Hypersensitivity to noise

[Orwell20]

Would you say you are more sensitive to noise than other people? I often wonder if it's a common trait among people with SA. I am hyper sensitive, to the point where it makes me ill. One of my deepest fears is ending up somewhere with noisy neighbours. I absolutely dread it.

Right now, there seem to be a lot of cars around here with souped up/extra noisy engines. They sound like motorbikes backfiring. I assume they're driven by teenagers, and that it's the fashionable/new thing. It's driving me mad, but none of neighbours seem to have noticed.

[biscuits]

At night time, definitely! I find it difficult to drift off to sleep if there's any noise. I've never been able to sleep on a train or in a car. I've never fallen asleep watching a film or TV.

Repetitive noises like ticking clocks are really distracting, I have to take the batteries out. People tapping pens... People tapping their mugs... The sound of people eating certain foods...

[Mr. Nobody]

Yes,.. I can find myself being very sensitive to it, unfortunately,

It's a weakness I've had for a long time, but not sure why,

I ended up having to spend hundreds of dem precious quids on sound-insulating my home,
Otherwise I'd probably have completely lost my sanity, (what's left of it)

It's akin to little nanobots burrowing into your body and taking over,
It feels like a very real, physical intrusion,

There's so many little examples that really seem to unsettle me.

People at car parks, usually at beauty spots, who leave their engine running,
People having phone conversations in shops, public transport, waiting rooms, restaurants etc.
People talking during a concert or at the movies,
People having their music blaring at the beach or a public park,
power tools being used for long periods,
Quad bikes at the beach,
Jet skis,
......
Meh,... I'm just getting old probably,

[Moksha]

God, yes, I hate noise. There ought to be much stricter laws - especially in an overcrowded country like this, where we all live on top of one another. Noisy neighbours, in particular, ruin people’s lives. I know someone who was driven to a suicide attempt by the noisy chav next door.

[limey123]

Sensitivity to noise (greater than average) is also considered typical of people with high functioning autism. I know I find working in noisy environments very challenging.

[gregarious_introvert]

I am sensitive to noise, but at the same time tolerant of a lot of it: what I find difficult is sudden noise, or many sources of noise at the same time. I find it difficult to hear what people are saying in noisy pubs, not because my hearing is bad, but because I am picking up just about every conversation in the room and it all merges into one (I know this is because of my auditory processing disorder).

I'm with biscuits about things like ticking clocks, people tapping anything and eating noises, yet things like traffic noises (I lived for many years in central London and then, in the house where I lived before here, I could hear the traffic on the M1 at night) don't bother me - unless, suddenly, there's a particularly noisy motorbike or something which is noticeably above the general drone; in fact, there have been times in my life when silence has stopped me sleeping and I've needed a television or radio on low volume (with a timer, so that it isn't seeping into my ears all night) to get to sleep, although now I'm living somewhere quiet (unless my neighbour snores or shouts in his sleep).

If I'm in the cinema, I'll hear people whispering several rows away and even at heavy rock concerts (clearly, my sensitivity doesn't extend to loud music!), people chatting disturbs my enjoyment. However, I'm quite thankful that I seem to cope better than a lot of people with autism, who can't visit things like busy shopping malls or even bustling high streets.

[Jam do Bronx]

Yes. I have OCD and one of my themes is fear of insomnia. A large part of it is unable to focus on anything else other than noise as I try to fall asleep. It got so bad that I had to attend a&e in 2020 because I was on the verge of a breakdown and felt suicidal. This isn't a recommendation because I don't want to encourage avoidant behaviour, but earplugs are helpful. But the reason I suggest this with caution is because it's trapped me into being unable to sleep without earplugs.

On top of that, there was a period where I suffered from hyperacusis. It's a physical thing where my ears were damaged by loud noise (it happened in a d&b rave) and it meant that my hearing system had a reduced tolerance to loud noise, and accompanied with discomfort and at times pain. It affected my life completely. This was many years ago and I have recovered from it completely. Although, my hearing system still cannot tolerate breaking glass/plates.

This was really tough for me to write. (Please don't quote)

[Orwell20]

I've come to the conclusion that I'm not (thankfully) a natural depressive. It really is noise and stress (or the world 'out there') that makes me miserable. If I lived somewhere cool, spacious and sunny, with no sounds but birdsong and running water, in a house filled with books, I'd be happy all day every day. It's being surrounded by noise and chavs that gets me down.

There are things I like about the UK, but in general it's a pretty crap place to live. It's suffocating. We're all squashed together on these godawful housing estates, and there's just too many people jammed into too little space. Because of that, you'd think we'd have stricter laws on noise pollution. But every night I'm woken up by IDIOTS racing around the neighborhood in ridiculous little cars with super noisy engines. Every time they accelerate or slow down it sounds like an explosion. Why are they allowed to do that?

[Dougella]

^ Have you ever watched Chris Packham's documentary about his life? He lives in the middle of a forest so that he can have peace and space away from people and noise.

