Difference between highly sensitive people and being hypersensitive

It is easy to confuse highly sensitive people with hypersensitive people, Well, the emotional factor is present in both. However, we must draw a line between the two because they are not nor do they refer to the same thing.

There are individuals who define themselves as highly sensitive and others as hypersensitive. But what do they mean by each term? Although everyone talks about these concepts, few know what their differences are.

Taking the above into account, in this article we will review what they are and what the characteristics of high sensitivity and hypersensitivity are. Likewise, we will analyze their differences based on the descriptions that we will make throughout the content.

Highly sensitive and hypersensitive people

Although they are frequently confused or understood as the same thing, highly sensitive people (HSP) and hypersensitive people refer to two very different profiles:

Hypersensitive people are characterized by emotional fragility or delicacy. They could easily become angry when faced with criticism. Highly sensitive people experience the physical, emotional and social aspects of a situation with great sensitivity. They are more aware of them.

An example of a hypersensitive person is that co-worker who misinterpreted a gesture and, in addition to getting angry and exploding in the middle of the office, complains to the boss. While, faced with the same situation, the highly sensitive person would try to have a more prudent reaction and would be more empathetic in their actions.

Let’s delve a little deeper into each of these ways of being.

Highly sensitive and hypersensitive people do not react in the same way to similar events.

Highly sensitive people

It is estimated that high sensitivity is found in up to 20% of the world’s population, as stated in the book. The gift of sensitivity. With her describes a person who is very sensitive to stimuli or physical, emotional and social situations. In general, they are sensitive to any information around them.

in his book The gift of sensitivity, Elaine Aron notes that “What is moderately activating for most people is enormously activating for an HSP. And what is enormously activating for most people, makes an HSP feel overwhelmed, until they reach a point of closure called “transmarginal inhibition.”

The highly sensitive individual does not respond with such sensitivity by choice. Their reactions are involuntary and are associated with the processing of information by the central nervous system. It is not something they choose to be, feel or experience, it is something innate, as some researchers suggest.

“Highly sensitive people have a deeper emotional and mental makeup than most people,” reports Dr. Chivonna Childs at the Cleveland Clinic. «It’s more than your emotions. It can also be sensitivity to textures and sounds.

In an article published in the Journal of Analytical Psychology, psychologist Elaine Aron, who coined this term, points out that People with high sensitivity are overly conscientious and can see the effects their behaviors have.

Furthermore, Aron maintains, They are usually creative, intuitive and empathetic people who make it easier for them to recognize the non-verbal signals of others.. They are capable of contemplating beauty and tend to be spiritual and philosophical in their way of orienting themselves in life.

Characteristics

Among the most outstanding features we can find:

They have a great capacity for empathy. Although it may seem like a very good thing, it can create a lot of confusion. Confusion occurs when they have not had a good emotional education.They may withdraw emotionally from those around them. This happens more often when they have not learned not to get too involved. Everything they identify makes them feel overwhelmed.They are very intuitive with everything that surrounds them. From people to animals or devices, they are able to understand everything with great ease.They prefer solitary activities to better focus on their goals.. In addition, when working with others they may feel more stressed if they have not learned to deal with their high sensitivity.They are very observant. If you have a highly sensitive friend, they will surely be the first to notice any changes. Whether it’s in the room, your mood, or your appearance, a highly sensitive person will see that change.

For his part, in his book Highly Sensitive People, Rafael Pardo analyzes the four pillars that Elaine Aron proposed as central characteristics of these people. These are:

Deep processing: The highly sensitive person processes the sensitive and cognitive signals they receive from their environment in a very deep way. They have a very open and flexible mind that allows them to capture a lot of information, which they process slowly, slowly, analytically.Overstimulation: They capture information to a greater extent and with higher quality. For this reason, they tend to need spaces with little sensory arousal, quiet and with little noise. Emotional reactivity and high empathy: they are capable of understanding what other people feel and experience. They are very sensitive to the suffering of others. Sensitivity to subtle stimuli: they can perceive nuances or subtle changes at a visual, auditory, gustatory, tactile and olfactory level.

