Yes, I’m Both Deaf & Sound Sensitive
Recruitment and misophonia in neurodivergent and Deaf people
Deaf vs deaf
Deaf (with a capital ‘D’) signifies a person who is culturally Deaf, as well as having hearing loss. This generally means the person is hard of hearing or deaf, uses sign language, and is involved in the Deaf community.
In contrast, deaf (with a lowercase ‘d’), is usually refers to someone who is legally deaf because their hearing is below a particular threshold. They may or may not know sign language, read lips, or be involved in the Deaf community.
People (like myself) who are hard of hearing (not legally deaf), but fluent in ASL and involved in the Deaf community, often refer to ourselves as Deaf with a capital ‘D’ for those reasons. So when I say I am Deaf, I don’t mean I am profoundly deaf.
My husband is a loud sneezer
ACHOO!
When my husband sneezes, he likes to announce it. He yells ACHOO! in a loud, booming voice, and it scares the shit out of me. Every. fucking. time.
I’ve known him for 20 years, we’ve lived together for nearly 17 years, and I still jump every time he ACHOOs. In fact, I often get mad at him for it because it makes my heart race, even though he doesn’t do it on purpose.
He can’t help it, it’s just how he sneezes. I’m sorry dear, I love you, but I hate your sneezes.
How can I be hard of hearing and also be sound sensitive?
A few reasons…
1) Sound isn’t only experienced through the ear
We perceive sound (and potential threat) through vibrations, tone, and tempo.
Think of the water vibrating in Jurassic Park when the dinosaurs were approaching — the vibrations felt in the ground would be setting off major danger signals in the brain!
When I have an intense reaction to certain sounds, it’s (in part) because my nervous system is responding to the auditory input (through neuroception). When sounds are loud, fast, reverberating, or in some other way convey a feeling of danger, my nervous system responds accordingly.
Even if I know logically that I am safe, my nervous system responds before the logical centre of my brain (the PFC) has a chance to evaluate and filter the information.
Being in a state of ‘high alert’ (vigilance) changes how and what we hear.
2) Recruitment
People who have unilateral hearing loss (hearing loss in only one ear) can experience a phenomenon called recruitment.
Recruitment happens when sounds are perceived as much louder than they actually are, despite the person experiencing significant sensorineural hearing loss.
*Sensorineural hearing loss occurs from damage to the inner ear, the nerve that runs from the ear to the brain (auditory nerve), or the brain itself.
So if we’re already sensitive to some sensory input, due to SPD, Autism, ADHD, PTSD, etc., and then experience recruitment in addition, it’s a recipe for misophonia.
What is Misophonia?
Misophonia is when certain sounds trigger emotional or physiological responses, like when the sound of someone chewing is so aversive it triggers anger.
Misophonia is more common in neurodivergent folks, in particular people with ADHD, Autism, OCD, and mood disorders.
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