Sensory Issues: Dealing with Crowds

[uniquetadpole]

Growing up we were always on the go…doing things, going places, being around people. Over the last few years I have gradually been exposed to things less and less to a point this past summer where the only exposure I had was at work and that even became too much. I think that before I would have been able to handle crowds a little bit better.



I never thought I had anxiety per se. My understanding of anxiety was that with anxiety you have negative thoughts. For example, people that get anxious in crowded places fear something bad is going to happen…they do the what if scenario and unrealistically become fearful. Their mind talk goes something like “What if someone plants a bomb here?” or “What if someone shoots into the crowd?” or the less extreme might be “What if someone finds out ____?” or “Do I look embarrassed?” or “Is my hair okay?” etc.



The thing is this isn’t what happens to me in crowds. It is very different…The visual movement and noise of the crowd puts me in a major state of disorientation and confusion. My brain starts shutting down and I can’t figure out where I am and what direction to go in.



Some of the things I have found that help me cope are:

• Wear a baseball cap and tilt my head down and use the brim to block some or all of the view.
• Find a corner or wall to push my back up against.
• Many times I stop and look around for a while (kind of in a daze) and figure out where I need to go and then hyperfocus on walking to that place and try to tune it all out.
• Deal with crowds in small chunks with quiet breaks in between whenever possible.
• If I have friend or a loved one that understands I grab their arm or shirt or jacket…look down to block the view and let them lead the way.
• Wear sunglasses…even on a cloudy day…keeps the light levels down so the combination of sensory input isn’t as great.

If you hvae any ideas to add or questions to ask...please do.

hugs,
Tad

 

[uniquetadpole]

Bringing this back to the front

 

[Fangtastic]

I don't know what your condition is but anyways,I was glad ya wrote in this forum,it helps just readin this stuff. My autistic high functioning kid now has to wear headphones on vehicle trips or at school when anything upsets him. This is weird because he's more sound sensitive than ever. We do use hats on him,I thought this interesting that ya suggested it.

 

[uniquetadpole]

I don't know what your condition is but anyways,I was glad ya wrote in this forum,it helps just readin this stuff. My autistic high functioning kid now has to wear headphones on vehicle trips or at school when anything upsets him. This is weird because he's more sound sensitive than ever. We do use hats on him,I thought this interesting that ya suggested it.

Hello Fangtastic,
I have Asperger's Syndrome (AS)...does your son wear his headphones alot...from what I have read...by wearing the headphones too much...it creates the opposite effect than what is desired...in other words he may be becoming more sensitive to sounds because the head phones have been protecting his ears from the sounds and he no longer is used to the level he once was. I am currently doing a Listening Therapy Program to try to compensate for my auditory processing problem. I would highly recommend an OT that is capable of assisting with sensory integration. BTW how old is your son?

 

[Mirelys]

I do a lot of these things in crowds. Most of my family members are very understanding and let me hold on to their sleeve so I can walk looking down. I'm sure I look funny, but it helps!
Oh, and I wear bucket hats. I just realized that. They're nice because they narrow your side view a lot, but they also make my glasses push down on my ears I need contacts.
Can you tell I'm bored today?

 

[createcoms]

Hi, I just found these forums yesterday - wow a website for Christian peeps who are also on the AS! Thought such a thing was a mere dream.....


Anyways, I see I'm not alone on many things (which itself is a significant comfort). I find crowds to be "stressful", and don't respond well (if I cannot escape them when I like, I feel violence surging up inside of me like I want to explode). So I always make sure I can bail from a crowd, and having someone I know (and trust) with me in a crowd also helps too as I can focus on them and ignore the crowd somewhat.

 

[MaryEllen]

Tad!
My name is MaryEllen, I am a very proud mother to a 12 year old son with Aspergers and a 6 year old with HFA. I was so very pleased to see a forum here on this subject! I admire you first off, I have read some of your posts! You are a true blessing for others!

My oldest also wears a ballcap to hide behind. He likes to wear a thin jacket at all times also.

My youngest has major anxiety of being in crowds. He often wears headphones to block out noises. We bought him a viedo now with headphones, he wears them 95% time when we must be out in crowds.

I thought it was interesting that you put your back up against a wall. With both of the boys they like weight on them..more so if they are upset. Weighted blankets.

Thank You again for sharing! You don't know how much I appreciate it you doing so, as you are helping me understand my unique children more. I feel truely blessed to have been chosen to be the mother of two very unique, wonderful individuals!

 

[HollyHobbie]

Growing up we were always on the go…doing things, going places, being around people. Over the last few years I have gradually been exposed to things less and less to a point this past summer where the only exposure I had was at work and that even became too much. I think that before I would have been able to handle crowds a little bit better.



I never thought I had anxiety per se. My understanding of anxiety was that with anxiety you have negative thoughts. For example, people that get anxious in crowded places fear something bad is going to happen…they do the what if scenario and unrealistically become fearful. Their mind talk goes something like “What if someone plants a bomb here?” or “What if someone shoots into the crowd?” or the less extreme might be “What if someone finds out ____?” or “Do I look embarrassed?” or “Is my hair okay?” etc.



