6 Signs of Sensory Processing Disorder in Adults
Do you feel overwhelmed by loud noises, bright lights, certain textures, strong-smelling perfumes, or spicy food? You may be experiencing symptoms of sensory processing disorder.
While all of us experience some dislike for certain noises, textures, or lights, sensory processing disorder leads to significant stress, irritation, or anxiety that can impact most areas of your life. It affects about 20% of the population, yet, it’s often ignored or misunderstood.
In this article, you will learn about the 6 signs of sensory processing disorder in adults. If you recognize yourself, we recommend that you seek professional support to reduce sensory overload and better manage your anxiety related to sensory challenges.
What Is Sensory Processing Disorder?
Sensory processing disorder (SPD)—also sometimes called Sensory Integration Disorder—is a neurological condition where the brain struggles to receive and interpret sensory information effectively. It affects your central nervous system and disrupts how your brain processes, organizes, and interprets messages received from the body’s sensory receptors (1, 2, 3).
Sensory challenges fall into three main types:
- Sensory Modulation Disorder (SMD) affects how individuals regulate sensory input, leading to hypersensitivity (over-responsiveness), hyposensitivity (under-responsiveness), or sensory seeking.
- Sensory-Based Motor Disorder (SBMD) impacts movement and coordination, including dyspraxia (trouble planning movements) and postural disorder (poor balance and muscle tone).
- Sensory Discrimination Disorder (SDD) makes it difficult to distinguish between sensory stimuli, affecting touch, sight, sound, and body awareness. SPD can vary in severity and often coexists with other conditions like ADHD or autism.
Sensory processing disorder can manifest in a variety of ways. For example, sensory processing disorder may make loud music unbearable, tags on clothes insufferable, or even light perfume smells severely intolerable. For most people, loud music, tags on clothes, or perfume are a part of everyday life. They are often unnoticeable but, at most, are mildly annoying.
But if you have sensory sensitivities, everyday stimuli can trigger symptoms. Symptoms of a sensory processing disorder in adults are more than just an inconvenience. According to a 2021 review published in the Journal of Clinical Medicine, it can have a negative impact on your quality of life (4). It may impact your ability to socialize, participate in sports or group activities, study, learn, or work in a certain setting, and so on.
Sensory processing disorder is not rare. According to a 2020 paper published in the Journal of Mental Health Counseling, it affects 20% of the population around the world (5). It is more common in those with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), but it can also affect those without (6).
How Do You Know If You Have Sensory Processing Disorder?
Sensory processing issues are not acknowledged by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Illnesses, or DSM-5, nor the International Classification of Diseases, or ICD-11 (7).
Though it doesn’t have a distinct diagnosis and is often identified as a symptom of other disorders, such as ASD or ADHD, mental health practitioners are aware of its symptoms. To receive appropriate treatment, seeking support from a mental health professional is your best bet.
Here are six signs you may have sensory processing challenges.
1. You Have Difficulty With Sensory Overload
Having a difficult time with sensory overload is one of the main signs of sensory processing disorder in adults.
Sensitivity to Light, Sound, Smells, Tastes, and Texture
Adults with sensory processing disorder often experience heightened sensitivity to light, sound, and smell. Bright light, artificial light, or overhead lights may feel blinding. Loud noises, such as loud music, sirens, dogs barking, or people yelling, may feel unbearable.
Strong scents, including perfumes, chemicals, or cooking smells, may feel overwhelming. Additionally, you may also feel a heightened sensitivity to certain tastes and textures. For example, you may react strongly to spicy food and may prefer bland foods more. You may not feel that certain clothing is itchy. This heightened sensitivity can trigger sensory overload, resulting in stress, anxiety, irritability, overwhelm, and discomfort.
Impact on Daily Life
The stress, anxiety, irritability, and frustration from sensory overload can significantly affect your daily life. For example, you may have difficulty being in and up avoiding crowded places, such as malls, airports, or public transportation. You may not be able to work in a busy or loud work environment.
You may have to avoid certain social situations due to triggering light, smells, foods, or other triggers. This can limit your social interactions and career opportunities. If you are overwhelmed by these sensory issues, it may impact your concentration and work performance. As a result, you may experience frustration or isolation.
2. You Engage In Sensory-Seeking Behaviors
We commonly see sensory-seeking behavior in adults with sensory processing disorder.
Craving Specific Sensory Experiences
Considering that sensory overload is a common sign of sensory processing disorder in adults, you may be surprised to hear that sensory-seeking behaviors are, too. While some sensory information may feel overwhelming, you may also experience some sensory needs. Sensory stimulation behaviors seek to fulfill these sensory needs.
Sensory-seeking behaviors may include rocking, tapping, or smelling certain objects. These behaviors help with self-regulation and reducing stress. For example, you may find comfort in touching a soft blanket, hugging a teddy bear, seeking out rhythmic noises, or fidgeting. These behaviors can improve a sense of comfort or focus.
Challenges in Regulating Sensory Input
The purpose of sensory-seeking behaviors is to meet certain needs, calm your mind and body, find comfort, and improve focus. However, many adults with sensory processing disorders may find it challenging to manage sensory input.
You crave this sensory relief but struggle to find the balance before you become uncomfortable. Too little stimulation may not help you to get the comfort you need. However, too much stimulation can be triggering as well. Both can cause discomfort and restlessness. Finding the middle ground is critical yet difficult for many.
3. You Struggle With Emotional Regulation Issues
You may experience emotional regulation issues as an adult with sensory processing disorder.
Difficulty Handling Stress or Frustration
Adults with sensory processing disorder may also experience difficulty managing stress or frustration. They may exhibit emotional responses that seem like an exaggerated or socially unacceptable response when sensory overload occurs.
