For more on this personality trait, see the Highly Sensitive site.
In one of her newsletter articles, Elaine Aron talks about the differences between giftedness and sensitivity, in both children and adults.
Last summer I was the invited speaker at a conference on developing gifted children, and I have been promising you a report on it.
As I discussed my talk with the organizer, Linda Silverman, I realized [...]
Being highly sensitive can be a beneficial trait in many ways, such as enhancing creative expression and leading us toward making more cautiously considered evaluations and decisions.
But being unusually sensitive and inner-directed means we are to an extent “misfits” in a culture like this that so values sociability, extroversion and quick action – all of [...]
In her post Are Introverts More Creative than Extraverts?, Elizabeth Wagele writes about how this key personality dimension relates to creative expression. Here is an excerpt :
My café friends and I, mostly introverts, were discussing where our various kinds of creativity came from recently. Our DNA is probably mostly responsible, but we each pointed to [...]
“I am shy and I don’t start relationships with people normally. I guess I have a way that can seem aloof and sort of cold. They didn’t like me that much, but I never resented it. I was different than they were.”
Actor Kristin Kreuk – about being in high school.
Being highly sensitive may include or [...]
In her article, 27 Tips For Navigating College As a Highly Sensitive Person, Andrea Runyan discusses how sensitive students can manage the stresses of housing, emotional life, parties, eating, studying, professors and friends.
College is a crucial time in life and doing well, both in classes and in general life, can have large ramifications for the [...]
In addition to helping fuel creativity and a richer experience of living, being highly sensitive can make us more vulnerable to emotional overwhelm, anxiety, self-criticism and other issues. Healthy self concept and self esteem can be especially challenging.
As John Lennon once put it, “Part of me suspects that I’m a loser, and the other part [...]
“Call it avoidance, complacency, indecisiveness, stubborness or noncompliance. Whatever the term or definition, I have often tried to find some way to delay change or run in the opposite direction from it.”
The challenge
In her post Change and the HSP, from her blog Inside the Mind of a Highly Sensitive Person, Helen Akers takes a look [...]
In her article, How To Stop Being So Hard On Yourself, excerpted below, expert on highly sensitive living Jenna Avery explains why sensitive people are so self-critical, and how we can stop:
Every time I work with a fellow sensitive soul, it seems like we always bump into some kind of fear or limiting belief about [...]
As introverts, we may not have the same values or interests in “fun” activities as those who are more extroverted. That may be another reason highly sensitive people and introverts are less acknowledged, supported and even valued in our outgoing, sociable-oriented culture.
Not that introversion and high sensitivity are the same trait, but they often go [...]
Many interviewers and entertainment writers have described Twilight Saga actor Kristen Stewart as “cautious” and “shy.”
At least one news story refers to her as a “Self-proclaimed introvert.”
By the way, I am not presuming Kristen Stewart is shy, introverted or highly sensitive, and I don’t know her personally.
But just from my gut reaction to seeing her [...]
Many talented actors and other performers may have the venue and “permission” to use their high physical and emotional intensity. But many of us can find it challenging at times to manage our intensities or excitabilities, especially when working with other people.
It is easy to point to examples of high intensity acting – just consider [...]
Bryce Dallas Howard portrays the “unapologetic” Fisher Willow in The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond. “I learned some interesting things about myself. Fisher is unapologetic about anything she does or says, and I am not; in fact I am apologizing all the time.
“I liked that she was almost hedonistic in her approach to life, and [...]
The holidays are a time for giving, right? With a hectic schedule, family gatherings I might prefer to avoid, and an economy gone south, what I feel like doing is giving up
My cat has revved up his sleep schedule to 18 hours a day, and I was about to join him when Elaine Aron [...]
Dr. Elaine Aron notes: “Not all sensitive people are shy; not all shy people are sensitive. “But especially if you are both, although you may have one or two drinks to get through parties, you probably don’t drink very much compared with other people.