The thing is this isn’t what happens to me in crowds. It is very different…The visual movement and noise of the crowd puts me in a major state of disorientation and confusion. My brain starts shutting down and I can’t figure out where I am and what direction to go in.



Some of the things I have found that help me cope are:

• Wear a baseball cap and tilt my head down and use the brim to block some or all of the view.
• Find a corner or wall to push my back up against.
• Many times I stop and look around for a while (kind of in a daze) and figure out where I need to go and then hyperfocus on walking to that place and try to tune it all out.
• Deal with crowds in small chunks with quiet breaks in between whenever possible.
• If I have friend or a loved one that understands I grab their arm or shirt or jacket…look down to block the view and let them lead the way.
• Wear sunglasses…even on a cloudy day…keeps the light levels down so the combination of sensory input isn’t as great.

If you hvae any ideas to add or questions to ask...please do.

hugs,
Tad

I am not autistic but I am Bi Polar and also get disorented and confused in large crowds and shut down...If I am alone and not around someone I know I usually pray and quote scripture and keep quoting it . too myself if someone corners me....which I can't stand due to a trauma in my childhood...I usually try to calmly ask them if we can either switch places or go in an area where we have more space....I will often tell them I had a traumatic experience as a child and cannot handle being cornered and usually they understand and switch places....theres only one who dosen't understand......but all I have to do is get into one of my self defence positions and she backs off !

Its really quite funny !.....expecially since I used it on her once when I was a teenager after she tried to beat me up and torture me.

She hasn['t done it since. LOL !

 

[uniquetadpole]

Just bringing this info back to the front

 

[AlaskaFan]

I have trouble tuning out the conversations of others when I'm in a crowd or a restaurant. I get so distracted.

 

[we5frogs]

My son, who is 16 and has AS, has described to me often how it feels to see and hear and even smell everything around him at the same level and all at the same time, and I can only imagine how overwhelming that is. He is my hero, I marvel at how he is able to thrive as he does with all this going on.

He is also extremely hypersensitive to the real or imagined emotions of those around him. We have learned that people with AS often misunderstand happy or sad, excited or mad, because they are so literal with translations of things like body language. (for example, if two months ago, I made a particular facial expression when I was angry, and now I look at him today and he sees this same expression in his mind, then he often interprests that I am mad now). This awareness is just another one of the things that folks with AS need to process at the same time as the other sights and sounds, since their brains do not filter any of this input as they should.

This is why he says it is so hard to be in a crowd, because besides the noise and sights, the emotions of all those around him get processed as though they were his own. He describes it as actually physically uncomfortable to feel all of this at the same time, like a pain in his gut.

Since he has learned to identify this, which is wonderful, he has also learned when it becomes to much for him. Then he uses his walkman (which he never leaves home without). When the input becomes to much to bear, he puts the walkman on and blasts it as loud as he can, which for some reason allows him to release some of what he is feeling to get under control again. He says it is like a pressure valve, that allows some of the steam to escape to prevent it from exploding.

He also used deep pressure (he will rub his arm really hard) or tactile pressure (he will rub something really rough) which can relieve some of the pressure to make him more comfortable, when the sensations are not quite as extreme. I don't know why it works, I just know that it does work for him.

 

[uniquetadpole]

Bringing this back to the front for newcomers

 

[Thanks2JE55E5]

I think I am at home here! I am a christain the only one in my family I add! And AS! Sorted

 

[Timuchin]

I'm still learning about what to do, since I was diagnosed Aspergers just a couple of months ago.

I've run diesel generators and big blowers in confined spaces. That didn't cause any problems. I have been at conventions where during a break time everyone is talking to everyone else. I HAVE to leave. A continuous, unintelligible sound is no problem. I can't turn off listening to all conversations in my vicinity. Maybe I could overload myself by recording the hubbub at a train station, reduce the treble and listen to it through earphones.

Visually, I can get 'stuck' on televisions playing in a shop window. I remember standing there, watching a whole movie in Target. I avoid movies that have any adventure in them because I will vibrate through the whole thing.

 

[Slina]

For me, crowds aren't always an automatic problem: sometimes I can tune them out pretty easily, and other times I really have to leave as soon as possible. I still haven't figured out what makes the difference, and so far it's generally pretty random as to when the crowd noise starts getting to me. I do know, however, that once it starts affecting me, it's next to impossible to tune it out; in fact, the harder I try, it seems that the worse it gets. It mostly affects me by giving me a feeling of sensory overload, giving me a strong sense of confusion and generally affecting my ability to think straight. One of the lesser and more common crowd problems I have is something like selective hearing (or something; not quite sure what it is...), where I basically have a hard time hearing the other person/people over all the crowd noise.

