If you've ever been told you are "too sensitive" or "too soft" or have even been asked, "Why do you care so much?" You might be a highly sensitive person (HSP)!
After having the word "sensitive" be consistently reinforced as an unlikeable or negative trait through environmental influences—you've probably been wired to think your soft side is your biggest flaw or weakness. However, after reading this article you'll find that being an HSP can be your secret superpower when utilized in ways that benefit your life!
What Makes a Highly Sensitive Person?
According to Psychology Today, an Highly Sensitive Person, or HSP, is a term coined by psychologist Elaine Aron. According to Aron’s theory, HSPs are a subset of the population who are high in a personality trait known as sensory-processing sensitivity or SPS. Those with high levels of SPS display increased emotional sensitivity, stronger reactivity to both external and internal stimuli—pain, hunger, light, and noise—and complex inner life. Due to having an increased or deeper central nervous system sensitivity to physical, emotional, or social stimuli, you tend to internalize life's ups and downs.
Additionally, HSP is thought to have genetic roots with specific gene variants being associated with the trait. Early childhood environments may play a role as well; evidence suggests that early experiences may have an epigenetic effect on the genes associated with sensitivity.
An epigenetic effect is the means by which environmental and psychosocial factors interact with physiology that affect neural function through changes in gene expression which lead to individual differences in cognition and behavior. In simpler words, your environment can play a part in the expression of genes that influence various individual characteristics and traits.
Research also shows that a lack of parental warmth growing up may cause a child to develop high sensitivity and carry this trait into adulthood. The same goes for negative early childhood experiences.
Am I a Highly Sensitive Person?
Do you react strongly to criticism? Easily pick up on or hyper-aware of others' moods? Care deeply about various things? Find yourself being physically overstimulated in either loud and/or bright environments? Or emotionally overstimulated by social interactions or conflicts? You could very likely be an HSP!
A few traits and/or characteristics common to HSPs, according to the researchers who identified this personality trait, include:
Avoiding violent movies or TV shows because they feel too intense and leave you feeling unsettled
Being deeply moved by beauty, either expressed in art, nature, or the human spirit, or sometimes even a good commercial
Being overwhelmed by sensory stimuli like noisy crowds, bright lights, or uncomfortable clothing
Feeling a need for downtime (not just a preference), especially when you have hectic days; needing to retreat to a dark, quiet room
Having a rich and complex inner life, complete with deep thoughts and strong feelings that go with them
Also, HSPs are also more likely to suffer from asthma, eczema, and allergies (how interesting)!
If you're still curious about whether or not you might be an HSP, Elaine Aron has developed an online questionnaire that may help you find out!
Here's the link: https://hsperson.com/test/highly-sensitive-test/
HSP: Your Secret Superpower
Being an HSP is a hidden superpower—you're not able to tell just by looking at someone!
According to Aron, 15 to 20 percent of the population is born with a high level of sensitivity. HSPs also may feel as if they have a higher capacity for empathy and are quite sensitive to others’ moods which can give them an advantage in their social relationships. High sensitivity is also thought to be linked to higher levels of creativity, richer personal relationships, and a greater appreciation for beauty.
High sensitivity may actually be an evolutionary advantage as it is an evolutionary trait that increases the likelihood of survival and is linked to heightened brain activity in useful brain regions; a strong association with desirable personality traits; and even a tendency toward positive, useful, prosocial behavior. Researchers used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) brain scans to measure the brain activity of HSPs. The study found increased brain activation in regions associated with awareness, empathy, attention, and action planning.
Prosocial behavior is behavior that is considered positive, helpful, and intended to promote social acceptance and friendship. According to a 2014 study, empathy is an important motivating factor for prosocial behavior and that emotion regulation, i.e. the capacity to exert control over an emotional response, may moderate the degree to which empathy is associated with prosocial behavior. HSPs are highly empathetic and therefore more likely to engage in prosocial behavior; however, due to the strong emotions HSPs experience, emotional regulation is key to living a happier and healthier life.
Elaine Aron believes knowing that you have hypersensitivity is important when finding ways to help yourself benefit from your superpowers as an HSP and live a more fulfilling, healthier, and happier life.
Why Has Being "Too Sensitive" Become so Negative?
There are various factors that may explain how "sensitive" became included in the "dictionary of negative traits" that an individual can possess; however, I will be explaining two key factors which have contributed to the negativity: individualistic culture and mental health stigma/discrimination.
Individualistic Culture
Individualistic cultures are characterized by individualism, which is the prioritization or emphasis of the individual over the entire group. Individualistic cultures focus on abstract thinking, privacy, self-dependence, uniqueness, and personal goals; however, HSPs may suffer from feelings of shame, helplessness, and alienation due to their intense care for the health, well-being, or happiness of others (which is not a key component of individualism).
