My mother was telling me the other day that she thinks I have something called “hyper sensitivity”, a disorder/disease/problem she heard about at the hospital she works at. She thinks I have it because I can’t stand jeans (the fabric is too rough on my skin), I’m incredibly tactile, strong scents make me sick to my stomach, cinnamon makes my mouth go numb, spicy foods irritate me, and I cry too easily. She also says this disorder/disease/problem occurs more often amongst people with fair skin and freckles (both of which I have).
Does this disorder/disease/problem actually exist? If it does, is it actually known to cause the problems I have? Is it known to cause emotional sensitivity as well? Can I use this as an excuse from now on? Or am I just a wuss?
I am aware of a condition in industry where, after overexposure to a chemical (or chemicals,) the victim can’t be exposed to that substance at all without getting severe reactions. That may or may not be what you are asking about.
As for the jeans, are you using fabric softener sheets, which don’t touch the inside of the garment? If so, try liquid FS.
I don’t believe we’re talking about the same thing. The link you provided speaks about something that’s apparently not regarded as a legitimate medical condition. The sensitization I’m talking about is a reaction to specific chemicals, and is accepted in my workplace as real, legitimate, and darned scary. Sensitization was mentioned in the Hazcom classes we had to take, and I know some people who had lengthy sick leaves for it. My employer is a stickler about medical fraud, and I doubt that anything shaky would get past them.
The case I’m familiar with involved floor stripper. The chemical was used in poorly ventilated room on a many-coated floor, so the stripper was used longer than usual in a higher-than-usual concentration. The janitor became woozy and got a headache. The next time he used the same chemical, he went home early with coughing and wheezing. His doctor later checked him into the hospital with something akin to pneumonia. The company’s medical dept. gave him orders never to work with that chemical again.
<<I’ve never heard of the fair skin and freckle connection though and I can’t see why that would be so.>>
Actually, it does sort of make sense. Many people with fair skin tend to have sensitive skin as well. Sun burns, rashes, bad reactions to laundy detergents and skin care products, all seem to be more common in fair skinned people.
My mother’s theory about this(and mosquitoes supposedly being more attracted to fair skin) is that fair skin is actually thinner and has blood vessels closer to the surface. I’ve never read anything to prove or disprove it, but I do seem to have more skin problems than my tanned friends. Since she was a nurse, I guess I’ll take her word for it until it’s proven otherwise.
I don’t have much to add, but here’s an article the Utne Reader did on hyper-sensivity a little bit ago. It gives some good tips about how to cope with it, if you do, in fact, have it.
