Some experiences are universal, at least for HSPs. How many such crazy fights did you have to fight?
Are you someone who gets emotional easily? If so, it can be overwhelming, not to mention exhausting. It might make you wonder why you’re more sensitive than they are—things affect you so deeply that others seem to shake them off.
People often point out other people’s sensitivity as if it were a weakness and something “wrong”. (This doesn’t help society misunderstands sensitive peopletoo.) But the truth is, nothing “bad” with highly sensitive people (HSP).
I mean, everyone is sensitive to some degree – some are more sensitive than others. Nearly 30 percent of people are born more sensitive than average, both physically and emotionally. (While about 40 percent of people have average sensitivity, 20 percent have low sensitivity.) Researchers refer to this trait as environmental sensitivity – also known as Sensory processing sensitivity. And don’t worry: all three levels of environmental sensitivity are considered normal and healthy.
People who fall close to the upper end of the sensitivity continuum are called highly sensitive people. As a result, they share many characteristics, including: they are often deeply attuned to their physical environment; they easily pick up (and absorb) the emotions of others; they often notice the “small things in life,” subtle details that others may overlook; and they can be affected by textures, noises, and other environmental factors that non-HSPs don’t even notice. Moreover, they tend to be creatorempathetic and deep thinkers. Some researchers believe that high sensitivity is related to talent.
If you’re wondering how you “became” highly sensitive, you were probably born that way—and it’s developed over time. You will remain sensitive for life – although you can always learn how to better handle overstimulation, how to regulate your many (strong) emotions, and how to use your smart, sensitive mind to your advantage.
Of course, if you are a highly sensitive person, you know that there are highs and lows character trait. Here are nine struggles you can relate to as a highly sensitive person.
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9 A struggle that only highly sensitive people understand
1. You are very self-critical – you have high expectations and are hard on yourself.
As a sensitive soul, you tend to be very hard on yourselfsetting high expectations and sometimes seemingly unattainable goals and standards. And if you can’t achieve these goals, you criticize yourself.
In a sense, you are setting yourself real challenges while placing little emphasis on the successes along the way. And ultimately, your view of achievement—and getting things done—feels like failure because you feel like you’re just not good enough to accomplish anything. It’s a vicious cycle.
Of course the solution let go of perfectionismbut it’s not easy for HSPs.
2. You fear rejection – you like to open up to others, but vulnerability can scare you.
Rejection is hard to deal with, and so are you overstimulated (and perhaps anxious) nature only makes it difficult. It takes your feelings to another level. Of course, this also applies to romantic relationships.
When you connect with someone new, then will to open up – but the fear of being vulnerable can lead to feelings of unease and insecurity. Because of this, it can be difficult to fully trust the person (at least in the beginning).
In general, highly sensitive people are more prone to relationship anxiety — fear rejection and may have feelings for someone like this it’s overwhelming, it can scare them.
HSPs may also fear rejection in other areas of their lives. For example, it can prevent you from getting a promotion at work or starting any side hustle you can think of.
3. You take things personally and don’t like criticism (even if it’s well-intentioned).
Although everyone sometimes thinks about what people say to them, sensitive people hang on to words longer than others. For example, let’s say a supervisor gives them unwarranted feedback about how to improve something at work. Even though the supervisor is just trying to help – they are not yelling or upset – HSP can take input very personally. For them, this is not simply feedback, but also criticism.
Because highly sensitive people are already self-critical (see point 1), they feel even worse when others criticize them. It’s almost like a boost to their confidence that they already have.
4. Stress turns into physical pain, such as a headache or indigestion.
When your highly sensitive soul is in overdrive – usually due to too much overstimulation and overload – stress starts to eat you up. And it can manifest physically
in the form of headaches, digestive problems and other problems.
It can all start with an isolated incident that upsets you. Or it can happen over time when the accumulation of stressors becomes too much.
You can try to overcome this grounding techniquelike a breathing exercise or meditation.
5. There is a surplus of emotions that can bubble up at any time.
Highly sensitive people are very strongly attached to their emotions, and even seemingly insignificant situations can shake them up.
Of course, everyone has their moments and can be nervous when something big happens. But sensitive people are often affected by even the smallest things, from a touching TV commercial to a comment someone makes (to them or someone else).
Likewise, since they absorb other people’s emotions as if they were their own, this can also be emotionally difficult for HSPs – it’s hard enough to keep their own emotions in check, but when you add in other people’s? It’s an easy way to become sensitive people emotionally overwhelmed.
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6. You are easily distracted by external stimuli – environmental factors are often the root cause.
As I mentioned in the previous point, even the smallest things can become stressors for sensitives, and this is the case with stimuli, as HSPs process things more deeply than others.
Various environmental factors such as loud sounds, bright lightsand odors can be triggers and distractions. So these stimuli can shock your sensitive system.
7. Group outings are challenging – you tend to prefer deeper, personal interactions.
Being an extremely sensitive person, you are usually much better at personal interactions. It’s just easier for you – they’re more focused and you can have deeper conversations and connections.
When others join in, things can get a little confusing as you find yourself struggling to be heard in a group of people. Because of this, group outings tend to leave you feeling exhausted and may be a “HSP hangover” the next day.
8. Driving or traveling can be stressful as both are full of unknowns.
Driving can be another daunting challenge for sensitive people. This means journeys can take longer than they should because you choose to take side streets instead of dealing with the stress of motorway traffic.
Travel is difficult for HSPsas it is often full of change and the unknown, which HSPs are not big fans of (especially when traveling with others).
9. Social media often makes me unhappy – it’s a funnel of negative news and comparing yourself to others.
As an extremely sensitive person, you already have a hard enough time in the real world – but once you hit social media platforms like Instagram or Facebook, it only sinks further. In the virtual world, everyone’s life seems perfect (the key word is “seems”!). So it’s easy to get caught up in comparing yourself to others. This is very harmful to your mental health as it feeds thoughts of inadequacy.
Moreover, social media is usually filled with a lot of negativity, such as violent news, which is harsh. sensitive brain. (I recommend that you significantly limit the amount of time you spend on social media, especially before bed.)
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