The Highly Sensitive Person by Elaine Aron, PhD.

The Highly Sensitive Person (HSP) by Elaine N. Aron was suggested to me a little over a month ago and I've found it to be incredibly helpful in gaining a deeper understanding of myself and I think has been very healing as well. It's been mentioned in the forum before, but because I didn't see a specific thread about it, I thought it might be useful to others if they knew a bit more about it.

Personally speaking, at first, I thought the title was a bit off putting as the word 'sensitive' seems to have negative connotations in American society but the when I took the self test (link at the end of this post), I scored pretty high on it.

This book not only validated so much of what I've felt for most, if not all, of my life, but also helped me to gain a more objective perspective on my own childhood which resulted in greater compassion for myself and family members.

A little about the author and the HSP trait also known as Sensory Processing Sensitivity (SPS):

Elaine Aron has a doctoral degree in clinical psychology and a thriving psychotherapy practice. She is the first therapist to tell HSPs how to identify their trait and make the most of it in everyday situations. Highly Sensitive People have an uncommonly sensitive nervous system - a normal occurrence, according to Aron. "About 15 to 20 percent of the population have this trait. It means you are aware of subtleties in your surroundings, a great advantage in many situations. It also means you are more easily overwhelmed when you have been out in a highly stimulating environment for too long, bombarded by sights and sounds until you are exhausted." An HSP herself, Aron reassures other Highly Sensitives that they are quite normal. Their trait is not a flaw or a syndrome, nor is it a reason to brag. It is an asset they can learn to use and protect.

In defining the Highly Sensitive Person, Dr. Aron provides examples of characteristic behaviors, and these are reflected in the questions she typically asks patients or interview subjects:

• Are you easily overwhelmed by such things as bright lights, strong smells, coarse fabrics, or sirens nearby?
• Do you get rattled when you have a lot to do in a short amount of time?
• Do you make a point of avoiding violent movies and TV shows?
• Do you need to withdraw during busy days, into bed or a darkened room or some other place where you can
  have privacy and relief from the situation?
• Do you make it a high priority to arrange your life to avoid upsetting or overwhelming situations?
• Do you notice or enjoy delicate or fine scents, tastes, sounds, or works of art?
• Do you have a rich and complex inner life?
• When you were a child, did your parents or teachers see you as sensitive or shy?

Dr. Aron explains that in the past HSPs have been called "shy," "timid," "inhibited," or "introverted," but these labels completely miss the nature of the trait. Thirty percent of HSPs are actually extraverts. HSPs only appear inhibited because they are so aware of all the possibilities in a situation. They pause before acting, reflecting on their past experiences. If these were mostly bad experiences, then yes, they will be truly shy. But in a culture that prefers confident, "bold" extraverts, it is harmful as well as mistaken to stigmatize all HSPs as shy when many are not. In The Highly Sensitive Person, Dr. Aron reframes these stereotyping words and their common application to the HSP in a more positive light and helps HSPs use and view these aspects of their personality as strengths rather than weaknesses.

Sensitivity is anything but a flaw. Many HSPs are often unusually creative and productive workers, attentive and thoughtful partners, and intellectually gifted individuals. According to Dr. Aron, HSPs could contribute much more to society if they received the right kind of attention - and her national bestseller proves that this 15 to 20 percent of the population is eager to get off on the right foot in asserting their unique personality trait.

Click to expand...

_http://www.hsperson.com/pages/hsp.htm

One thing I'd like to stress about the book is that as with Women Who Run With the Wolves isn't just helpful for women, but men as well, I think THSP can be very useful for those who don't consider themselves highly sensitive as the information in it can be helpful in understanding those who are. In addition, because I view HSP more along the lines of a continuum as opposed to a 'boxed set' of behaviors, perhaps many people may recognize some of their own coping mechanisms that stem from some form or another of sensory awareness.

The chapters:

1. The Facts About Being Highly Sensitive A (Wrong) Sense of Being Flawed
This chapter emphasizes the individual's unique capabilities and assists in the dismantling of the wrongly held beliefs the person may have had about themselves whether through narcissistic wounding and/or societal/cultural programming. By doing so, it validates the individual by allowing them to take the first step towards letting go of shame and becoming more self accepting.

