Guest guest Posted November 4, 2008 Report Share Posted November 4, 2008 I'm really interested in this discussion. I feel that 4s is definitely more than about hearing, and am open minded about what it actually is. I feel it must be to do with the way our brains are wired and of course every part of us, whether mental, physical or emotional, is connected so its so hard to pick apart. I've been really struck by the overlap between 4s symptoms and those of ASD (autism spectrum disorder). My son was diagnosed with ASD at four, but developed classic 4s symptoms at six or so. He has always been very sensitive to sound, light and textures and had all manner of sensitivities and symptoms. Most of his symptoms have become easier for him to cope with as he has grown older, so in most respects he has a pretty 'normal' life. The 4s symptoms are more problematic now but its hard to describe where 4s ends and ASD begins or vice versa. Some of you have mentioned sensitivities to sights as well as sounds, and to textures, whether cloth, or glue or paint or whatever. I find it confusing, as that seems more than to do with just sensitive hearing and more like the sensory processing issues in ASD. As I've learned more about ASD I realize that maybe I have it too, as I have so many of the same issues, though I haven't been diagnosed. Sensitivity to light, to touch, to textures, people coming up behind me, danger of overload, basically extreme sensitivity to my environment and to people, as well as the 4s symptoms. My son and I both have very good pattern recognition, which can be part of ASD. My son also has synesthesia, which is fascinating. He sees every word visually in his mind, in very specific colours and shapes which seem constant. He also seems to have a photographic memory - lucky him! It does seem weird that some of us feel very angry and violent towards our trigger people but can just about cope with other people doing the same thing, and some feel that way towards everyone. I'm not sure I'm making much sense - but it is great we're all trying to get to the bottom of what this is. Re: mental I think we have a disorder of the brain. If you want to call that "mental" that's fine with me. What we don't have is a precedent of "mental" doctors, ie psychiatrists and/or psychologists who can consistently and effectively treat this disorder on multiple persons. I think the condition is a two fold condition. I do think there is a "hearing" element in that we are sensitive to soft sounds. I am one of those people who is only sensitive to certain trigger people. However, I do have mild reactions to the noises of non-trigger people. The difference is in my mental reaction. The sound evokes odd feelings but they quickly pass and are not accompanied by the panic and anger. When I am triggered by a "trigger" person, the reaction to the sound is associated with panic and anger. I think that this is where we differ from an ordinary "mental" illness. I think this reaction is due to improper neural pathways that were formed in our brains. I think at a previous point in time when I heard the same or similar sound made by the trigger person, I was already mad at them. When I heard the sound I had that odd reaction (like with a non-trigger person). Then my brain formed an improper neural pathway (ie memory) permanently associating that sound with the feelings and anger and pathway. I think are brains are incapable of properly "pruning" those neural pathways. In the condition "synesthesia", people associated colors when they see letters (each letter having a different color) and actually see these on the page. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/05/050528144241.htm One current theory is that "This cross-activation might develop, they theorize, by a failure of the "pruning" of neural connections between the areas in the developing brain." I think that perhaps what is happening with 4s is similar. It is possible that this condition starts at the dinner table when we do not have control to leave the table and our brain starts to link in memory the sounds we are hearing to a sense of aggravation and anger. Then for some reason, our brains are unable to "prune" this neural connection to allow us to forget the feeling. Therefore afterwards we hear the sound and immediately feel the feeling. So I think our condition is equally "mental" to a person who has synesthesia. I think the reason so many 4s sufferers bristle when our condition is described as "mental" is because the current treatments for "mental" diseases have very limited success on our condition. There are people who are severely bipolar and do just fine on medication. There are people who are severely schizophrenic and are just fine on their medications. I have yet to hear of one 4s sufferer who has had that same level of success with any current "mental" treatment. We really need someone to study this condition further. I suspect if this condition is ever fully studied it will not be classified with currently known "mental" conditions but will be classified with conditions such as synesthesia. I wouldn't even be surprised if it ended up falling within the Autism spectrum. AOL Email goes Mobile! You can now read your AOL Emails whilst on the move. Sign up for a free AOL Email account with unlimited storage today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 4, 2008 Report Share Posted November 4, 2008 (Oh, how I love that " Send " button.... until I click it by accident.) Well, Asperger's syndrome, for one, is often associated with highly sensitive hearing and extremely sensitive tactile abilities. Those of us who have it also like to have things very precisely laid out -keeping our ducks in a row, you could say-, somewhat like OCD. = M-F. ----- Original Message ----- > So I think our condition is equally " mental " to a person who has > synesthesia. > > I think the reason so many 4s sufferers bristle when our condition is > described as " mental " is because the current treatments for " mental " > diseases have very limited success on our condition. > > We really need someone to study this condition further. I suspect if > this condition is ever fully studied it will not be classified with > currently known " mental " conditions but will be classified with > conditions such as synesthesia. I wouldn't even be surprised if it > ended up falling within the Autism spectrum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 5, 2008 Report Share Posted November 5, 2008 Kate, I'm so happy to hear it's possible to adopt despite all our problems! We put the plans on hold basically because of financial reasons but the whole " mental illness " thing did freak me out a bit. So thanks for letting me know it's still possible! I've always wanted to adopt a child... I feel like it's a calling of mine. > I hope that this issue did not stop you from adopting a child if you wanted to! We adopted > a boy from Africa 3 years ago, and during the process I called up the agency director to > ask her about this, as I, too, had been diagnosed with " generalized anxiety disorder " > several years earlier. At least when it comes to international adoption, the adoption > agency mostly wants to know if a prospective parent has had any illnesses - physical or > " mental " - that will prevent him/her from being an effective parent. As long as the > homestudy social worker approved us as a family, which she obviously did, the adoption > agency could proceed with the adoption. > > It's interesting, because my other 3 children are my biological children. People often ask > me if I am concerned because we know so little of my adopted son's birth family - his > medical history included - but it's hard for me to imagine his " genetic " heritage is any > more complicated than my biological kids, who have inherited the genes for OCD, > alcoholism, anxiety disorders, bi-polar disorder, and now . . . 4S! Yikes! > > Kate in NY > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 7, 2008 Report Share Posted November 7, 2008 I've heard Starbucks is always hiring, and has good benefits for their employees. Wal-Mart might have something. I know they're both noisy environments, but I'm just mentioning what my job advocate has said. = M-F. ----- Original Message ----- >I'm so sorry, Pia. I hope this turns out to be a great thing for you. I couldn't have survived in your work environment, I'm sure of it! > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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