Kind of Research (Q&A)

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There are some things I am kind of curious about, being one for theories and science. (this is personal interest only, not a university project or such) feel free to quote and edit.

1) What do you experience during eye contact with another? (please go for as much detail as possible)
If you don't have "problems" with eye contact you can skip to #2

2) using observations of NT's "standard" "personal space", is your personal space one that is shorter (closer to your body) or larger (extending further away from your body)?
(by personal space i mean the distance between two peoples bodies that one of the individuals finds comfortable/none intrusive)

3) Do you have human to human touch aversion?
can skip to #4 if "no"
3a) is it mitigated or lessened by gloves or thick clothing?
3b) What do you experience during human to human touch (please go for as much detail as possible)?

4) Do you have none human touch aversion (certain textured textiles/materials)?
4a) is it mitigated or lessened by gloves?
4b) What do you experience during averse texture/material touch (please go for as much detail as possible)?

grateful for any replies

1) What do you experience during eye contact with another?
Sometimes I lose my train of thought. I am less able to focus on listening. It's less of a problem now than when I was younger, I think.


2) using observations of NT's "standard" "personal space", is your personal space one that is shorter (closer to your body) or larger (extending further away from your body)? Larger, definitely. That one has broken down by riding the bus and working in food service.

3) Do you have human to human touch aversion?
Yes. Through clothing it is better. Otherwise, I continue feeling the person until well after they've left. This happens with animals, too. Sometimes I become confused because I think my gerbil's still standing there. >.<

4) Do you have none human touch aversion (certain textured textiles/materials)?
Yes! Tortured throughout my childhood by the cracked-paint in the tub. *shivers* awful. I sat/stood on washclothes. That helped. Now, porcelin is a little scary. Wearing gloves helps. The carpet is scratchy, though not the worst. Etc, I guess.

1) What do you experience during eye contact with another? (please go for as much detail as possible)
If you don't have "problems" with eye contact you can skip to #2
When I make eye contact I don't see into the person's soul. I don't see their personality shining through. I see two eyes that seem to make me feel uncomfortable, as thought he person thinks very little of me. Though sometimes I can make eye contact quite naturally.
Also, if I have a lot to explain if I make eye contact it would be much harder. I also can't follow what a person is saying if I look them in the eye.

2) using observations of NT's "standard" "personal space", is your personal space one that is shorter (closer to your body) or larger (extending further away from your body)?
(by personal space i mean the distance between two peoples bodies that one of the individuals finds comfortable/none intrusive)
My personal space takes up the same amount of space as a school oval. It's probably why I sometimes feel uncomfortable around people.

3) Do you have human to human touch aversion?
can skip to #4 if "no"
3a) is it mitigated or lessened by gloves or thick clothing?
3b) What do you experience during human to human touch (please go for as much detail as possible)?
Kind of. It doesn't hurt, it just feels like...nothing. If they do it without warning I don't like it. I can't really explain why.
I don't wear gloves or thick clothing. I can imagine it would feel the same.
Like I said, all I experience is someone touching me. It just feels awkward because I'm supposed to feel something but I don't.

4) Do you have none human touch aversion (certain textured textiles/materials)?
4a) is it mitigated or lessened by gloves?
4b) What do you experience during averse texture/material touch (please go for as much detail as possible)?
Yes I have hypersensitivity to certain materials, dry skin, creams, etc.
Mitigated by gloves.
I experience itchiness to pain. It's like if a mosquito bit you, and sometimes if a wasp stung you.

1) What do you experience during eye contact with another? (please go for as much detail as possible)
It's uncomfortable, makes me nervous.

2) using observations of NT's "standard" "personal space", is your personal space one that is shorter (closer to your body) or larger (extending further away from your body)?
Larger.

4) Do you have none human touch aversion (certain textured textiles/materials)?
Wool itches. Gloves work.

1) What do you experience during eye contact with another? (please go for as much detail as possible)
I like it, but when somebody is getting on my nerves or boring I avoid looking them in their eyes because it makes me angry.

2) using observations of NT's "standard" "personal space", is your personal space one that is shorter (closer to your body) or larger (extending further away from your body)?
I guess it is quite the same as their although when I don't feel fresh, my personal space is very large

4) Do you have none human touch aversion (certain textured textiles/materials)?
Yes!
4a) is it mitigated or lessened by gloves?
Sure!
4b) What do you experience during averse texture/material touch (please go for as much detail as possible)?
Some paper tissues are almost making me vomit, also some kinds of papper, I don't like rain or accidentaly getting wet - I feel uncomfortable then. Maybe there are more things like this but I don't remember them right now.