I really have no idea what to do about it, though, especially since I'm not entirely sure what initially sets it off for me. Headphones seem a bit impractical to me when I'm just going to be walking or going to the cafeteria, though I have used them with success when I'm sitting around for a while. Being more confident might help, though, since I have noticed that it's worse when I'm already stressed or upset.

 

[02selah20]

at times it just actually starts with 1 issue then as i try to manage and be in control, the more it gets worse and becomes a total sensory overload. i get this headache that i can't explain how it painful it is that i just want to shut the whole world around me.

yes, that is really a difficult time to me. and guess what, I myself becomes a "difficult" person too. well, people say...

wahhh!!! it's really difficult to attend to people you're with when you are in the midst of the crowd. i couldn't just pay attention and reciprocate.

any suggestion?

 

[02selah20]

when i try to concentrate though, i tend to tune out people i am with and they tell me "I'm completely LOST" and simply gets [bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse]ed off at my presence or should i say, absence?

any suggestion?

 

[Slina]

at times it just actually starts with 1 issue then as i try to manage and be in control, the more it gets worse and becomes a total sensory overload. i get this headache that i can't explain how it painful it is that i just want to shut the whole world around me.

Yep, that definitely sounds familiar... except the headache. I don't typically get an actual headache from sensory overload; it does tend to start with just one or two things, though, and degenerate faster the harder I try to get it back under control. Still no idea about how to fix that problem, other than attempting to keep it from happening in the first place...

wahhh!!! it's really difficult to attend to people you're with when you are in the midst of the crowd. i couldn't just pay attention and reciprocate.

I have problems like that, too. I'll occasionally 'phase out' at random intervals, missing about a phrase or so. And like you said, I have some problems hearing people over other sounds, which gets really frustrating for everyone involved when I have to keep asking them to repeat themselves only to have me give up before really hearing them properly.

I'm not sure I have too many suggestions since I'm still trying to figure out what to do myself, but there are a few things I've discovered that can help. For example, if I'm getting most of what the other person is saying, I found that I can generally figure what all they're saying by drawing from the context. A lot of times, what I pick up from the other person is enough to leave only a few gaps that are pretty easy to fill in; other times, even if I have no idea what was said (like if they randomly walked up and said something, or if there's a bunch of interfering noise), I can occasionally match it to a known social script and get a pretty good idea from that what they said.

Another thing that might help is to eliminate as much interference as possible. This won't always work, of course, but I try to do what I can. If I have the radio or tv on when someone starts talking to me, I'll always turn it down or mute it, and in the case of the tv, turn so I'm facing away from the screen; if I didn't do that, I'd either have a hard time hearing the other person above the music or be too distracted by what's happening on the radio/tv to pay attention to the person, and I'm almost always distracted if I can see what's on tv (even when I can't hear it...). Also, if I'm talking to someone in a crowd situation, I like to try finding ways to 'get away' from the crowd. Doesn't really work too often, but finding a strategic angle for myself or asking the other person if we can move someplace quieter generally helps.

Beyond that, all I can really think to do is to keep your mind on the conversation, keep looking at the other person (since looking away can be a huge distraction in itself), find someplace quiet to talk when possible, and maybe ask the other person to talk louder if you think that would help. Hanging out on the edges when possible might help, too, since at least that way you're more likely to have conversations away from the middle of things (of course, it also increases the chance of being 'left out', but I suppose it can still help sometimes).

 

[meebs]

The thing is this isn’t what happens to me in crowds. It is very different…The visual movement and noise of the crowd puts me in a major state of disorientation and confusion. My brain starts shutting down and I can’t figure out where I am and what direction to go in.

hugs,
Tad

Wow!

I havent got Aspergers but i was drawn to this. I hate crowds for a similar reason, is that it can be so overwhleming! For one im photosensitive (if im in a bright light situation) and two i dont like being close to other people (i can stand only few of the ones i know). The noise bugs me (and it bugs me when the weather changes and there is a difference in acoustics in the town center).

Though i have a little paranoia on the side. Sometimes i fear people are laughing at me.

I have been looking for a solution for years.

I listen to an MP3 as much as a can and try to ignore people around me, try to blank them out. Either that or i try avoid busy areas.

 

[02selah20]

If I have the radio or tv on when someone starts talking to me, I'll always turn it down or mute it, and in the case of the tv, turn so I'm facing away from the screen; if I didn't do that, I'd either have a hard time hearing the other person above the music or be too distracted by what's happening on the radio/tv to pay attention to the person, and I'm almost always distracted if I can see what's on tv (even when I can't hear it...).

Yes I also do that. but you know what, it makes me feel that i am truly "different". it feels bad. cuz my mom would tell me that it's so strange. she always tells me im the only one who's like that. and that i really need an effort such as that just to pay attention. she was the 1 who actually discovered a way for me to be able to focus and reciprocate well to conversations.she would keep away my cellular phone or book or TV when she tries to communicate to me. but for her, that sounds strange (and for other people who find out that im like that)

well, life... at least i have coping ways now. strange as it may seem. still working on it, though.

thanks for your advice... i can very much relate.