[Azalea]

I hate noise too, the longer it goes on the more stressed and agitated I get.
Our next door neighbour has completely gutted her house, I don't think there's even a wall left downstairs and it's been going on for 6 months now.
We are having a complete new bathroom fitted so now there's the noise of that on top, can't wait till it's all done.

[Mr. Nobody]

Originally Posted by Orwell20

IDIOTS racing around the neighborhood in ridiculous little cars with super noisy engines. Every time they accelerate or slow down it sounds like an explosion. Why are they allowed to do that?

I can't quite comprehend this latest craze for cars that go "snap-crackle-pop" the people who drive them really are a 'special k#$€t'

I think it's meant to mimic a supercharged engine that has reached the limiter and is therefore igniting excess exhaust gases or something?

I find that a lot of motorbikes are extremely noisy as well, and probably don't adhere to the same noise emission levels as cars are subject to?

I can definitely detect some ridiculous childish pleasure in these drivers when they make a lot of noise,
A bit like a little baby with a rattle or a drum,.. quite pleased with themselves for making a big noise,
There's a great deal of vanity in this,..
It seems to stem from a childish desire to be noticed,.

The basic psychological premise of it appears to be :

"I, on my own, without anything to prop me up, am insufficient, insignificant, and this hurts my fragile ego,..."
Therefore, I will buy a noisy car, and in the process, will identify with this silly loud noise, and so feel significant in the process of identifying with said noise,

So, when people "notice" this childish noise, and turn around,...the idiot driving the car will glean some sense of implied significance and stature from that response,

But it really is the most psychologically immature phenomenon being played out on our streets,

I always laugh when I see these morons,..
Yip, you've just dropped about £40k on a car to get from A to B, so you can feel special, when all those little snap-crackle-and-pop noises come.

[Jen.]

They're the driving equivalent of teenage boys doing wheelies on their bicycles. They seem to think they're impressing or intimidating others, but at most all they're doing is impressing those who are as dense as them who do the same thing. Everyone else just wishes they'd crash.

[biscuits]

Noises on trains

The sound of people opening packets on trains is one that makes me feel all peculiar. The sound feels different. Gotta wear headphones on a train.

[Orwell20]

Originally Posted by The*Crafty*Elf

There are things in my life that i cannot do because of other people. I would love to go and sit out in my garden in peace and quiet but being overlooked to some extent by 5 other houses
I can't just sit down and watch my shows any more because i don't ever feel relaxed. The only time i feel slightly relaxed is around 10:30 - 11:00 at night when i've locked up for the night and the cat is safely indoors. Even then we get traffic noise which some nights can go on until 2am. We live in a cul-de-sac so you'd think we'd be relatively quiet. Weekends and Summer time are the worst as i guess people have their common relations dropping in to visit more often.

So depressing to read this crafty elf, but it's a perfect description of life in 2022 Britain. Too many people, and all squashed on top of one another. If it wasn't for my family (and my age, and my mental health problems), I would definitely think about emigrating. I would literally travel half way round the world for peace and quiet – that's how much I crave it.

[gregarious_introvert]

^ Why not just move somewhere quieter in the UK?

It actually seems to me, on my travels, that other countries have more concentrated centres of population. Overall, they may have less population density than the UK, but the towns and cities have lots of apartments close together, whilst the open spaces aren't populated at all. At least here, we have many villages which are quite sparsely populated.

[Orwell20]

Originally Posted by Mr. Nobody

I can't quite comprehend this latest craze for cars that go "snap-crackle-pop" the people who drive them really are a 'special k#$€t'

I think it's meant to mimic a supercharged engine that has reached the limiter and is therefore igniting excess exhaust gases or something?

I find that a lot of motorbikes are extremely noisy as well, and probably don't adhere to the same noise emission levels as cars are subject to?

I can definitely detect some ridiculous childish pleasure in these drivers when they make a lot of noise,
A bit like a little baby with a rattle or a drum,.. quite pleased with themselves for making a big noise,

I live in the countryside, but as I type this I can hear the little pri*ks driving round and round the fu**ing country lanes near me. WHAT the f**k is wrong with them?. They start in the afternoon and are still driving round and round at three in the fu**ing morning!! They are going to ruin the summer for me. I'll have to have the windows open at night as it gets warmer, and they'll be waking me up at 1am, 2am, 3am...

What is wrong with these idiots!!? What kind of MORON just drives round and round dark country lanes for hours on end?? Are they really so brain dead that it never bores them "duh, me like car, it loud, it move quick and make big bang bang noise"

"I, on my own, without anything to prop me up, am insufficient, insignificant, and this hurts my fragile ego,..."
Therefore, I will buy a noisy car, and in the process, will identify with this silly loud noise, and so feel significant in the process of identifying with said noise,

So, when people "notice" this childish noise, and turn around,...the idiot driving the car will glean some sense of implied significance and stature from that response,

So true. Plus, they're the sort of pathetic little maggots who can't do anything on their own. They have no personalities, no minds, no thoughts of their own. They are so f***ing brain dead that they need others to tell them what to do. The big alpha gets a souped up car with a loud popping engine, so they all have to get one too.

Yip, you've just dropped about £40k on a car to get from A to B, so you can feel special, when all those little snap-crackle-and-pop noises come.