1) What do you experience during eye contact with another? (please go for as much detail as possible)

I am very uncomfortable with having eye contact with anyone but 2 people that I know very well. I can force myself to under duress but as I mentioned, it's uncomfortable. I can't even look at people I strongly dislike and/or distrust.

2) using observations of NT's "standard" "personal space", is your personal space one that is smaller (closer to your body) or larger (extending further away from your body)?

I stand 3-4 feet away from others in conversations. I believe the typical distance for others is 2 feet.

3) Do you have human to human touch aversion?

Yes. Except for one person who is surprisingly soft. I am also very familiar with his hygiene schedule, which lessens my anxiety.

3a) is it mitigated or lessened by gloves or thick clothing?

If the fabric is very soft. I hate nylon and synthetic materials because of the sounds they make.

3b) What do you experience during human to human touch (please go for as much detail as possible)?

My skin feels itchy and shivery. I can't even tell when they've stopped touching me. I cannot handle shaking people's hands. Especially when they're sweaty or have rough skin.It's sort of like sandpaper.

4) Do you have any human touch aversion (certain textured textiles/materials)?

Yes

4a) is it mitigated or lessened by gloves?

Even if I can't feel it on my skin, the sounds that ultra-textured materials make are awful. Scratchy, scraping noises upset me, and they are caused by textured materials. Thus I avoid them even with gloves.

4b) What do you experience during averse texture/material touch (please go for as much detail as possible)?

Anxiety, itchy skin, and occasional nausea.

1. Electricity. Sometimes I like it. Sometimes it's overpowering.

2. Larger. I like to stand at least 10 feet away from people when communicating. People find it weird though.

3. Not especially any more. I don't like being touched abruptly with force.

4. I don't like touching paper with recently wetted hands. It makes my skin crawl.

1). I have no problems with eye contact. I was severely punished for not looking into my step-father's eyes. So I have gotten use to looking people in the eyes. I see all kinds of things when I look into people's eyes. It varies from person to person. Sometimes it can be too intense and then I will look away. Other times if I feel challenged, I will challenge them back with a stare.

2). My personal space is extending further away. But sometimes with a lover it will be closer, of course.

3). Yes, I do have an aversion to human to human touch unless I really know and like/love the person ie; a lover, bestfriend or my children, then I love to be hugged. My extended family/foster families always want to hug me when they see me which is not often. That makes me feel uncomfortable but I hug them anyway.

To be fair

It can vary but usually a sense of anxiety.


Personally mine seems to be "dual layered", larger than NT but "normal" and also a second much closer (few inches) one that seems to cause me more discomfort than for an NT who's personal space has been violated to the same distance.


Yes it is lessened, gloves work.


An "intrusive" sense of the "person" touching me, a "general" not very defined sense of "them" instead of specific (though it is specific to the area of the location contact occurs), does not occur with none living items/small-tiny living beings.





Yes


aversion too certain types of "piled" synthetic material (like a carpet/suede type), physiological anxiety response (skin crawling, cold chill, slight "breathlessness").

please do continue responding if you havent this is looking interesting.

it takes effort but i can look a person in the eye, but often i get the impression the uncomfortable other person feels i am "drilling into their consciousness" as my eye2eye attention can be intense. i realize this so i clumsily break-off the eye contact at rhythmic intervals, looking about the room then returning to the eyes. however, if the person has kind eyes, i find myself "falling into them." [their eyes, that-is]



if the person is nice, they could be pushed against me and i would not mind [unless they had bad breath/BO or if i had bad breath which is more often]. if they are hostile [much more common] i keep at least 10 feet away.



not per se. as for question 3a, skin2skin feels nice and affectionate [among other things] but if the other person is hostile then no amount of clothing would be a sufficient barrier to their nastiness. 3b- see question #2 and #3a. also i don't enjoy clammy hands, as mine are dry. muscleman grips when handshaking are not good, but weak and effete "eastern" handshakes [using just the fingers] are lousy.



i don't like touching things that have been perspired-upon or have other biological substances on them. 4a- it definitely is mitigated by gloves, otherwise i could not have worked in a hospital for over 2 decades. 4b- disgust when touching contaminated surfaces, and a need for rapid hygiene.

I become anxious very quickly from what feels like the other person's demand that I respond in an appropriate but, to me, incomprehensible, manner. If I visit my parents and we are watching a film or having a conversation, although I may not be talking directly to her, my mother will often smile and look directly at me, not looking away until I make some kind of eye contact. I find this extremely unpleasant. I know she means it to be open and friendly, but I feel like a demand is made on me that I can't fulfill.

I find it very unpleasant to look into my own eyes in a mirror. I don't know if I am afraid of what I'll see. I also don't like looking into a camera lens and find it hard to maintain that artificial eye contact. (I noticed this recently when I set up a camera myself with no one operating it, so it wasn't an issue with a person behind the camera.)

