HAVING ADD AND BEING HYPERSENSITIVE:
Is There A Connection?

By Mary Jane Johnson
 

In "The Difficult Child" Stanley Turecki, M.D., describes the difficult child with a low sensory threshold. He states, "...power struggles or tantrums occur over clothes that don't feel right; shoes have to be tied endlessly; tags in the clothing have to be removed; excess sensitivity may be evident to noises, lights, or smells. She refuses to wear a coat in the middle of winter, complaining she is too hot, or will wear only underwear in the house. She is over stimulated in crowded places."

Throughout my life there have been numerous "little" things that have agitated me, but didn't seem to bother anyone else. I am uncomfortable wearing clothing that has elastic at the wrist or waist, or tags in the neck. I wear watches with a loose bracelet bands.

There are countless foods that I avoid because of their texture, rather than how they taste. For example, I love tomato sauce on spaghetti, etc., but just cannot abide eating a raw tomato. A number of fruits are also out because of their peculiar textures. I will eat a raw apple, but cringe at the thought of eating a baked apple. Going out to eat can be bothersome because I need to know what is in everything before I can eat it. I prefer to go restaurants that serve plain homecooked style food, rather than take a chance at some of the fancier restaurants that offer exotic dishes with unknown or unpronounceable names and ingredients. My stomach is sensitive and reacts to unusual or spicy foods, as well as to stress.

Since I was a child I have experienced allergies and upper respiratory problems. I am allergic to certain fragrances, dust and mold, ragweed, flowers, hay, grass, leaves, animal fur, and any kind of nuts (except peanuts which are from a different family)..

My skin is excessively dry, I have excema and often get rashes. In the summer I cannot tolerate being in the sun and have come close to heat prostration numerous times. In the winter, I am constantly cold after the temperature drops and the chilled air makes me hurt all over.

My ears are also hypersensitive and loud, or high-pitched sounds leave my ears ringing. I keep the volume on the radio and TV turned way down (which bothers everyone else in the house because they cannot hear it). If I hear an unusual sound (usually no one else hears it) I cannot focus anything else until I find the source of the sound. Once that is established I can return to what I was doing.

In addition to the above, I am very sensitive to anyone touching me unless I want to be touched. Only just recently have I been able to bring myself to hug and be hugged by friends in a greeting. If anyone holds on to me for too long, I start to panic and begin to feel closed in or claustrophobic. I have difficulty getting on elevators and feel smothered in large crowds.

In an attempt to discover whether this hypersensitivity is more common in people with ADD, I took an "unscientific pole" of 65 ADD adults who attended a recent conference. The results are listed below:

1. Sensitivity to clothing (i.e. elastic, tags) 44%

2. Sensitivity to food textures 6%

3. Allergies 39%

4. Sensitive skin 67%

5. Heat and cold sensitivity 56%

6. Sensitive hearing 50%

7. Sensitivity to being touched 22%

8. Claustrophobia 39%

9. Stomach problems 50%

As you can see everyone poled had one or more of these same traits. I was curious if any other ADD adults share in these same hypersensitivities (or have others not mentioned here)?  Below are some comments I received to this article.
 

Comments From Individuals: Follow-Up Article

It has been several months now since I reported on ADD and hypersensitivity. Since that time I have heard from several ADD adults who suffer some of the same symptoms. One person sent me an article entitled "Social & Emotional Issues of Adults with Sensory Defensiveness" from the Sensory Integration Newsletter published by The American Occupational Therapy Assoc. Many of these same hypersensitivities are mentioned in this article and I will quote from the article as well as what was shared by the readers who wrote to me.

Sensory Integration Newsletter states, "Adults with tactile defensiveness commonly report strong clothing preferences and avoidances, and aversions to clothes with tags, jewelry....may also feel uncomfortable with wool or synthetic materials against the skin....and may be bothered by these aversions to an extreme degree...."

