Sensory Overload

In Chapter 4 of the AP Psychology book, the main subject is sensation and perception. Mrs. Perl left a lovely spot open for an outside source. Just like I did last time, I immediately searched for a connection to autism and quickly found one: sensory overload. My brother was diagnosed with moderate-to-severe autism at the age of two, so I have been dealing with the symptoms of autism for eleven years now. From a young age, Jacob has covered his eyes and ears in the presence of other people, eaten only a few foods, screamed louder than noises in the background, and fervently refused eye contact. Now I know why.

Sensory overload is the phenomenon that occurs when the senses are overloaded with information; there is too much information being sent to the brain at once that the brain can’t process at once. Children (autistic and neurologically normal) who experience sensory overload are often extremely irritable, cover their eyes and ears, make little or no eye contact, avoid being physically touched, and even make louder noises to down out what they are hearing. What are they experiencing? Sensory overload means that the senses are on hyperdrive. The eyes take in so many images with so much amplified detail in just one second of sight that the kids cover their eyes. They hear everything louder than normal and want to cover their ears. Their taste buds are extremely sensitive, so they eat a limited number of bland foods. Their clothes have to be tag free and they have trouble wearing shoes and socks because these feelings overwhelm their sense of touch. As for smell, autistic children tend to stay away from bold smells in the same way that they stay away from bold tastes because these two senses are linked. In other words, autistic people are super humans. 

With the prevalence of autism today, it would seem likely that more people understand what exactly is included under the umbrella of sensory overload. This video, produced by 20/20 on ABC, has helped enlighten the world about what autistic kids feel. Yes, each child is different. However, when one child has a breakthrough like this, it is impossible to ignore. Please take the time to watch the video.

Despite her severe autism, Carly was still able to communicate. Her communication through typing is truly remarkable because it provides an unimaginably clear insight into the workings of her mind and her sensory overload. To me, this video provided an incredible new insight into my brother's behaviors. Since this is AP Psychology and autism is a psychological disease effecting 1 in 50 kids, I think it is our job to try to understand what is actually happening to these children.

Sources: http://www.additudemag.com/adhd/article/9777.html

Sensory Overload Simulation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcS2VUoe12M