ish. Still most dish towels and many linens really hurt my skin.

Temperature: hot food/air/water or colder weather.

Used to be bright lights up to age 7ish. Still moderately bothers.

Tight clothing up to 10ish.

I get carsick if I look inside the car for more than eight seconds.

Yes. I am sensitive to loud noises, temperature and smells. I keep the radio and TV down low and like it warmer than most other people. I am very sensitive to smells. There are lots of foods whose smell makes me physically sick, e.g. milk and milk based sauces, eggs, some fruits and lots more.

I can't stand those tags they have inside clothes, I rip them off. I am more comfortable naked. I can't stand any sounds in the mornings. However, I rarely feel any pain. I don't like swimming or taking showers because water feels bad on my face.

More on the severe side. But life is just peachy right now.

I have moderate to extreme light sensitivity, I really hate florecent lights and prefer it to be cloudy outside because the sun hurts my eyes....I don't like the feel of sunglasses on my face so I tend not to wear them so yeah it can be rather hard to navigate when my eyes are half closed because its too bright out. In my psychology book I was reading something about light therapy and was thinking in my case it would be more like light torture.

Other then that I am sensative to that high pitched noise t.vs make when they are on the black screen, I used to hate the feel of velvet its not so bad anymore though, and a more positive one is I can feel the energy from thunder/lightning storms and it makes me feel slightly euphoric I guess. I also seem to have some extra sensorary abilities......I can sense the vibe(I guess you would call it.) which can be helpful because then I know whether I should stay in an area or leave it. Like the other day I went to a store in a rather bad part of town and on my way back to the bus I could not tell just from observation that there was any reason for concern but I could feel the tense atmosphere and just kept on my way quicker then I would normally and about 10 minutes later a bunch of cops on bikes and a car where headed that way. So yeah if I had not felt that I probably would have stopped for a ciggerette.

I have a lot of sensory sensitivities.

I'm very sensitive to light. Normal daylight, sunlight, fluorescent lights and other bright lights are painfully bright for me. I wear sunglasses a lot, even on cloudy days. Sunlight and fluorescent lights feel like I'm being stabbed in the eyes.

I'm very sensitive to certain smells. I get nauseous if I smell tobacco smoke, coffee, beer and certain other smells, even if they are mild. I also notice smells that most people don't.

I'm rather sensitive to noise. I hear many sounds that most people can't hear. Certain noises are really uncomfortable for me and either hurt my ears or irritate the hell out of me. Those are usually high pitched noises or low buzzing noises. There are also some sounds that I find extremely pleasant and seek hearing whenever possible.

I'm sensitive to certain kinds of touch. Some kinds of touch are painful or uncomfortable for me, but there are also certain kinds of touch that I find very pleasant. The pain issue my sensitivities with touch causes is that I hate wearing clothes and shoes.

The only sensory sensitivity that I think I don't have is taste.

The annoying thing about having sensory sensitivites is that other people don't understand what it's like and usually show zero consideration. They think I'm nuts if I explain my sensitivities or think I'm overreacting when I'm feeling unwell or downright sick because of sensory issues. It's hard to avoid bad sensory environment, especially when other people refuse to be even the slightest considerate.

I've found people are understanding when I say I have unusually good hearing, so loud noises are painful for me. For example when my Dad's workplace had a fire alarm while I was there, and I ended up outside crouching and rocking tuning the world out. Someone came and asked if I was OK, I said my hearing was unsually sensitive and the fire alarm had really bothered me, so I needed alone time to relax.

Like with so many other things, prior to discovering AS or when first learning about AS I'd have said that I have no sensory sensitivity, understanding how sensory sensitivity effect people I would now say for certain that I have sensory sensitivity, just not as extreme as others.

I'm sensitive to touch - people touching me can be very uncomfortable or even painful depending on how emotionally sensitive I am at the time and dependent on where I am in my menstrual cycle. Light touches are the worst, especially when trying to focus or sleep. I dislike anything touching my chest, neck or head - I have had a fear of water (touching chest, neck and head) and a dislike of people touching my head for my whole life, but couldn't explain why until now. I find I have to wear tight fitting clothing without full sleeves and with low necklines, right now I'm very dependent on supportive underwear, but can't wear anything too heavy - as a child I had to wear a coat no matter what.

There are some minor issues where I'm not sure if it's normal, a normal dislike, or an AS-specific sensory issue;
Light - keep my curtains and blinds closed during the day, I seem to find sunlight more painful than most.
Sound - I'm good with loud sound most of the time, but my brain seems to focus on smaller sounds.

I have little sense of smell and poor sense of taste due to smoking and damage to my nose from head-banging and snorting rum, thus couldn't comment on any taste or smell sensitivity, lol.

Although I am sensitive, it's nothing compared to my other problems related to AS. I can always wear sunglasses and cut the tags out of my shirts. It's a simple problem with a simple solution.

I have high functioning autism and have sensory problems like most do. Especially with noises. I can't stand loud noise because it literally hurts my ears. Bright light also hurts my eyes and that is with sunglasses. That is why I really don't like the sun, i'd rather have clouds. At least in the Seattle area there are more cloudy days than sunny days. Touch bothers me when I am having problems. I just don't like the feel unless it is a massage. I love being massaged. I notice smells that others do not. I hear things that others do not. Now I admit that I also hallucinate but I sometimes don't think that is always the case. I think its my autism. I am not as autistic now as I was when I was young. I was REALLY autistic back then. Moderately so. Now its more like Asperger's. Some people think I am not even autistic when they first meet me, its when they get to know me that there is no doubt. I rock more now than years ago. In the last 5 years I have been getting more stressed out because of our situation. It used to be great. I didn't have to worry about anything but now that is all I know. I worry 24 hours a day. When there is loud noises I hold my ears in pain. Also rock. Sometimes I go to this restaurant and they play music. Actual people singing (not the radio) and it isn't just soft music its so loud to me its almost concert loud. So, now we have to find a different day to go there when they aren't playing music or practicing. I am not against their music but my dad and I can't stand how loud and it hurts our ears. My dad is Asperger's as well. I can't stand too much movements going on around me. Too much activity is bad. I think after the stress gets bad in our life, my autism gets worse. When things are calm and not much going on, my autism is almost non-existent.

I hate loud noises!! !! I always did! The number one loud noise I hate most is the sound of a car engine revving, or a motercycle, but more a car! Cars make me angry! That gives me a major panic attack if I'm near the car or in it! I can't stand by motorcycles either! I hate a lot of certin food textures and certin fabric textures! Smells don't really bother me that much but one time my mom was wearing a perfume that made me wanna puke! And I hate bright lights!! ! I am mostly sensitive to noise more than anything! I hate banging noises, and doors slamming! I hate the sound of glass hitting on other glass, or when u tap your silverwear on your glass plate! I hate thunder and fireworks too! Basically I hate all loud noises lol!

I have severe sensory sensitivity.

Noise and lights are the worse, tactile second and smells last. Some common smells can at time be overpowering.

My tactile sensitivity has been exacerbated by the cold and the drying of my skin. And probably a cat that demands to sleep on my bed.

Flashing light is something I cannot bare, even for a few seconds. Bright light is painful and I usually wear reading glasses.

Noise and many noises at once could trigger a meltdown or if I stay exposed to them, a shutdown. I avoid supermarkets, cafe and have to wear ear plugs at concerts and at the cinema.

I hate perfume.

Probably all of my senses are somewhat heightened. I don't think it has much of an impact on my functioning though, with the possible exception of my sensitivity to bright light (it is pretty hard for me to see without sunglasses on a sunny day).