Blog

D.O.E.S.

Depth of Processing 

Overstimulation

Emotional Reactivity

Empathy

Sensing the Subtle

Highly Sensitive people have a natural curiosity and a way of noticing things that lead them to seek answers, and process deeply what they don’t understand. There’s no fragmentation of information, we’re like sponges when it comes to information. HSPs take it all in and then go about working to sort it out and understand it. Because we process information so deeply and think over all the options carefully, we can be slower to complete or accomplish tasks than less sensitive people.

We tend to notice levels of stimulation that go unobserved by others, such as subtle sounds, sights or physical sensations like pain. The difference seems to lie somewhere in the brain or on the way to the brain through a more careful processing of information.

We’re able to process material to deeper levels of semantic memory. We often think about our own thinking, reflect more on everything and sort things into finer distinctions. We’re able to learn without being aware that we’ve learned. Our process takes us beyond easy answers and conventional wisdom, integrating people, context, what’s spoken and unspoken, what’s conscious and unconscious and formulating a comprehensive, big picture perspective.

One of the most challenging aspects of this trait is overstimulation and a feeling of being overwhelmed. What is moderately stimulating to most people can be too stimulating for HSPs. What is highly stimulating for most people can lead an HSP to become overstimulated, overwhelmed and shut down mentally and emotionally. We feel out of control and our whole body warns us that it’s in trouble. Deep processing and overstimulation go hand in hand, we notice so many details and nuances, the volume of information can be overwhelming and we can easily become exhausted, stressed and burnt out. When bombarded, a sensitive person can become indecisive to avoid making regretful choices.

We tend to have high levels of norepinephrine (the brain’s form of adrenaline) in our brains, especially when exposed to stress. We also tend to have high levels of cortisol in our bodies, both when under stress and relaxing in a quiet environment. Cortisol is produced when we’re in a more or less constant state of stimulation or attentiveness, and when we have too much in our system for extended periods of time, it puts stress on our bodies. It can make sleeping more difficult and the less sleep, the more cortisol. In waking hours, the more cortisol, the more fear, and more fear creates more cortisol, it becomes a perpetuating cycle which is difficult to get out of if you Don’t understand it. Many highly sensitive people are diagnosed with having anxiety disorders due to this physiological reaction to stress.

Cortisol can contribute to both weight gain and difficulty with weight loss. Many highly sensitive people have difficulty with emotional eating due to the constant physical stress of overstimulation and the effects of consistently high levels of cortisol. Sometimes we eat to try to give ourselves more energy. We also eat in an effort to feel better. The hormonal effect of food creates dopamine, which counteracts the effects of cortisol and reduces the production of it. Dopamine is a feel-good hormone. We automatically feel more mentally and emotionally at ease when we eat something. Trying to keep ourselves afloat in this loud, fast-paced, culture can create serious unhappiness and stress-related illness, mentally, emotionally and physically. Overeating is a natural self-medicating coping mechanism that many of us unconsciously adopt.

We can train ourselves to get used to stimulation, but sometimes we think we’ve regulated ourselves and aren’t bothered by it anymore, then suddenly feel exhausted. Overstimulation often means failure to perform at our best, which is why we can dread feeling it and sometimes try to avoid attention. When being watched, timed or evaluated, we often fail to perform as well as we could have otherwise. Our speaking can become less fluid and we can draw blanks when feeling the pressure to perform. Our deeper processing might make it appear as though we aren’t catching on, but with time we understand and remember more than others.

Fast-paced or stressful environments that don’t allow for deep processing can be quite detrimental to a highly sensitive person. We work from the inside out, we absorb information, process it thoroughly and then respond. We do much better in slower-paced environments where people work with ideas, issues and challenges more mindfully and thoroughly.

Everyone, HSP or not, feels best when neither too bored nor too stimulated. Any individual will perform best on any kind of task if his or her nervous system is moderately alert. Too little stimulation and one is dull and ineffective. To change this under-stimulated physical state, we drink some coffee, turn on the radio, call a friend, strike up a conversation with a total stranger, change careers – anything! At the other extreme, too much stimulation of the nervous system and anyone will become distressed, clumsy, and confused; we can’t think, the body isn’t coordinated and we can feel out of control. We’ve adopted many ways to correct this situation, sometimes we rest or mentally shut down; some of us drink alcohol or take a Valium. The best level of arousal falls somewhere in the middle.

