ADHD
Sensory processing differences.
This means that your mind can't always discern which sound or sensation of many is important. If you find yourself chewing your pen or singing while working, you may be unconsciously offering yourself the sensory input needed to stay present and grounded in your body and the task.
Tics can also be vocal and may involve throat-clearing, sniffing or snorting, grunting, dry coughs, clicking, hissing, barking, or even words or phrases. Tics can sometimes occur alongside ADHD, which may lead some people to wonder if the two conditions might be related.
Did you know that when you have ADHD, even common sounds, like yawning, can irritate you? Some sounds can even hurt you! Here's what you need to know about ADHD and Sound Sensitivity.
Stimming can take many different forms: visual: staring off into space, drawing, spinning things like pens or coins. verbal/auditory: repeating sounds, excessive giggling, constantly clearing throat. tactile: rubbing fingers, chewing/biting nails, chewing the inside of cheeks.
Auditory stimming uses the person's sense of hearing and sound. It may include behaviors such as: vocal sounds, such as humming. tapping on objects or ears, covering and uncovering ears, and finger-snapping. repetitive speech.
Can sensory issues be a symptom of ADHD? Sensory issues and sensory processing disorders are prevalent in people with ADHD. Although scientists are still researching the exact correlation, research has shown that kids and adults with ADHD are more likely than neurotypical people to experience sensory overload.
Research into ADHD and sensory overload is still ongoing, but some of the most common triggers include: Touch: A touch that is too light, firm, or sudden could lead to sensory overload. The same goes for unexpected physical contact, such as a spontaneous hug or a pat on the shoulder.
In fact, there's more than anecdotal evidence to support the conclusion that background noise helps ADHDers to improve their focus. A series of studies have suggested that white noise can also improve memory functioning, reduce off-task behaviors, and exert positive effects on cognitive performance.
Symptoms of Sensory Overload in ADHD
Headaches, dizziness, or light-headedness. Feeling ill, faint, or nauseous. Increased anxiety and stress. Irritability and agitation.
It is not uncommon for people to make random noises when they are focusing. Some common noises that people make when they are focusing include grunting, sighing, and muttering. These noises can be a sign that a person is deep in thought and may be trying to concentrate on a task.
Mood swings are common in people with ADHD. People with this disorder can be hypersensitive, too. That means sensations, like touch, that may feel normal to another person can feel too intense for someone with ADHD.
Studies suggest that ADHD-driven emotional sensitivity in people makes them struggle to cope with rejection. This rejection may be as simple as having a friend say no to you or as big as not being accepted for a job you applied for.
Postural sway refers to your body's horizontal balance-seeking movements. This involves your muscles and sensory system working together to keep you upright. Greater postural sway can indicate balancing problems and is commonly seen in people with neurodevelopmental disorders, such as ADHD, autism, and dyslexia.
Adults with ADHD rarely fall asleep easily, sleep soundly through the night, and then wake up feeling refreshed. More often, ADHD's mental and physical restlessness disturbs a person's sleep patterns — and the ensuing exhaustion hurts overall health and treatment. This is widely accepted as true.
Autism is very distinct from ADHD, but the core symptoms of ADHD-Combined type, i.e., attention deficit, impulsivity, and hyperactivity, would appear to also be features of autism. ASD and ADHD are neurobiological disorders characterized by similar underlying neuropsychological “deficits”.
Brown noise is a low-frequency background sound that helps people with ADHD focus and feel calm.
More recently brown noise gathered attention that this may be helpful for ADHD symptoms and sleep. Brown noise is mainly using lower frequencies, creating lower-pitched noises that sound more pleasant to some.
Repetitive, irritating behaviors during reading time can be caused by an child's ADHD impulsivity. However, the students may also be using motion and sound to stimulate their brain to focus and listen. Noise may focus the brain, but it is a disruption to the rest of the class.
Adults with ADHD frequently think being sociable with others is an all-or-nothing part of their lives. Either they're oversharing and talking too much, or they're withdrawn and staying home alone. Hyperactivity in adults is often expressed as being overly talkative and boisterous.
In one study, researchers found that people with self-reported ADHD symptoms earned lower scores for affective empathy compared to other participants. However, they were still within the range of what's considered typical for empathy levels overall.
Their shyness may also be a result of their symptoms. A person with Inattentive ADHD type can easily feel embarrassed due to inattention, so they may choose to stay quiet and avoid any possible wrongdoings or mistakes ❌.
Similarly, people with ADHD can also experience 'meltdowns' more commonly than others, which is where emotions build up so extremely that someone acts out, often crying, angering, laughing, yelling and moving all at once, driven by many different emotions at once – this essentially resembles a child tantrum and can ...
Executive functions have other roles which affect how someone thinks. In people with ADHD, these executive dysfunctions impact thinking in numerous ways. People with ADHD don't really think faster than people without it, but it can sometimes seem like they do. People with ADHD do think differently though, in a sense.
If you have ADHD as well, this “shutdown” might sound familiar to you, too. You don't know where to start, there's too much to do, and you feel as though nothing can be done, because even just thinking of doing what you need to do feels like an insurmountable task.