Recommendations for a highly sensitive person

The Cleveland Clinic website offers some coping strategies for highly sensitive people. Among them stand out:

Have time for yourself. As much as possible, avoid overwhelming and stimulating circumstances. Knowing how to set limits is necessary for this.Connect with other people. The person with HSP should limit their time with unsympathetic people who are too emotionally draining. Instead, they must create and strengthen their bonds with those who understand and accept their way of being.Be thankful. Gratitude has benefits for the lives of any person, whether or not they are an HSP. Gratitude is related to happiness, life satisfaction, positive emotions, and lower rates of depression.Attend therapy. If sensitivity is affecting well-being and quality of life, it is necessary to seek professional help from a mental health expert.

Also, It is recommended that the highly sensitive person regulate their energy, alternating between moments of rest, to avoid exposure prolonging stimulation. Likewise, it is suggested that they do exercises and relaxation activities.

Hypersensitive people

Hypersensitivity has many meanings, but in this context we will understand it as the inability to tolerate frustration or adverse situations in everyday life. Faced with them, the hypersensitive person does not know how to manage their emotions and overflows or “explodes.”

The example we gave at the beginning is a classic representation of a hypersensitive person. Faced with a simple gesture, comment or action, the individual reacts excessively, gets angry and acts based on his own interpretation, without taking into account the triviality of what happened. We could say that he is a delicate person, emotionally speaking.

When someone is hypersensitive, they resent it easily and They present unpredictable and inappropriate emotional reactions. Their behaviors and emotional responses are disproportionate and very intense when they receive criticism.

Characteristics

From the above we can say that hypersensitive people:

Customize comments. They are people who tend to take comments very seriously, which is why many of them are experienced or experienced as if it were an attack. Most of the time They have not learned to deal with their emotions. This causes them to be able to silence what they feel to the point where they can’t take it anymore and explode.They are very susceptible people to what others do or say. They have lived negative experiences during their childhood and adolescence that they have not overcome. These can range from parental divorce or overprotection, to bullying or violence at home.

How to deal with hypersensitivity?

As we could see, hypersensitive people usually have a series of characteristics that, if not managed, can trigger discomfort and conflicts with those around them.

For it, one of the most effective solutions is to go to psychological therapy. There, the professional will offer them the necessary tools to overcome their problems and will help them acquire adaptive behaviors to live with those around them.

For their part, there are activities they can do to deal with hypersensitivity. These are:

Be attentive and identify which situations trigger strong emotional reactions. To do this, the person can make a list of them and analyze their characteristics. If she has trouble recognizing them on her own, she can ask people she trusts.Differentiate objective facts (what happened) from the interpretation made of them. Well, a large part of the discomfort and conflicts are due to erroneous interpretations of reality.Ask instead of assuming. To avoid misunderstandings, it is best to ask what meanings are hidden behind each gesture, word or action of others.Communicate emotions assertively. This implies without aggressiveness and at the right time.Focus on yourself and not on what others do and say. Let us remember that the opinions of others never represent us, what matters most is our criteria towards ourselves.When interpreting a situation as threatening, the ideal is to try to look for alternatives to what is being interpreted. To do this, a great help would be to ask third parties how they have experienced that situation.

Differences between highly sensitive and hypersensitive people

As we said before, high sensitivity has innate properties. On the other hand, hypersensitivity is not biological, but is learned and related to the person’s emotional world.

People with high sensitivity are empathetic and they keep in mind what others feel when acting. They are capable of leaving themselves to try to understand the experience of others. Hypersensitive people, on the other hand, are not as empathetic and get carried away with their reactions without taking into consideration the harm they could cause to others.

In this sense, we can also highlight that a key difference between both conditions is the ability to regulate emotions. Highly sensitive people can manage their emotions and reactions. While Hypersensitive people do not know how to deal with what they feel and act impulsively.

Thus, as the president of PAS Spain, Manuela Pérez-Chacón, points out in the newspaper ABC: high sensitivity is not maladaptive, nor does it determine the poor management of emotions or their frequent overflow, as in the case of hypersensitivity.

Hypersensitive people find it difficult…