2. Digging Deeper: Understanding Your Trait for All That It Is
The focus here is more on the scientific evidence surrounding the trait and how it can manifest. Aron does this in order to quell any remaining doubts that SPS isn't just 'all in our heads' but is a very real occurrence which further helps with accepting that reality of the situation which is always the first step in dealing with anything.

3. General Health and Lifestyle for HSPs: Loving and Learning From Your Infant/Body Self
Aron the reader on a journey starting from the perspective of the infant - the preverbal stage where it seems that life is all about sensation. She explores what can happen when the infant doesn't feel safe and the different attachment styles that can occur depending upon the sensitivity level of the infant as well as the parenting style of the caretaker. She also touches briefly on the importance of boundaries.

4. Reframing Your Chidhood and Adolescence: Learning to Parent Yourself
Here she suggests reframing one's childhood and further addresses attachment. In addition, she helps the reader to understand how HSP can manifest in children and adolescents - how some can be very quiet while others can seem to be quite boisterous and 'difficult' to take. Gifted children are also briefly discussed as well as ways to reparent the self.

Just a note here for those with children, you may be interested in reading one of Aron's other books: The Highly Sensitive Child: Helping our Children Thrive When the World Overwhelms Them.
_http://www.hsperson.com/pages/child.htm

5. Social Relationships: The Slide into "Shy"
HSPs can consider themselves shy due to being told so by those who don't understand the trait. Aron instead uses the term 'social discomfort' which I also think is more accurate. Because HSPs can feel overwhelmed in social situations, this discomfort can often and incorrectly be interpreted as shyness.

She clarifies that while HSPs may seem unsociable, they are not. What happens it that they have a heightened awareness of information in it's various forms (sound, sight, etc), they can have greater difficulty navigating the same situations (parties, large crowds, etc) that many others find enjoyable. Instead HSPs in general, tend to prefer smaller groups and have a few close knit friends.

What's also interesting is that she makes the distinction between introversion and HSPs. While 70% of HSPs are considered introverted, I don't think this holds true for every HSP.

She cites Jung's philosophy and gives advice on how to navigate social situations, relationships and developing social skills.

6. Thriving at Work: Follow Your Bliss and Let Your Light Shine Through
This section highlights the challenges HSPs can sometimes face regarding choosing work that is more suited to the trait and how many work environments don't value it. What's also nice is that she goes into how knowing yourself better as an HSP can help you to deal with typical situations that everyone faces at whatever job you currently have.

7. Close Relationships: The Challenge of Sensitive Love
Insecure attachment (whether anxious-ambivalent or avoidant) in childhood plays a big role in who people choose to have relationships with and how they may play out. In this chapter, she talks about the research done on how aroused people may be more prone to falling in love, the importance of honest communication, the need for time alone and reflective listening.

8. Healing the Deeper Wounds: A Different Process for HSPs
Because the past affects our present so much, different healing methods are suggested (cognitive-behavioral, interpersonal, physical and spiritual) and explained so that one can determine what may be best suited for them.

There is also a checklist called "Assessing the Wounds of Childhood" that may help the reader determine what they most need to work on.

9. Medics, Medications, and HSPs: "Shall I Listen to Prozac to Talk Temperament With My Doctor?"
This is basically a call to take responsibility for your own health care by understanding what your needs are and thus makes no suggestions but rather gives information on dealing with those in the medical profession, how the trait can be misunderstood by healthcare professionals, and rewriting your past medical care experiences in order to heal from them.

I thought it was important that she made the distinction between taking medications in a crisis as opposed to using them to try and 'cure' oneself. She also seems to lean quite a bit towards alternative and natural treatments (massage, tea, etc).

10. Soul and Spirit: Where True Treasure Lies
Aron discusses the quest for meaning in one's life via spirituality, religion and different philosophies. Some of the information relates to empaths, some dreams and prophesies, and a couple of stories sound to me like little more than alien abductions or even screen memories, not sure.

While I didn't get too much out of this chapter, I think what she was trying to address as many needs as possible for the reader in order to help them find some connection to themselves.

The last few pages (titled below) give some good advice in general for working with HSPs:

"Tips for Healthcare Professionals Working With Highly Sensitive People"
"Tips for Teachers Working With Highly Sensitive People"
"Tips for Employers of Highly Sensitive People"

Thank you. This has always been a sensitive :D subject for me. Much appreciated.

