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Is this SPD? - Riverbird - 11-11-2010
I was doing some reading on something completely different when I came across some info about SPD/SID (not sure if those are the same thing...guess I didn't read all that far...lol).
Anyway, the more I read the more it started to sound like the first possible explanation for my "quirks". So I ended up finding this site, and hopefully someone can give me an idea if i'm on the right track.
Basically, I sometimes feel just completely, uncomfortable in my own skin. And I mean that literally....physically uncomfortable. It's like I can't get into a position that's comfortable. Instead I'm too aware of what each individual part of me is doing and touching, and it somehow just doesn't feel right. It's not that it hurts, it just irritates me enough that it's hard to focus on anything else. Sometimes I feel really miserable because of it and just want to crawl back into bed and not talk to anyone.
To give a specific example...tonight I was playing tennis but kept finding myself really bothered by how my pinky felt on the grip of the racquet. My pinky was a little too small to wrap around the grip so it stuck out a bit, leaving a small space between it and the next finger over. Little beads of sweat as well as air was getting in the gap and I started missing shots because I was focusing on that rather than the game. It was like no matter what I did, I had to give a bit of my focus to my pinky. As someone that's ADD, I don't like to share my focus anymore than I have to! lol
Anyway, is this something that could be SPD, or should I continue on in finding a home for my quirks? I hope I've explained this well enough...it's always hard for me to put into words exactly what I'm feeling.
Thanks for reading!
River
RE: Is this SPD? - mawkinberd - 11-11-2010
Hi, River! Nice to meet you here. I know what you mean, looking for more information to try to get an idea of what's going on. Let me see if I can give you a little info to help you out here.
SID is the original acronym for what is now mostly called SPD, or sensory processing disorder. Most of the places you'll see will call it SPD now.
The information that you talk about does sound a lot like tactile sensitivity. Different people have different levels at which things are over- or under-sensitive in the SPD world. Often, people will have sensitivities in several different senses. Are you also sensitive to bright light? Do certain sounds really drive you crazy? Are you overly sensitive to perfumes, cleaners, etc? Or is it opposite, where you really seek bright light, ride the scariest rollercoasters, play your iPod at the highest sounds, dream about bungie jumping? These would be corroborative signs. One place where you can take a survey of likely signs is at this site.
Another thing to consider is that many people who are diagnosed ADHD have sensory issues that cause the concentration difficulties. More and more people are finding out that working with their sensory issues can help their ADHD tremendously.
I hope this helps. If you have any more specific questions or concerns, please feel free to ask. Also, we'd love to get to know you and know more about you. We like for this board to be our SPD home.
Good luck finding the information you need!
RE: Is this SPD? - Riverbird - 11-12-2010
(11-11-2010, 01:53 PM)mawkinberd Wrote: Hi, River! Nice to meet you here. I know what you mean, looking for more information to try to get an idea of what's going on. Let me see if I can give you a little info to help you out here.
SID is the original acronym for what is now mostly called SPD, or sensory processing disorder. Most of the places you'll see will call it SPD now.
The information that you talk about does sound a lot like tactile sensitivity. Different people have different levels at which things are over- or under-sensitive in the SPD world. Often, people will have sensitivities in several different senses. Are you also sensitive to bright light? Do certain sounds really drive you crazy? Are you overly sensitive to perfumes, cleaners, etc? Or is it opposite, where you really seek bright light, ride the scariest rollercoasters, play your iPod at the highest sounds, dream about bungie jumping? These would be corroborative signs. One place where you can take a survey of likely signs is at this site.
Another thing to consider is that many people who are diagnosed ADHD have sensory issues that cause the concentration difficulties. More and more people are finding out that working with their sensory issues can help their ADHD tremendously.
I hope this helps. If you have any more specific questions or concerns, please feel free to ask. Also, we'd love to get to know you and know more about you. We like for this board to be our SPD home.
Good luck finding the information you need!
Hmmm....interesting.
I absolutely can't stand any sort of "fake" scents. I can't walk in to Bath and Body Works or any stores like that because all the different scents together gives me a pounding headache. I tend to avoid insense, air fresheners, and all but a few lotions and things. However I also love big scary roller coasters and dream about bungie jumping.
Do those things cancel each other out?I'll check out the site you listed. Thanks for the info and the reply. And of course, it's always nice to meet another bird.
River
RE: Is this SPD? - mawkinberd - 11-13-2010
LOL Definitely nice to meet another bird.
Actually, they don't cancel one another out. Most people tend in one direction or the other for different senses, but it is not unusual for people to swing wildly from one to another or to seek certain stimulation. Like, even though I'm super sensitive to sound, music of certain kinds help me tremendously. Or even though many fake or chemical scents drive me nuts, certain natural scents relax me greatly. Or even though my balance freaks me out and makes me terribly afraid of heights or uneven surfaces, I love to bounce on my therapy ball and crave rocking back and forth. It's a balance thing, I suppose.
Anyway, I'd love to know how that questionnaire goes.
Keep us posted!
RE: Is this SPD? - Riverbird - 11-14-2010
(11-13-2010, 11:51 PM)mawkinberd Wrote: LOL Definitely nice to meet another bird.
Actually, they don't cancel one another out. Most people tend in one direction or the other for different senses, but it is not unusual for people to swing wildly from one to another or to seek certain stimulation. Like, even though I'm super sensitive to sound, music of certain kinds help me tremendously. Or even though many fake or chemical scents drive me nuts, certain natural scents relax me greatly. Or even though my balance freaks me out and makes me terribly afraid of heights or uneven surfaces, I love to bounce on my therapy ball and crave rocking back and forth. It's a balance thing, I suppose.
