I find touch is more complex than it first appears. When I think of touch, I associate it with soft clothing (super important), clothes without tags, socks without that annoying line of stitching over the toes, ad infinitum. I never really considered how it affects my life and I think, as it is with many things, we probably don’t realize that something we do isn’t ‘normal’ until we start to examine it or have some sort of reference point. One disclaimer - ‘normal’ is not a term I care for and I believe the range of what is considered ‘normal behaviour’ is much too narrow - but that’s for another post.
It wasn’t long ago that I realized something I do that may not be what the ‘average’ person does. When I come home, the first thing I do is immediately change my clothes. It has nothing to do with inside/outside clothes, or ‘bus pants’ (thanks Sheldon), it has to do with comfort. It’s apparently more important than I realized because I will change clothes even before putting the shopping away. I’m not sure how long I’ve been doing this - and I only mention this because I do NOT like putting on ‘real’ clothes…
Touch goes far beyond just clothing. I absolutely HATE cold water and I get antsy if I have to get my hands wet and only ONE hand is wet. I think this is less about the water at this point and more about the sensation of drying only ONE hand. When you try to dry one hand, I don’t know, it just doesn’t work for me.
I’ve always hated cold - always. I learned to sew like a whizz at a very young age because I quickly discovered the key to NOT having to go outside after school was to sew - that was allowed. I lived in a very cold area at the time and although snow is beautiful (see my post about sound), it’s cold - the kind of cold that envelops you. This has changed a little over time. First, they make great clothing to keep you warm, from down to windproof fleece, to wool - and you know wool is my favorite. Since I have returned to Scotland I can actually knit for myself - because I need it to keep warm!
Flip to the other side of a cold climate - I lived in Arizona for a few years. Arizona has an interesting heat, it is a dry heat so it’s different than heat combined with humidity. I figured out I could withstand temps up to 105 degrees F in Arizona - that was the max, after that, noooo. The notable difference is you’re not chewing the air in Arizona because it truly is dry, but it can feel like a blast furnace. The big difference between being in a cold place versus a hot place is that I feel you can always get warm - more clothes, more heat, hot bath…. In Arizona, if your air conditioning goes out, heat stroke soon follows - and that is scary - and very dangerous.
Fans - whether they be ceiling fans, standalone fans or air blowing from a vent - all of these bother me. I don’t like things blowing on me, on my skin. Ceiling fans come with a lot of subtle noise as well - something most people never hear.
There are lots of random things such as microfiber cloths (eek!), many foods that might come under the ‘touch’ category. The texture of all meats, plus chicken and turkey, absolutely gags me. I don’t really mind the taste of lima beans but they leave a layer of fur in your mouth - so no, the texture is horrible. Oysters and ‘slippery’ things, nope.
I haven’t discussed human touch and that’s one area that I don’t feel being HSP has had any big impact. Being sensitive, I tend to be more tuned in to others feelings, but that’s a bit outside this particular discussion.
I feel like I’ve left a lot out of this one topic. I’ve struggled to write it but I’m going to post this so I can keep up these posts as my hope is to create sort of a basic overview or a framework of high sensitivity and how it affects me. I’d love to hear from others - whether it’s light, sound, touch, taste, or smell. I would truly love to hear your experiences since we’re all so very different - and that’s what makes the world go round.
Please note: what I describe here is my own experience and while many may experience the same or similar sensations, many of you may not. Everyone’s experience of being an HSP is unique and the more we can understand, the more we can support one another.