For example, if you have a sensory processing disorder, you may feel extremely irritated by crowds or bright lights. You may experience anger or even crying when hearing a loud noise, touching an uncomfortable fabric, or tasting food you dislike. You experience increased levels of stress and have difficulty dealing with it and regulating your emotions and mood to keep calm.
Impact on Relationships and Social Interactions
Unfortunately, this difficulty with emotional dysregulation and handling stress and frustration can have some social consequences. Experiencing emotional outbursts or strong reactions in social settings can result in feelings of embarrassment or withdrawal.
Those around you may also misinterpret or judge your behaviors. They may feel that you are overreacting or overreacting or may even find some of your reactions uncomfortable. This can make making and maintaining more challenging and result in frustration, loneliness, isolation, a sense of being misunderstood, anxiety, and depression.
4. You Have Problems with Motor Coordination
Adults with sensory processing disorder may also notice problems with motor coordination.
Clumsiness or Difficulty with Fine Motor Tasks
If you have sensory processing disorder, you may find it more difficult to perform tasks that require precise motor control. You may feel more clumsy than others around you. Fine motor tasks you may find difficult include typing, writing, fastening buttons, or tying shoelaces.
These tasks require fine motor skills and can feel too complex for those with sensory processing issues. This means that you may be slower at completing the task, make more mistakes, or simply avoid the activity completely. Additionally, you may bump into objects, tip over things, or have similar accidents frequently. Sports, driving, and other activities that require hand-eye coordination or full-body movement may also feel challenging.
Poor Balance and Spatial Awareness
People with sensory processing disorders have an impaired ability to process sensory input related to their body’s position in space. This can affect spatial awareness and balance. This means that you may feel disoriented, unsteady, or uncoordinated.
Walking on uneven surfaces may be challenging. Climbing chairs or ladders may feel like a daunting task. Gymnastics, dancing, or even yoga may feel impossible. For some, even maintaining a proper posture is a challenge. As a result, you may be more prone to falls and injuries.
5. You Experience Heightened Sensitivity to Textures
If you notice heightened sensitivity to textures, you may have a sensory processing disorder.
Aversion to Certain Fabrics, Materials, or Food
Heightened sensitivity to textures is another common sign of sensory challenges in adults. This can lead to anything from discomfort to strong aversions. You may experience a strong aversion to clothing, blankets, pillows, or other items made from rough or scratchy fabric. This can lead to extreme discomfort, emotional irritation, or avoidance. You may end up cutting off tags that are bothering you or avoiding certain fabrics completely.
This sensitivity doesn’t just apply to items. Some people with sensory processing disorders also find certain food textures problematic. You may find it unappealing or even intolerable to eat slimy, mushy, or crunchy foods. You may experience additional challenges if you are also sensitive to certain tastes or smells related to these or other foods. This can lead to dietary limitations. In some cases, this may result in avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID), resulting in a very limited diet of only a few foods (8). This can lead to nutrient deficiencies and related health issues.
Reactions to Touch or Physical Contact
Beyond difficulty with materials and food, you may also experience heightened sensitivity to touch. This is another common symptom of sensory processing disorder in adults. If you are dealing with this, hugs or even light touches can be problematic.
This can make daily life very difficult. Crowded places and public environments where someone can accidentally brush against you, or unanticipated contact can happen can become triggering and distressing. Handshakes in professional environments or hugs from friends and family can cause extreme discomfort. This may result in the avoidance of many social and even professional situations.
6. You Have Difficulty with Focus or Concentration
Finally, sensory processing disorder in adults may also come with difficulty with focus and concentration.
Distractions from Sensory Input
Reading through this list, you can see that sensory processing disorder can be quite distressing. A heightened sensitivity to stimuli can be very overwhelming. In everyday life, even at home and especially in public spaces, triggers are everywhere.
You may be constantly triggered by bright or flickering lights, loud music, background conversation, texture from clothing, smell from perfumes or food, and so on. If you are constantly overstimulated, it can be seriously distracting and make it difficult to complete tasks efficiently or even enjoy hobbies properly. For those with ADHD, sensory processing disorder can contribute to even more difficulty concentrating.
Impact on Work and Daily Activities
Clearly, all this can negatively impact your work and daily activities. If you are constantly triggered and can’t properly focus on your work and daily tasks, you may have difficulty meeting deadlines, meeting expectations, and managing responsibilities. This may result in unfinished tasks and frequent errors.
You may also have difficulty in participating in meetings, work projects, social activities, or family events. You may not be able to enjoy certain leisurely activities as you want to. You need tailored strategies to reduce your reaction to sensory triggers, manage sensory distractions, improve focus and performance, and simply enjoy daily life.
Are You Struggling With Sensory Processing Difficulties?
The key signs of sensory processing disorder in adults include difficulty with sensory overload, sensory-seeking behaviors, emotional regulation issues, problems with motor coordination, heightened sensitivity to textures, and difficulty with focus or concentration. If you are an adult and notice symptoms of sensory processing disorder, it’s important to seek professional help for diagnosis and developing strategies to manage your symptoms.
Treatment for sensory processing disorder often involves a combination of therapy, sensory integration strategies, and lifestyle changes. You may work with a therapist using sensory integration therapy to help you retrain your brain’s response to stimuli and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) to help you manage anxiety related to sensory experiences. You may also work with an occupational therapist to help you with strategies to cope with sensory issues better.
Additionally, lifestyle strategies, such as incorporating deep breathing exercises, yoga, meditation, getting more sleep, and improving your diet may help to reduce your overall stress levels and anxiety, which may allow you to process sensory information better. If you are looking for support on how to improve your lifestyle, diet, stress levels, and overall health to support your treatment for sensory processing disorders as an adult, we invite you to set up an appointment with us here.