Back to the mint.
Menthol is a big part of mint odor, and is in Metholatum. For me, it seems odd, but I’m not you. Would something like orange oil overpower the mint odor, or would that be just plain icky?
I’m generally a pretty normal guy, I don’t have issues like those laid out in the OP, but I hate mint. Always have. I don’t have a psychological reason for it, there’s no trauma there, I just don’t like it. It’s weird to me that people just don’t understand how I can not like mint. There isn’t something you don’t like the taste and smell of?
She is a girl after my own heart! She is so lucky that you have taken the time to understand what is up and how to help her cope with it. I can’t tell you what its like be a child with all kinds of anxiety over certain sensations, but the adults in your life (bless their hearts) think your just being difficult. I found that the pitch of Spongebob’s voice and his rate of speech can be difficult for me too. Although I do have one favorite episode where Patrick gets a nose and all the bad smells get the better of him. My kids roll on the floor laughing themselves limp at how much that resembles mommy.
I have a little friend (she’s about 12 now) who has similar issues. Her parents understand why certain things bother her so much, but have done nothing to help her with real life coping skills. I bought her a little pencil case and put in ear plugs, some adorable sun glasses, strawberry chapstick (on the upper lip or around nostrils is great for icky smells) and a polished rock (worrying it when things get overwhelming helps with coping). She loves it and shows me things shes added to it.
I do have ADHD, big time. I have found that my ADHD meds also help. I think its because when I am on the meds, all the extra background ‘noise’ in my head fades, leaving me more brain space to cope with unpleasant sensations. I also have rapid cycling bipolar disorder. Where I am in the cycle has much to do with the intensity of my reactions.
Whenever I deal with children, its always amazing to me how relieved they feel just to have somebody listen and accept the fact that some sensation is bothering them so much, and giving them permission to cope with it. One little girl in my daughters kindegarten class HATED sitting on the carpet. Every one was frustrated with her antics. Finally I suggested to the teacher that she let her spread her fleece jacket on the floor and let her sit on top of that. She was a model ‘circle time’ student after that.
This is what is really weird. Menthol/mentholatum does not bother me nearly as much as mint. I still don’t like it much, but its much easier to cope with. I know that they are closely related and I can’t even explain why one is so obnoxious an the other is not.
Mint mixed with anything is still mint. I adore chocolate, but I will not go near anything mint/chocolate. Same with other smells/flavors. Even to when mint is but a small part, I still have the same reaction.
My first thought when I read No umlaut for U’s response was that Mentholatum doesn’t smell like mint. So I had to find out why, and I found that the ingredients for mentholatum are “Camphor 9%, Natural Menthol 1.3%, Fragrance” [1] Camphor is easily as aromatic as menthol, if not more so. So that’s why mentholatum doesn’t bother you - it should be called camphoratum.
My son has a form of anxiety, and a component of that is a rather mild case of this sensory problem. It does seem to be improving with age. I’m not sure if that’s due to maturation of his neural system, the CBT he learned, or some combination. For example, yesterday some shorts we had ordered arrived. They are cut differently than the loose styles he used to wear, and he was having to wear them around the house to get used to the ways they touched his body which were so different from normal. A few years ago he would have just rejected them, I see this as progress.
He also gets that b.s. from people “just suck it up and get over it”! Folks are so inconsiderate sometimes. :mad:
Dear surrounded by literalists,
Dude. Chill.
Sincerely,
Roderick Usher
So Mojitos are right out then huh? Now that is just a damn shame.
I’ll never forget the time I was carrying my nephew around outside but then needed to set him down on the grass in his bare feet. Holy cow. I don’t know who was more upset, him or me from his reaction. Not much later he was diagnosed with Asbergers.
Anywhich, you’ve told us the things you just can’t abide but I was wondering if there are other things that annoy the crap out of you but that you can successfully push into the background?
Have you ever been tested for sensory processing disorders? Autism? Sometimes, putting a name on what you feel (at least for me) makes a person not feel alone, and makes it easier to handle. Good Luck!
Are you Empathic? Are you intune with people? How does THAT part figure in with your sensory overload?
Dude. Empathy.
I’m pretty sure the Usher reference is a joke.
surrounded by literalists
are the number of thing you are allergic to constant?
have you ever lost one? or gained a new one?
I’m not so sure about this. I can’t think of one “thing” that I’m irrationally annoyed by.
If you do this, please spell it “TOO”; otherwise I’ll have to come at you with a permanent marker, and we may both end up killing each other. 
I had two thoughts:
-
For those who are extremely adverse to mint: what kind of toothpaste do you use? Maybe the ones for kids that taste like bubblegum? I wonder because I can’t think of a major brand that isn’t mint flavored.
-
I am starting to think food aversions are a subdivision or somewhere on the spectrum of this (or some other similar) disorder. Maybe those “picky eaters” who drive other people crazy might get a little more sympathy and understanding if this is so. Or maybe not - I’m having a hard time thinking of another topic that seems to divide people as much as picky eaters.
(if point #2 has been discussed or confirmed elsewhere, sorry, but it’s a new idea for me…)
I’m with you on these:
The tast and smell of mint
prolonged loud noises
bright white fluorescent lights
people standing behind me
the constant hum of electrical appliances
They are always worse for me before/during/after a migraine, so I assumed they were related to that.
And oddly, I am ok with mint sauce on lamb.
We can get both cinnamon and orange flavored toothpastes (either Colgate or Crest, I don’t recall) at regular drugstores here.
I just can’t believe I have found someone experiencing my problems! What you describe is exactly what I am going through. I am desperate, I can’t go to the movies, to the theater, restaurants… I feel so lonely since doctors don’t know what is wrong with me. Surreal.
No, Surreal hasn’t posted in this thread.
Replace mint with cilantro = me
To the OP…my son had some similar issues, but they faded as he grew older. Pretty much gone, now.
I don’t know your age (but I see you have a 12-year old), but you can always hope to “grow out of it.” I’m not making light of your problems–just trying to offer a glimmer of hope.