I frequently talk looking off at other things around the room. If I have to have some eye contact, I will often briefly look away as if my attention were grabbed by some noise or movement. This gives me a bit of relief during conversations.

I think that what I feel is an oppressive demand that I behave a certain way and I have no clue what it is I am expected to do.



My sense of personal space seems to be about the same as NTs. I do tend to keep my distance sometimes when I feel I have eaten too much garlic or I am feeling fatter than usual, but I don't think this is particularly different from NTs. A comfortable distance is about 3 to 4 feet.



Yup. My mother has always complained that my hugs are stiff and awkward. I would be perfectly happy to avoid them altogether. I some times can enjoy a hug from an attractive woman, but then I fear that she will find something revolting about me when she touches me.



I guess it is mitigated by clothes. The idea of skin to skin contract in a hug is disturbing just to think about.



It is a gross awareness of my own body and my physical presence that really bothers me. Most of my life I have wished I could be a mind with no physical structure. I dislike having a body and I find particularly unpleasant the idea that my body must interact with other things in my environment.




Oddly enough, considering what I just wrote above, no I don't have much of an aversion to contact with non-human stuff. I can happily pet an animal or touch objects without much consideration. Although I do wash my hands often in such circumstances. I don't like dirt or fine, powdery dust, but it's not a big deal for me.

I don't like polyester or nylon cloths but I consider this to be normal and anyone who can tolerate them are freaks.



In regard to polyester or nylon, I am hyper-aware of the material on my skin. The feel of the cloth keeps yanking my attention away from everything else. If I wear an item long enough, I get used to it and I can re-focus my attention where it needs to be, but I still frequently notice the cloth on my skin.

1) What do you experience during eye contact with another? (please go for as much detail as possible)

It feels like an instant challenge by a car, flashing bright headlights. However, my family is full of film lovers and amateur actors. When I was in middle school, I worked to overcome that first shock and challenge it back. Now, I seem to have a strong, intense personality since I'm simply trying to get over a fear.

2) using observations of NT's "standard" "personal space", is your personal space one that is shorter (closer to your body) or larger (extending further away from your body)?

Larger in private, NT standard in public (due to learning as an amateur actor.)

3) Do you have human to human touch aversion?

Depends...

3a) is it mitigated or lessened by gloves or thick clothing?

Slightly mitigated.

3b) What do you experience during human to human touch (please go for as much detail as possible)?

Usually, it's all right, but I do tend to be paranoid on what it could mean, as I haven't interpreted human touch in all possible ways. Getting touched on the upper area of the arm (near the shoulder) is threatening to me.

4) Do you have none human touch aversion (certain textured textiles/materials)?

Absolutely. I can have a sensory overload from fabric once a month to daily, if I'm undergoing a lot of stress.

4a) is it mitigated or lessened by gloves?

Mitigated greatly.

4b) What do you experience during averse texture/material touch (please go for as much detail as possible)?

It's like my skin's on fire. It feels as bad as getting burned, but I do my best to care for it outside of the public eye.

I don't enjoy eye contact and have to do it conciously, I feel like other's eyes are boring into me, but eyes themselves seem quite expressionless....



It's larger than normal, I don't like being close to anyone except my partner, the closeness makes me very uncomfortable/vunerable feeling, plus people smell close up!



Yes, I have had this for as long as I can remember.




It would have to be very thick clothing, like a leather biker's jacket, I do feel safer with more clothing on though.



It's almost painful, and I have a feeling of distress/disgust.



No, I'm okay to touch other things, I just don't like to be touched by humans.



You're very welcome!

1. I don't enjoy. Eyes are only eyes, I don't need to look at them all the time. I must look for interesting patterns or sth regular, read texts. I have ears to listen, not eyes.

2. Larger. Don't touch me, don't hug me if you're not doctor or trusted one. I'm cold and it's no pleasure to touch me. But if sb is trusted, it makes me feel safe. There are not many trusted people, I can count on one hand's fingers.

3. No, I don't have aversion of touch, more of people's dirt. I find people dirty.

4. No, I have to touch almost everything to know its texture and pattern. Except dirty things, I don't touch them, I can only smell and look.

1. It depends on the person, and the situation. I've gotten used to it but I have a lot of triggers for social anxiety, and those tend to pop up in social situations.

2. I would say larger, but it depends on the person.

3. Under most circumstances, being touched really creeps me out. Gloves or clothing don't help with that, but it's probably not sensory. It's just 'too close for comfort'. There are very VERY few people I feel comfortable letting inside my 'bubble'.

4. I hate anything 'grating'. Guitar strings are an excellent example of this. The texture of steel string really bothers me.