"You should stop caring about others and focus on yourself" feels like a personal attack (even if said with the intent to be helpful). "If you major in humanities then you'll make no money" doesn't make sense to an HSP as they may not value personal monetary gain over communal gain; however, feelings of shame may arise due to not conforming to individualistic cultural norms. Furthermore, "you should get tougher skin" or "you're too sensitive" also contributes to perceived individual flaws. Feelings of alienation may also occur when surrounded by others who align more strongly with individualism. While an HSP is striving to create positive change within their community through acts of selflessness they may struggle with connecting with others who are more focused on personal achievement/gain or more aligned with individualism. An HSP who is passionate about the health, well-being, or happiness of others is highly empathetic which is a motivating factor of prosocial behavior (you can read more on prosocial behavior later)!
It's important to note; however, that individuals who strongly align with individualism are not completely devoid of empathy, compassion, or care for others—HSPs are just more likely to behave or think in ways that allow them to express their sensitive side and may not be solely for the purpose of personal achievement/gain.
Mental Health Stigma & Discrimination
Stigma is when someone sees you in a negative way because of your mental illness. Discrimination is when someone treats you in a negative way because of your mental illness. Social stigma and discrimination can make mental health problems worse and stop a person from getting the help they need.
According to Aron’s conception of high sensitivity, HSP isn’t a mental health disorder; rather, it is defined, like other aspects of personality, as a trait that exists in each person to varying degrees. However, some mental disorders possess symptoms that could be considered similar to certain HSP characteristics which then may lead to negative perspectives or biases towards HSPs.
For example, a common symptom of Attention-Deficit-Hyperactivity-Disorder (ADHD) is Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria (RSD)*, an emotional reaction to negative judgments, exclusion, or criticism beyond what most people feel. Other people may see those with RSD as overly perfectionistic, over-sensitive, or overly reactive to even the mildest types of criticism. HSPs who are sensitive to criticism may also experience RSD. HSP is also believed to be highly comorbid in individuals with ADHD among clinicians—Ned Hallowell, M.D. stated, “[People with ADHD] often are hypersensitive in one of the sensory domains: sound, touch, or smell.”
Moreover, a common characteristic shared by individuals with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) and HSP is an acute awareness of their own emotions and the emotional energy of others. Both feel and sense the full range of each individual emotion. For instance, anger can be felt on a scale from 1 to 100. Whereas others may only feel it from 1 to 10. While both groups are able to sense the emotions of others, a person with BPD actually absorbs the emotion and is unable to separate themselves from that emotion. While most BPDs are also HSPs, the reverse is definitely not true. HSPs can even do some BPD behaviors when under the extreme stress of abuse or trauma, but their BPD-like behaviors do not diffuse into or negatively impact every aspect of life (which is an essential element for BPD).
Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) commonly experience extreme sensitivity to their environment and tend to get overwhelmed by environmental stimuli—similarly to individuals with HSP. However, ASD and HSP are not the same as HSP is not considered a mental disorder. Dr. Bianca Acevedo found three major differences between HSP (aka SPS) and ASD:
Autism comes with "social deficits"; high sensitivity does not.
For highly sensitive people, social situations are (extra) rewarding.
Their brains handle stimuli in dramatically different ways.
Anxiety disorders also share similar characteristics as HSP and are common among HSP individuals. According to Dr. Elayne Daniels, "HSPs are anxiety-prone because they process thoughts and feelings deeply. Because of how deeply they experience the world, they’re more easily and quickly overstimulated." An HSPs heightened emotional responsivity can increase feelings of anxiety as they worry a lot about things such as the health and welfare of vulnerable people or animals.
In addition, mood disorders are characterized as an umbrella term for psychological disorders that pertain to intense experiences regarding either an elevation or lowering of a person's mood. For example, bipolar or depression disorders. Individuals with HSP experience heightened emotional reactivity which is the tendency to experience frequent and intense emotional arousal. Because of this, HSPs may feel emotions much more deeply and may seem "emotionally unstable" to an outsider due to possible fluctuations in emotion. This indicates the importance of those with HSP and mood disorders to find creative or useful ways to emotionally regulate themselves in order to avoid becoming overwhelmed.
Individuals who identify as HSPs can also be diagnosed with the previously mentioned mental disorders. Therefore, it's important to understand, accept, and support individuals who identify as HSPs and (more importantly) struggle with mental illness.
*RSD is not officially recognized in the DSM-5 and therefore has no set of empirically quantifiable criteria for an official diagnosis.
Ways to Cope With Stress as an HSP
Finding ways to cope with life's stress can be particularly helpful if you tend to have a more sensitive personality. However, here are some things you can do to help deal with stressful situations!
Add positivity by creating positive experiences in your schedule to insulate you from additional stress you may encounter.
Avoid stressors like slasher movies and people who sap your positive energy, make heavy demands on you, or make you feel bad about yourself.
Learn to say no to overwhelming demands and feel OK with it, and create a perimeter in your life.
Set up a safe space. Let your home be a soothing environment.
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