What is high sensitivity

What exactly is high sensitivity? Is it just part of introversion, a form of autism, or some other disorder? How does it happen to a person? Is it normal? And is there anything that can be done about it?

Is high sensitivity well-researched?

High sensitivity is a topic that has been addressed in clinical psychology for over 20 years and is therefore quite well researched.

However, it is still little talked about in the Czech Republic – my home country – much less than abroad.

Fortunately, times are changing, and the topic of high sensitivity is slowly entering the public sphere here, too. Probably the most prominent Czech representative who is currently working on the topic is therapist and experiential educator Alena Wehle (you can find podcasts recorded with her on YouTube or Spotify; she was also featured in TEDx Talks a few years ago).

What the experts say

High sensitivity - sensory processing sensitivity - means that a person has a more sensitive nervous system than is common in most people.

High sensitivity is innate and hereditary.

A highly sensitive person generally has four basic specifics. Those are:

- depth of information processing

- emotional reactivity and empathy

- perception of subtleties and nuances

- easy and frequent overstimulation (or understimulation)

High sensitivity is not introversion, a form of autism, or any other disorder, but an innate personality trait that is perfectly healthy and normal. It's a specific and strong personality trait that brings a lot of beauty to life, but also complications. Therefore, a person with high sensitivity must learn to be aware of his or her different needs and meet them regularly, otherwise burnout will happen very easily and quickly.

The nervous system of highly sensitive people functions differently—it perceives all sensory stimuli more intensely and reacts more strongly to them—for example, emotions, sounds, light, colors, tastes, smells, fatigue, hunger, or pain. A highly sensitive person absorbs a huge amount of information, which their brain then analyzes in detail and sends out an intense response. In stressful situations, our nervous system becomes so frazzled that we are unable to concentrate on everyday things (for example, when I am hungry, I start to become unpleasant, I panic over every little thing, I lose patience and attention and even my sense of direction, etc. – and I really have to sit down on the nearest bench and eat). This depth of perception and processing is a huge burden on the body, which is why a person quickly becomes physically and mentally exhausted and needs space to calm their turbulent nervous system - time in peace and solitude, when nothing disturbs or distracts them. Because of this, we sometimes appear to those around us as people who are constantly "out of it," closed off in our own heads, perpetually in the clouds, or often tired, oversensitive, and overreacting. But inside us, a battle has been raging, so it's no wonder we need to take a breather.

According to research, people with high sensitivity make up about 20% of the total population, with 70% of the highly sensitive being introverts and 30% being extroverts.

(Resources: Elaine Aron: The Highly Sensitive Person - How to Thrive When the World Overwhelms You; Jenn Granneman: Sensitive - The Hidden Power of the Highly Sensitive Person; Alena Wehle: Citlivka)

What is it like in practical life

In my everyday life as a highly sensitive person, this means that everything that happens to me or around me has an intense effect on me and I quickly become unhinged, lose focus and seek solitude.

I feel other people's emotions just like I feel my own - I soak them up like a sponge and they affect me deeply. The atmosphere and mood in the room comes over me in an instant. My barometric head knows
a change in the weather the same way as if someone had punched me - I often get headaches and dizziness, and I don't even have to be outside. In relationships, it's natural for me to go right to the deep end, which is why I hate small talk and find it challenging to strike up conversations or relationships with new people. I replay all conversations over and over in my head and automatically analyze and overthink them in depth. I have an incredibly vivid imagination and can realistically picture many things - the good and the really bad. That is also why I cannot watch brutal or horror movies, because I would have all the scenes burned into my brain forever, and my brain would even continue to develop them further. I need to prepare for everything in advance - know the plans, the details, all the possible options, everything. It only takes one little change to ruin my whole day. Even an uncomfortable outfit or a badly cut sewn label behind my neck can ruin my day, because I can only focus on how tight or scratchy it is. I can't perceive or do two things at once, because I need to focus fully and deeply only on one thing. If someone is watching me work, I get extremely stressed and every thing I carry falls apart. The slightest unpleasant sounds, smells or touches are incredibly irritating and distracting.

It's as if I'm missing some kind of dampening filter: I take in everything without difference in its raw form. It all gets hammered mercilessly into my brain and heart, and then I need enough time and space alone and quiet to process and sort it all out: to store what needs to be stored, to let go of what needs to be let go, and to calm my nerves again from the whirlwind. With time and experience, it can be dulled a little and a thin filter can be created, but it will always be much thinner than in people with normal or lower sensitivity.