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Ptsd and sensory overload

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What an interesting thread. I guess I always "knew" that my sensory issues were PTSD related.

Like every other person that posted, I can relate to the problem of noise. The more symptoms/anxiety I'm having, the more I am unable to handle surrounding "commotion". So it's not just volume, but activity. My home is kept quieter than the public library (unless I am watching a show on TV--and the TV is only allowed on during that specific time). I probably have the most quiet, mellow, laid-back teenagers on the planet. They seem to understand that when Mom is home she needs a peaceful sanctuary.

One thing that no one else mentioned, though, is smell. More than anything else, I am hyper-sensitive to odors. I cannot stand cooking odors. I hate those smells in my hair or clothes. I hate those smells in other persons' clothes. I avoid going into any type of restaurant. I have hundreds of dollars worth of essential oils and candles and odor eliminators and perfumes. When my boys grow up and leave the house, I will probably never cook another meal in my house for as long as I live.

If the temps are above 60 degrees F, all the windows in the house have to be open in order to have fresh air and get rid of odors. Odors are down-right distressing for me.

Problem is, nobody gets that. People do not understand this. My husband did not tolerate this little quirk of mine. It was just one more thing that gave him an excuse to be mean to me. Now my older son gets angry whenever he sees me going for the bottle of odor eliminator. Am I the only freak of nature here?
 
Am I the only freak of nature here?

Nope, I am the same way. It not uncommon for me to pick out random senses walking around campus including but not limited to paint, perfume, cologne, fast food, etc. The house I stay in during school is full of smells my roommates can easily ignore like the smell of trash, my roommates dirty clothes, space heater that gives off a burning plastic smell (highly triggering), and the cat box in the backroom. That and having been attempting to get them to clean more downstairs (with minimal success) has me hiding upstairs most of the time.

So it's not just volume, but activity.

With me it starts with being uncomfortable with the activity around me then I start to have problems with sounds and other sensory inputs. I was raised with some highly noisy siblings so I can shut out noise very well when in a good state of mind.
 
This is my worst symptom, but I have had this my whole life, the PTSD has just exacerbated it greatly. The worst ones for me seem to be high pitched whines, and low rumbles. Alas, I live in a rural area, so tractors, ATVs, and chainsaws abound. The weirdest part is that I can be right next to these things and they don't bother me (except ATVs). It's something about how they reach my ears from afar that drives me nuts.

There is some kind of land clearing going on nearby. I don't even know exactly where it is, but they have been running some kind of heavy equipment for the last several days and I'm about to crawl out of my skin.

Other noises, that I do think stem directly from trauma and PTSD are voices coming from TV or radios at low volumes. I know, again it's backwards, but if I can clearly hear a TV or radio, I know what it is. In those first few moments I hear one at low volume, my brain thinks they are voices of real people somewhere in my house or yard and it becomes a stressor. I don't like anything at a high volume, but super low volumes bother me as much.

Oh, and children screaming, but that comes from a rural upbringing that taught that you didn't scream unless someone was hurt, or the barn was on fire. "The Boy That Cried Wolf" was dubbed a little a-hole just for this reason. :)
 
In those first few moments I hear one at low volume, my brain thinks they are voices of real people somewhere in my house or yard and it becomes a stressor
children screaming, but that comes from a rural upbringing that taught that you didn't scream unless someone was hurt, or the barn was on fire. "

Those bother me as well. Around here, children are screaming all the time. I hope and pray they never really need help, because no one would come.
 
I hope and pray they never really need help, because no one would come.

I know right? I don't know when this practice was lost, because I have many "city" friends that were taught the same thing. I know kids yell, and we yelled, but never in a tone that conveyed needing help. I hear kids do this all the time just because another one took their toy.

There was one kid down the road that was just horrible. He was always yelling, "Help! Help!" and cursing his sister, who yelled, but in a much more pleasant voice, more like what we were raised to do. One year, this went on the for whole summer, and one day I'd had it and drove down to talk to their parents. As I pulled into their driveway, I saw the most beautiful outdoor BIRD CAGE - they were freakin' parrots! Their owner is a lovely women, who doesn't speak any English. I don't speak very good Spanish, which has made us the best of friends (she's one of the few people that doesn't say stupid crap to me all the time :). The birds are now a source of laughter for me....at myself.
 
I experience something similar at times. It usually happens when I'm feeling anxious or I'm really stressing out. I was at the grocery store with my parents one day and it was like there were too many sounds from the shopping carts, cash registers and people talking. It was almost like the lights were too bright too. It was overstimulating. I was already feeling anxious and feeling that overstimulated didn't help. I just wanted to leave.
 
I find that I get really, really stressed out by telephone conversations now, especially if I know I have to phone or email or talk to somebody else afterwards.

I didn't used to, but that's how it's been when the really bad stuff has happened at work: constant radio calls, telephone calls, entries to put in logs, information to pass to other officers in the room...now, instead of just getting on with it, even if my wife asks if I'd like a cup of tea while I'm on the phone, I start to get really flustered to the point where I can fly into a rage if I don't go and sit down in a dark, quiet room for a minute.

It's one of the few really noticeable symptoms that haven't cleared up since I became a fireman. I'm hoping it will go, too, in time.
 
It looks like no one uses this thread anymore either. Kinda sad because this is my big issue here lately. Sad
 
@87ofme Threads fall in and out of use, but the members I see using this thread so far are very active in the forum. So feel free to share or if your 'issue' is different then start your own thread.

Best wishes.
 
I have just stumbled upon this thread. Reading all these posts has made me feel so much better. I too am sensitive to loud noises, people getting too close. My personal space zone seems to be far greater than the average persons. I am feeling the most sensitive that I have ever felt before or it could be a case of trying to deny it. It is so bad that if there is a loud noise I literally scream then start shaking - it is so embarrassing I wish the ground would swallow me up.

I have recently started to isolate myself cos the feelings are unbearable. Does anyone else get this?:cry::sorry:
 
Exaggerated startle response is a very common symptom with PTSD, and is mentioned in the[DLMURL="https://www.myptsd.com/c/wiki/posttraumatic-stress-disorder/#criterion-e"] PTSD diagnostic criteria E[/DLMURL]- so you are certainly not alone. As you begin to deal with your trauma, you should begin to cope with loud noises better.
 
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