“Ploramics,” “exaggerated”: what happens when you are a highly sensitive person

Barcelona"When I was young, I couldn't stay in a nightclub for more than an hour. After that time, I had to leave because I was overwhelmed by all the stimuli," explains psychologist Anna Romeu, who specializes in the subject of high sensitivity and published the book I am sensitive (Rosa dels Vents), the first book published in Catalan about highly sensitive people, also known as HSPs. In the book, the psychologist shares all her clinical experience with dozens of patients over years of experience, but also adds her personal experience as a HSP, a personality trait that, she says, "affects between 20% and 30% of the population."

But what exactly is a highly sensitive person? "Well, they're someone who has a higher emotional and sensory sensitivity than most, since their nervous system processes information in a deeper and more intense way than people who don't have this trait." In practice, they are people who reflect a lot on everything that happens to them and what they perceive, who have a strong emotionality linked to great empathy and sensory affectation—they are very bothered by loud noises, certain textures, certain smells...—and who also have a tendency to become saturated.

Romeu has published the book with the hope of helping, he says, and reaching a wide range of people, because until now there has been a great deal of ignorance and very little research on this personality trait shared by many people. This, he says, is due to two reasons: "On the one hand, until a few years ago we lived in a much calmer society than today and HSPs didn't stand out as much; now we are overstimulated and HSPs easily reach their maximum saturation level." On the other hand, he explains, "before these traits were considered obsessions and weren't given importance; instead, now we take a more professional approach to improving the lives of these people."

Negative Labels

This lack of awareness has caused these people a lot of suffering for many years "because they are often not accepted," and then the labels begin to appear: "exaggerated," "pity," "dramatic," qualifiers that are very hurtful and foster a feeling of incomprehension. "These people are sometimes a nuisance to those around them because they are not understood." In today's society, anything out of the ordinary is a problem: "We have little tolerance for differences; we don't fit in well, especially due to lack of understanding, and that creates rejection and many problems," warns the psychologist.

She explains that in her practice, most of the PAS patients who come to her do so with relationship problems—whether within their relationship, with their children, in the workplace, etc. "They feel like a problem because they relate differently than everyone else, and they arrive here with anxiety attacks because they make a huge effort to adapt and feel like they can't. Their personality creates a lot of stress for them, and that's why they end up coming here." But being a HSP isn't a pathology; people with this trait can overcome these problems, if they have them, and live perfectly in society, according to this expert, who says that "self-knowledge" is key to this.

As is always the case in the field of psychology, the majority of patients who come to her office are women. "This is common in my field," says Romeu, but with high sensitivity comes an added problem: "in today's society, men have a harder time being sensitive." The psychologist explains that when she diagnoses a patient as HSP, "most react with disbelief, saying it can't be true." "There's still a feminine connotation, which men perceive as negative, linked to the word." sensitivity", warns. "Culturally and socially, men don't cry, and we're still like that, and that's why they learn from a young age that they should hide it," says Romeu. "But being sensitive is neither feminine nor masculine, it's not about being weak, nor worse, it's about having more intensity in our central nervous system when it comes to capturing sensory stimuli."

Another characteristic trait of these people is that their brain is always going a thousand miles an hour and that "is exhausting." "because it's not good to always have a brain that's working at the limit of its capacity because this leads to saturation." "To disconnect, you have to find some time every day to be alone, doing something quiet or doing nothing, and practicing yoga or meditation is also very good because they are exercises to focus attention and help you understand that even if your head is full of thought," she recommends.

High sensitivity and mental health.

In the book, Romeu explains that high sensitivity can be linked to mental health issues, but points out that childhood experience is key to avoiding it: "Being HSP can even be a protective factor for an adult who was a HSP child if they grew up in a supportive and respectful environment, where they were encouraged to grow, to develop emotions... When they reach adulthood, they are less likely to suffer from a mental health problem." On the other hand, if a HSP child has grown up "in a problematic and traumatic environment, in a home where there is a lot of yelling, disrespect, and lack of good habits... then this multiplies their chances, as an adult, of suffering from depression or anxiety."