Along those same lines K. wrote in that, "I have to keep my shoes tied tight on my feet....if they are not tight I get frustrated....I find that I constantly re-tie my shoes as tight as possible, during the day."

D. relates, "I agree completely about the elastic....I also do not like sleeves, high collars, knee socks that fall down, tags on the inside of shirts, anything touching my skin that isn't soft or cottony, slacks too tight in the crotch....I hate panty hose....I don't wear my coat in the car, I have a nice thin vest with lots of pockets that I wear while shopping."

In regards to sensitivity to food textures M. shares, "My dad as a child couldn't stand different foods to touch, so my grandmother bought him a compartmentalized plate....

I had to do the same for my son....he stopped picking up wet finger foods or food that made his hands sticky....he wanted a different spoon or fork for each food....he wanted only bland soft foods and to this day there are very few foods he likes....My taste is more sensitive than the others in my family."

D. says, "I am also a picky eater, but I love spicy food. I can't stand browned scrambled eggs and my fried eggs must be perfect."

When it comes to heat and cold sensitivity, M. writes, "If it gets around 70 degrees I'm cold....that's why we live in the desert....my hands and feet seem to always have had poor circulation....my hands get cold inside good leather gloves." K. states, "....especially cold....I need to dress and keep the house warm as soon as cool weather moves in....if I didn't love New England so much I would probably live in a warm climate year round."

The remarks about hearing sensitivity includes: M., clock in the living room because he could her it ticking all the way in his room....my son can sleep through noises but certain frequencies hurt or upset him....I travel with a Sears "sleepmate" white noise machine. I can't sleep without masking the noise. I annoy the heck out of my husband by my ability to hear the TV at the other end of the house....I can't have a ticking clock in the room where I sleep....my dad also has a noise machine." K., "....when trying to focus on things I can't filter out noises....while typing this letter I can hear water dripping in the next room, the refrigerator turning on and off, and a car engine idling outside." And D., "I enjoy loud music, but only when I feel like it. I think that's why people think we are selfish at times."

Sensory Integration Newsletter reports, "Social events....puts the person with defensiveness in an uncomfortable situation....Almost all subjects described the discomfort

experienced when someone's touch takes them by surprise....many subjects describe shaking hands as unpleasant....when the touch or hug from comes from behind, it's effect is multiplied because of the element of surprise....and may need to exert self-control to avoid striking out at the person who touched them."

M. shares, "I don't like being touched....even shaking hands is difficult....It's taken my husband years to learn how to touch me without provoking a negative response. Touching my head or hair is a no no!" A twist on this particular hypersensitivity comes from D. who says, "I am happy to say the hypersensitivity to touch, in the romantic sense, is more often a plus than a minus." And K. adds, "I don't mind shaking someone’s hand, but forget hugging....Whenever someone hugs me, I tense up and my stomach gets tied up in knots....being married my wife loves to be touched....I get all tied up when she hugs me or wants to be hugged or held....It tears me apart because I love my wife and yet for some reason want my space."

"Most subjects described feeling uncomfortable in crowded places such as crowded elevators, buses, or subways, restaurants, stores, malls....shopping is difficult for them", states Sensory Integration Newsletter. K. agrees by saying, "I have difficulty

going into elevators, and detest having to go to malls, food stores, sporting events, etc....I get very overstimulated, overwhelmed and irritable until I'm free from crowded areas." D. states, "I notice that claustrophobia is more evident when I am somewhere I don't like to be, such as in a car on a trip of more than an hour."

In some individuals there seems to be a connection between having ADD and being hypersensitive, as these cases indicate. I would be interested in hearing from others of you who experience some of the same symptoms. I want to thank M., K., and D. for writing and sharing their personal experiences with us.

I welcome your comments!  Please E-mail me at MJJ4ADD@aol.com

(c) 1998 Mary Jane Johnson

ADD and Hypersensitivity Survey Results
SURVEY:  Hypersensitivity and ADD The results are in! They may surprise you.