Anyway, I'd love to know how that questionnaire goes.
So I've been looking through the questionnaire, and am finding that a lot of what is mentioned i'm sort of in the middle on. For example, with clothes, I can't stand turtlenecks (feel like they're strangling me), and I can't wear socks with the seam at the very end (only ones where it's over the top of my toes). But other stuff that was mentioned...tags, stiffness, short/long pants doesn't bother me at all.
Then there were some things that are absolutely, 100% me:
have to fidget and "fiddle" with things all the time; change in your pocket, your keys, a pen/pencil, paper clip, rubber band, ANYTHING within reach
will often rock or sway body back and forth while seated or standing still
restless when sitting through a lecture, presentation, or movie (This is a big one...i can't sit comfortably in one position for any length of time...so by the time a movie/show/whatever is over i've had feet on the floor, each leg crossed over the other, legs stretched as much as possible, feet up on the seat in front of me if possible, sitting sideways, etc.)
prefer very bland foods, dislike anything spicy
love to sleep with multiple or heavy blankets on top of you
cracks knuckles often
becomes nauseated or gags from certain cooking, cleaning, perfume, public restroom, or bodily odors
hides or disappears when guests come over
notice and bothered by noises other people do not seem bothered by... clocks, refrigerators, fans, people talking, outdoor construction, etc. ("tick tock" clocks drive me insane!!)
lethargic, hard to get going, appears "lazy" and unmotivated
great difficulty settling body down for sleep or waking up in the morning (did you even hear the alarm that has been going off for 15 minutes?)
dislikes changes in plans or routines, needs structure
difficulty falling asleep or getting on a sleep schedule
distractible and unorganized
So I guess that's a pretty long list...but most of those would also go along w/ADD...fidgiting, easily distracted, hard to get going in the morning (hard to focus on individual aspects of getting ready routine so tend to stay in one place for a long time in the morning), difficulty falling asleep (again w/the ADD thing not letting my brain settle down.
There were a few surprise ones on there that totally describe me but I would've never even thought to mention them. For example:
difficulty merging into oncoming traffic on road, rotary, or highway
get disoriented and/or lost easily in stores, buildings, hiking, etc. (I have a terrible sense of direction...especially when I go in a building and then come back out...I end up forgetting which side of the street i'm on, or going the wrong way even though I'm sure it's right).
difficulty remembering or understanding what is said to you (In one ear and out the other!)
bumps into things frequently (I'm covered in bruises from cutting corners too tight while walking inside! lol)
cries easily, over things others usually don't, very "emotional" and "sensitive"
difficulty telling time on an analogue clock (Totally crazy to me that this is on there....This has been a struggle for me ever since elementary school when I first learned about them. I thought it was just me who couldn't get it! Thank god for digital watches!)
The more I think about this stuff, the more additional "quirks" I think of. For example when I was in college and lived in the dorms, I struggled to get any work done bc there was so much noise going on. However, the yelling and loud talking didn't bother me at all. Instead I couldn't stand it when people whispered bc I would seem to tune in to that more while easily ignoring the loud stuff. Or maybe I was just nosey and wanted to hear the secrets...lol
Anyway, this is starting to sound more and more like me. However in the intro to that questionaire it kept talking about getting help if the issues "significantly impact your life." It'd be nice to be able to sit still and not get distracted by my own skin, or to be more organized and able to sleep better, but i'm not sure if i can really say it's a significant impact. I've gotten used to dealing with all of it so it doesn't bother me too much, except every now and then. I am intriguied by what you said w/ADD ppl being helped by working on sensory issues. Finally getting on to ADD meds totally changed my life for the better (it took YEARS to get on them because I was regularly told that I was "too good of a student to be ADD." Really I was just stubborn and would eventually get my homework done even if it took all night, which it usually did). However I've still felt like there's something else going on in my head that I can't quite figure out. Something that makes my brain not work like others'. So I'm at least liking that when I read this stuff I don't feel quite as "strange" as I do most of the time. I don't typically say most of this stuff out loud bc it sounds weird even to me!
Sorry this is so long...just thinking "out loud." Thanks for your help!
RE: Is this SPD? - mawkinberd - 11-14-2010
Hey, no problem. And while I'm not an OT, a lot of what you said sounds like problems I have, too, and other people I've talked to. And if it doesn't have a significant impact on your life, fantastic! I wouldn't worry too much about an "official" diagnosis, if it doesn't bother you that much. And it may be that many of the therapeutic options described online might help you cope a little better with things, particularly when you hit a rough spot, and that might be all you want.
Having some things match you and others not is not at all unusual. Everyone has their own intensity level, if you will. Like with clothes. Most tags don't bother me, either, but I simply cannot stand socks. Soft sounds often bother me, too, rather like distractions. I can't stand the buzz of a television being on, for instance. But I'm also very sensitive to volume. Guess we're all just different.
And merging into traffic ^really^ bothers me. My bubble of safety really doesn't like moving towards other vehicles. If I understand correctly, some people who have stability issues (problems with the vestibular sense) have issues sitting still because they feel the need to test the surface under them constantly, making sure they're not going to fall. People who have trouble with all the activity around them could seem to bounce off the walls because they are getting overstimulated. These things are similar to what happens to some people with ADHD. That's how these things tie together.
This article can give you some ideas of how these things fit together, even if it is about kids. Hopefully, it'll give you some ideas.