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What is sensory overload?
Sensory overload occurs when one or more of the body’s senses of touch, sight, hearing, smell, or taste become overstimulated.
Stroke survivors or those living with a brain injury experience a higher incidence of sensory overload for several reasons. A healthy brain can identify and filter out sensory information that is unnecessary or irrelevant. However, an injured brain’s sensory filters may no longer function properly. Also, those who live with a brain injury often experience both chronic pain and fatigue. This may lead to a hyper-sensitive state that causes subtle stimuli to be perceived as overwhelming; resulting in sights, sounds, and smells that were not bothersome prior, to now trigger anxiety and feelings of being out of control.
Sensory overload doesn’t just affect those with a brain injury, but also people with other conditions such as autism, OCD, or PTSD. In fact, sensory overload can occur in anyone. In this crazy fast-paced world in which we live, we are constantly bombarded with stimuli. Fatigue and stress can also contribute as they may result in heightened senses.
For example, think of a simple trip to the grocery store. As soon as you enter the store, your brain is immediately hit with a massive amount of information. Noises coming from multiple sources; music playing, overhead loudspeaker announcements, the constant chatter of customers and staff. Then add in bright overhead lights, rows of products and colors and shapes, people everywhere pushing their carts, and staff working to stock the shelves. Moreover, your brain works hard to navigate your way through the store while you try to locate items on your list.
Is it any wonder that you feel extremely drained once this task is completed? Your brain has received more input from the five senses than it can handle. On several occasions, I had to abruptly leave the grocery store without any purchases because I was completely overwhelmed and recognized that my brain had reached its limit.
How to recognize sensory overload
Your brain receives all its information from your senses, interprets it, then controls your reaction. But if it is receiving more information than it can process or make sense of, it sends signals to your body that you need to escape from the source of the overload. This can start off as feeling anxious, but if you are unable to remove yourself from the situation and feel trapped, it can quickly build into panic.
Each person is different when it comes to sensory overload. One person may be extremely sensitive to loud noises, whereas another may be bothered by strong odors. For me personally, I am really affected by flashing lights, probably due to my fear of them triggering a seizure. I also become overwhelmed when there’s a lot of noise or fast-talking; it just becomes a jumbled mess inside my head.
Sensory overload can cause you to feel irritable, restless, and have difficulty focusing. It is overwhelming, frightening, and exhausting. As it builds, you may make attempts to block out the cause of the overstimulation—covering your eyes, plugging your nose, putting your hands over your ears, or fleeing the environment.
What can I do about sensory overload?
Unfortunately, there are not many treatment options, but here are some strategies that may work for you:
- Keep a journal of situations where you experience sensory overload. This allows you to identify your triggers and then start to develop strategies to avoid or cope with them.
- Experiment with, and practice breathing and calming techniques that can be utilized when anxiety starts to build.
- Be well rested prior to an outing or event. Resting prior to a potentially overwhelming situation helps to give you the stamina you need to cope.
- Learn to recognize when sensory overload is occurring and either take a break by finding a quiet space (such as a restroom) or remove yourself from the environment.
- Whenever possible, ask others for assistance such as turning down the TV or music, dimming bright lights, or opening a window when strong odors are present.
- Wear a ball cap or sunglasses to decrease the harshness of lighting.
- Wear earplugs or noise-canceling headphones to block out sounds.
- Avoid chaotic places where there are crowds and lots of stimuli. Shop during off-hours when the stores aren’t as busy.
- Shop in smaller, less busy stores when possible. Large stores can be tiring and exhausting even for those who do not suffer from sensory overload. Do your regular shopping in the same store, so you know where everything is.
- Plan with a list so your shopping trip can be as short as possible. Write your list in the order that you will walk through the store, so you don’t have to backtrack to pick up missed items.
- Many workplaces have instituted a no-scent policy. Request this policy be put in place if it doesn’t exist now.
- Some stores have started a “stimulus down low hour” each week. During this hour, the lights are dimmed, music is turned off, and no overhead announcements are made. Consider petitioning stores in your area to implement this practice.
Sensory overload can be very taxing both mentally and physically, but by developing strategies to decrease or avoid exposure to overwhelming situations and developing a plan for coping when it occurs, you can begin to reduce its severity and frequency.
