Sensory processing and Aspergers - your opinions on this.

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I've been thinking lately about how my senses process things and I've noticed a few things amidst other thoughts that suggest that I could be on the spectrum.

This relates to sensory processing.

I've noticed that too much new information might really overwhelms me. I feel very anxious in my body and end up wanting to leave the environment because I fear a panic or anxiety attack. I've quit many jobs because of this I think. I still don't quite know how I process things because I'm only just thinking about it and ruminating on possibilities. I seem to be VERY hypervigilant over myself to the point where I simply can't process new knowledge because I fear that I will forget it..as a result, because I can't relax, I don't seem to process very much at all.

I've just started a new job and today I started feeling that I couldn't take all the information. I really wanted to leave, go straight home, relax and recharge. I started to feel the anxiety and adrenaline kick up in my body. I also find that I need a lot of time in order to relax from the incoming information.

I also have noticed that loud noises such as ambulance sirens really get to me. I can't take the sharpness of it in. I remember when I was on a bus and when the bell rang it was a very sharp sound that almost hurt my ears. When there was an extended fire alarm at work, I also noticed that I seemed to be pretty much the only one who was putting my fingers in my ears because the loudness was too harsh to take in.

I think what I'm really wanting opinions about is information processing. Do you or anyone else you know find it really hard to take in lots of very new information all at once?

I think it depends on what it is for me, but to answer the question simply, yes. I can absorb a ton of information almost without trying if it is interesting or just simple (if it's written). However, if it is a lot of information I have to learn very quickly, especially if it is verbal, I don't really process it whether I'm trying or not. This has happened to me at my jobs I've had, the only way I ever actually learned what to do is by looking at written instructions or just doing it. After that I am fine, at least as far as information goes.

Usually for a lot of jobs though, they like to do on-the-job training, and it doesn't matter how many times they tell/show me what to do, if I can't do it or get it in print then I don't get it the first 5-10+ times. I do get anxious, but I don't know if it's the amount of information itself that bothers me, or the fact that I know I'm not learning it and will therefore mess it up, that bothers me. It's probably both.

So my suggestion would be to see if you could get the instruction and information they are trying to give you in writing, that way you can learn it at your own pace, and if you're like me it may be easier to remember it all that way as well.

Thank you

Yes, I'm the same. Learning a lot of information in a short space of time..I just can't do it. I've just started a new job and I have to take in a LOT of brand new information regarding topics I have never studied or looked at. It's just so hard to process and I have a tendancy to focus on the detail at hand and cannot take in the bigger picture. So, for instance, there have been major topics I've had to learn. Within each of those topics are, lets say, sub-topics. But because the information is coming at me so quickly, I cannot marry the sub-topics easily at all and I end up forgetting the objective or why and where the topic is leading which makes me very confused.

I also like to have information in writing. I've taken my learning book home and I can now piece the topics and sub-topics together much better. When I was listening to the trainer talk about it, the information became too fragmented and I felt lost in it.

I also learn by rote. I have realized that I'm slower than others at this. On the systems that we are using, I am still finding it very challenging to use what keys I need to navigate the pages. Whilst everyone else has understood it, I haven't. It is frustrating but it is also interesting to explore my frustrations and know how to alleviate myself from the emotions I feel from this.