#co-occurring conditions
I mentioned this in a previous post but I get pain in my ears sometimes when I hear people talking (especially on zoom or over the phone) and I’ve had it for at least 3-4 years (that I can remember). When I talked to my doctor about it, he just said “no point in checking it, anyways have fun with that!” so I got no information about what it might be, what to do to help it, etc. They just decided there’s no point in checking it.
Anyways, there’s smth called hyperacusis which maaay be what it is? But uhh…
“Hyperacusis (say it with me: HY-per-uh-CUE-sis), is an increased sensitivity to sound that is commonly found among people with autism. This means that certain noises, such as classroom bells, the radio or the TV, may be uncomfortable for your child to hear. When a sound is distressing to a child, he or she may show discomfort by covering their ears, trying to turn off the source of the sound or leaving the noisy environment.” (Source)
When my ears hurt, I tend to (at least partially) cover my ears to try and stop my ears reacting as much. Otherwise I’ll move away or even go to the other side of the room to the round source. So uhm…is this more proof that I may be autistic?
If anyone else experiences this or something similar, please feel free to leave a comment or DM or something cuz I’m the only person I know who does this and I feel like a goof. /lh
If you didn’t experience this as a child, it’s most likely not a symptom of autism. Doesn’t mean you’re not autistic and doesn’t mean you don’t have hyperacusis, it just may not be linked to autism necessarily.
Hyperacusis can also be caused by a head injury, exposure to loud noise, viral infections, TMJ syndrome, even airbag deployment… and some other conditions like PTSD, epilepsy, migraines, certain other neuro disorders like cerebral palsy, etc.
If you do want medical advice, say if you’re worried about it being caused by a head injury, an ENT doc would be the one to go to. There aren’t any medical or surgical treatments though, which is probably why your doc didn’t care much.
And you’re not a goof :)