“You need to know and respect your drinking comfort zone. If you [...]
“Is there anything you dread about this holiday season? Do you have fears, anxiety or insecurity around seeing family members or others who don’t value you? Are you afraid of what might happen this year, or are reminded of past letdowns, abuse, or losses?”
If you answer “Yes” to any of these questions you’ll benefit from [...]
In this news article, musician Norah Jones talks about being sensitive and dealing with reactions to her creative work.
Norah Jones’ sensitivity to criticism
The Week (theweek.com), November 12, 2009
Norah Jones still gets stung by jokes about her putting audiences to sleep, says Will Hodgkinson in Mojo.
“They call me ‘Snorah,’” says the 30-year-old Grammy winner. “But that [...]
If you are among the twenty percent or so of us who are highly sensitive, you may find holiday shopping scenes less and less appealing, and more stressful.
Thanks to Google alerts for “highly sensitive people” I found this stimulating post on the topic, from The Highly Sensitive Christian blog. Here is an excerpt:
Six Shopping Days [...]
Most people experience strong feelings occasionally, unless they are depressed. But for some, their emotional reactions are especially intense.
Psychologist Kazimierz Dabrowski (1902 – 1980) developed a theory of personality that is often used to understand gifted children and adults.
One of his ideas is Emotional Overexcitability (or Excitability), which can include intense feelings, extremes of complex [...]
What are Excitabilities?
One of the key concepts of Polish psychiatrist and psychologist Kazimierz Dabrowski, MD, PhD (1902 – 1980) is that individuals with strong “overexcitabilities” are good candidates for higher level development.
In this video are quotes by writer Stephen King, and actors Amanda Bynes and Sandra Bullock about having “teeming brains” – comments that seem [...]
The trait of high sensitivity is experienced by 15 to 20 percent of us.
In this video are some quotes by and about Winona Ryder, Heath Ledger, Amy Brenneman, Scarlett Johansson [photo], Anne Hathaway, and Ellen DeGeneres.
See Video: On Being Sensitive on the Highly Sensitive site.
From article Confession: Anxiety Cause Revealed, by Jen Crippen.
Why is it that when we know our limit on something and if we go beyond that, we’ll feel like “junk”?
For example, I experience many food sensitivities. I can indulge in a TINY bit of dark chocolate. Key word: TINY (two 1? X 1? squares). Any more [...]
Excerpts from A toast to Audrey Hepburn, by Susan King, The Los Angeles Times Oct 22 2009.
Robert Wagner (appeared with Hepburn in the 1987 TV movie “Love Among Thieves”) : “She was in the moment – always. Those close-ups of her when she looks and you see into her eyes, there is no diffusion. You [...]
In her The Highly Sensitive Person, Elaine Aron, PhD notes that the subject of the book are people at “the extreme end of the dimension of sensitivity,” but she adds, “..for many HSPs the real challenge is to achieve the middle ground. No more ‘too shy’ or ‘too sensitive’ or too anything. Just okay, ordinary, [...]
In her article How to Tell the Difference Between Fear and Intuition, Judith Orloff, M.D. writes, “True intuitions will never put you down or support destructive attitudes or behavior. Here are some guidelines for distinguishing legitimate fears from irrational ones:
Signs of a Reliable Intuition
* Conveys information neutrally, unemotionally
* Feels right in your gut
* Has a [...]
This trait of high sensitivity nurtures our creativity and social activism, but also brings challenges.
Psychologist Elaine Aron and others describe it as a more finely tuned nervous system. She explains, “It means you are aware of subtleties in your surroundings, a great advantage in many situations. It also means you are more easily overwhelmed…”
How does [...]
Being unsociable, bored at parties or uneasy with people aren’t qualities that always or necessarily go with being creative, of course – but often they do.
Many talented artists and others have a creative personality type that is highly sensitive, introverted or shy – or all at once.
Not that people are simply “types” – but these [...]