People differ considerably in how much their nervous system reacts when experiencing the same situation under the same stimulation. High sensitivity is largely inherited and is a normal neurological variant observed in all highly complex animals – mice, cats, dogs, horses, monkeys, and humans. Within any higher species, the percentage born with high sensitivity to stimulation is usually about the same, around 15-20%. Just as some within a species are a little bigger in size than others, some are a little more sensitive. We have a very busy inner world. We pick up on everything and can easily become overwhelmed by external stimuli because we’re already so highly stimulated internally. Among inborn traits of temperament, this one creates the most dramatically noticeable differences.

Highly sensitive people are deeply affected by other people’s moods and emotions. We need to live and work in positive and constructive environments, which are driven by humanistic values, respect, and purposefulness. We can be aware of, sensitive to, and vicariously experience the feelings, thoughts, and experiences of another person.

Highly sensitive people show a higher activation of mirror neurons in the brain, which help us gauge other people’s intentions and read how they feel. Empathy provides a window into someone else’s heart. We can see the compatibility between people, situations, agendas and plans, and sense subtleties with processes and the way things flow; whether they’re rushed or stagnant; whether there’s a need to stop or keep going. 

We can see the big picture and have insightful perceptions. Because we’re different and at odds with the cultural objectives and social norms, we tend to make others uncomfortable and often run into challenges with people not trusting us. It’s important for us to find people who share our values. People who share the same values are more likely to trust us. When we’re not trusted by others, we often lose trust in ourselves as well.

We have a deep calling to help people, especially those who are less fortunate or at a disadvantage. In our effort to address the needs of other people, we often displace our own feelings and needs and become people pleasers, forming a habit of putting others before ourselves. Not wanting to disappoint or upset people, we tend to have a hard time saying no and can often take responsibility for other people’s feelings, needs and desires. We’re naturally altruistic people and want to see everyone happy.

To be gentle is to be open to wonder. Gentleness is a precursor to delight, and wonder leads us to question things, which leads to new ideas and creative solutions. When we see the world’s pain so acutely, the only direction to move in is a constructive direction because we cannot knowingly contribute to that pain. Through that pain, we develop understanding and compassion.

Our sponge-like nervous system makes us very present to each moment, which is one of the reasons why we can feel so alone. Feeling alone in the world gives us a window into the magic and magnificence of life, and gifts us with awe and gratitude. We experience life deeply. We don’t base our goals and decisions on external factors or traditional cultural values, we base them on our personal values and how things feel. It’s like having an internal thermometer as part of our nervous system. We feel the immediacy of pain, joy and yearning, the unmet needs in others and in ourselves. Feeling so much and so deeply, we become tender to life in all its forms, which brings out our conscientious nature, creativity and desire to make life better. It gives us a level of intimacy with the world that often creates distance with others and results in the experience of loneliness.

Our nervous systems seem to be designed to react to subtle experiences, which can also make us slower to recover after reacting to intense stimuli. on average, compared to non-highly sensitive people, we tend to be better at spotting errors, are highly conscientious, and able to concentrate deeply (without distractions). We’re especially good at tasks requiring vigilance, accuracy, speed, and detection of minor differences. This innate capacity allows us to connect to our environment on a deeper level. Subtleties are clues that allow us to see minute changes, signaling when appearances are deceiving, or something is changing. We pay attention to everything.

Our bodies are different too. Most of us are masterful in fine motor movements, good at being still and calm, more affected by stimulants like caffeine, are more “right-brained” (less linear, more creative in a synthesizing way). We’re also more sensitive to things in the air, which means more hay fever and skin rashes.

Greater awareness of the subtle tends to make us more intuitive, which means we pick up information in a semi-conscious or unconscious way. The result is that we often “just know” without realizing how. This deeper processing of subtleties causes us to consider the past or the future more. We “just know” how things got to be the way they are or how they are going to turn out. Sort of like a “sixth sense”. It can be wrong of course just like our eyes and ears can be wrong, but our intuition is right often enough that HSPs tend to be visionaries, highly intuitive artists and inventors, as well as more conscientious, cautious and wise.

We’re a group who imagine the possibilities. We’re acutely aware of the past and future and spend a lot of time trying to invent solutions to our human problems because we’re more sensitive to hunger, cold, insecurity, exhaustion, and illness. Subtleties are what many HSPs draw on that creates a perception of genius. We see possibilities that others miss, connect the dots in a new way, and express a fuller perspective. Subtleties support creativity, we help others to see the world in new ways.

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