Truth is, I don't care what they do. I'm all for people finding a passion in life. Cars are not my thing, but some people are into them. Great. Good luck to you. If you work, earn your money, and that's what you want to spend it on, go for it. Enjoy. But DON'T UPSET AND DISTURB OTHER PEOPLE. I know they think it's funny. They'd love it if they thought they were waking people up. I just can't believe you are allowed to have these engines. I bet other countries wouldn't allow this.

[biscuits]

^ earlier on you mentioned about birds.

Let me tell you something, I am not looking forward to spring time and the 4:30am dawn chorus.

We could swap where we live just for the spring. You'll be wishing you could have those car racers back in your life. I'd sleep through the sound of the cars because once I'm asleep, I'm asleep and nothing wakes me. But those birds, Orwell. I've had some very unvegetarian thoughts about those birds.

(I actually do really love birds and wildlife and wouldn't wish for anything to happen to them. I just love sleep more.)

[gregarious_introvert]

Originally Posted by The*Crafty*Elf

It always makes me laugh when people say that. Like you can just reach into your pocket and have enough to buy a house in the nice quiet Yorkshire Dales. Believe me if i was cashed up i'd be out of this shithole in a thrice

For context, Orwell was talking about moving halfway round the world; I fully appreciate that some people can't afford to move at all.

Having said that, this may not be the Yorkshire Dales, but there are many reasonably-priced properties in the area where I live, with 2 or 3 bed houses under £100k.

[Dougella]

^ There are other ways to move ofcourse than buy a house, people can look for a different property to rent or apply to be put on the social housing list where you can specify which areas or places you'd like to move to. It's not easy either way but it is doable.

[Orwell20]

Ah well, 6:25 and they've started already. All I can hear are little morons in their souped up cars driving round and round the country lanes near me. As I type, even though I've got the windows closed, I can hear them accelerating, then slowing down, then accelerating again: mmmeeeeewwwwiiing....pop,pop, pop, bang, bang, bang....meeewwwiiing...pop,pop,pop...meeeewwwing. On and on. This won't stop until about one on the morning. I could hear them at midnight last night as I got into bed. How cretinous. I mean, how f**king moronic and brain dead must you be to just drive mindlessly round the same country lanes for hours on end night after night and never get bored of it.

[Dougella]

^ Has anyone contacted the police and the council about it? Because it sounds like it's dangerous driving along with noise pollution.

[biscuits]

Originally Posted by The*Crafty*Elf

I can just picture you hanging out of your bedroom window at 4am with a rolling pin shouting at them birds

Hahaha

I have held my cat up to the window before.

Birds = not bovved

[biscuits]

Originally Posted by The*Crafty*Elf

^ And does your cat make that chattering noise when they see the birds? I find it hilarious when Prinny starts chattering away to them

aww yes, she does! Although I'm not sure we should think murderous
intentions are cute she doesn't ever catch birds, just chats to them. She prefers rodents.

[Jen.]

I don't think I'm too sensitive to loud noises and luckily I live in a quiet area so don't get much of them anyway, but repetitive noises infuriate me. A clock ticking, a tap dripping, a gate swinging in the wind, etc.

I used to go out with a guy whose parents had an extremely annoying electronic air freshener that would go PFFFFFFFFFFFFFT every 20 minutes or so, 24 hours a day - an interval which seemed particularly annoying because it was infrequent enough that I could just about get back to sleep after being woken by it, but then immediately get woken when it went off again

[gregarious_introvert]

^ In my previous house, there was a clock in the kitchen on which the second hand gave a loud clunk every time it moved - I could even hear it upstairs in bed, so I removed the battery. My landlord was really upset when he visited and found it like that (I have no idea why, he didn't have to live there and listen to it).

[gregarious_introvert]

^ He got rid of me in the end, with an eviction notice. I'm glad he did, because it made me eligible for local authority housing.

[Dougella]

^^ Makes you wonder why he was so insistent that the clock was connected

[Hayman]

I'm glad the 'clock ticking' business has been mentioned. As a child and well into my teens, if I focused too much on the clock at night, I simply couldn't get to sleep. I even recall replacing clocks three or four times over a period of time and I seemed to always buy the loudest clocks. In the end, I done without one in my bedroom for quite a while.

It still 'gets' to me now on occasions, but nowhere near as bad as it used to. Night-time clock-ticking used to be a real nemesis of mine.

Another one which bothers me (for reasons unknown) is the slamming of car doors when I'm inside the house. Again, often in the evening. Sometimes I wonder how many doors some cars have as the neighbour can open and slam literally every single door they have...and they have been the only person who was in the car.

[Moksha]

I wouldn't say it's an SA thing. We simply didn't evolve to live in a world of 8 billion people, with its traffic jams, flashing screens, etc. We were meant to live in small, hunter-gatherer communities, roaming about for days on end without seeing or hearing another group of humans. The only sounds our ancestors heard were church bells, the singing of birds, horses slowly clip clopping along, trees creaking in the wind, etc.

[Dougella]

^ There are communities like the Amish who don't use any modern technology.