Thanks for starting this thread truthseeker. I'm currently working my way through "comfort zone" & as a whole, there's some very good information. Much of it describes my life to a tee & I'm glad to see this in print & online. I'm not sure how many people will care to try & understand an HSP, especially in a work environment. I recognize several family members in that list, & I score higher than all of them. I wonder how many people have this & PCS as well? (perfection, control, shame - Dr Aleta Edwards Fear of the Abyss)

A well-written summary, truth seeker. I enjoyed reading it. I have not read the book. Reading the description of the HSP, the impression I got was that they tend to acquire more sensory information from the environment than others. Sometimes the incoming information is more than what a HSP can process adequately with their thinking and feeling (evaluative) functions - so there is a sort of information overload which drives behavioral coping mechanisms like withdrawal. Does that sound right?

From this

HSPs only appear inhibited because they are so aware of all the possibilities in a situation.

Click to expand...

it seems that what Jung termed as the function of intuition is overactive. In Jungian psychology, the function of sensation attends to sensory stimuli while the function of intuition which "sees possibilities inherent in any situation" is related to the perception of the unconscious. This function is also related to creativity and imagination. Since Aron mentions Jung in her book, does she refer to the intuitive function?

Thanks truth seeker. Interesting timing that you posted this as a couple of days ago I helped a fellow student with her research on HSP's by filling in a questionnaire, the questions and the answers I gave then prompted me to go through the checklist on the website you mentioned, and since then I've been thinking about that I might be a HSP to some extent at least. It does clarify some of the things I've been struggling to understand (and thought to be some kind of weakness of mine).

Thanks for sharing truth seeker! I came across this book some weeks before myself and at that time I was not sure if I should buy this one or not. Now I like to and give it a go :).

Thank you so much for this review truthseeker. I just ordered a copy for myself as I could check all of the boxes but two on the test. It certainly adds a deeper perspective on many issues.

I wonder also if intuition is meant in the same way as Jung means as Obyvatel asked. I score high on the N function on the Meyers Briggs assessments so it seems it maybe at the very least related. Would need a bigger sample size, though, to gage correctly, of course.

Arreis13 said:

Thank you. This has always been a sensitive :D subject for me. Much appreciated.

Click to expand...

I hope it helps. :) I'd forgotten to put the link for the test in to make it a bit easier in case people don't have the book yet:

_http://www.hsperson.com/pages/test.htm

H-kqge said:

Thanks for starting this thread truthseeker. I'm currently working my way through "comfort zone" & as a whole, there's some very good information. Much of it describes my life to a tee & I'm glad to see this in print & online. I'm not sure how many people will care to try & understand an HSP, especially in a work environment. I recognize several family members in that list, & I score higher than all of them. I wonder how many people have this & PCS as well? (perfection, control, shame - Dr Aleta Edwards Fear of the Abyss)

Click to expand...

Yeah, those newsletters are pretty helpful.

I was reading about PCS as well and wouldn't be surprised to find out that there is an overlap. There may also be some overlap regarding empaths in the reading I've done so far but I'm still researching that.

I'm not sure if most workplaces would be interested in this information either, but I'm glad she put it out there anyway. The book's become pretty popular, maybe someone will take an interest in it.

obyvatel said:

A well-written summary, truth seeker. I enjoyed reading it. I have not read the book. Reading the description of the HSP, the impression I got was that they tend to acquire more sensory information from the environment than others. Sometimes the incoming information is more than what a HSP can process adequately with their thinking and feeling (evaluative) functions - so there is a sort of information overload which drives behavioral coping mechanisms like withdrawal. Does that sound right?

Click to expand...

Speaking only for myself, that can definitely be the case at times. What seems to happen, as I understand it, is that HSPs need more time to process the information coming in, so it's not necessarily a withdrawal in terms of shutting oneself away (although if the person is unaware of their situation, it can be) but rather can be a time to regain one's equilibrium.

I'm not sure if HSPs tend to acquire more sensory information than non HSPs or if it's that HSPs perceive the same information everyone else "gets" differently. So an example is those stores that only sell scented candles. I find those a bit overwhelming but non HSPs may be able to go in. We are both aware of the smell, but perceive it differently. What might be interesting to find out is if those who don't feel bothered by the sensory information still experience the effects of it. Using the scented candle example above, maybe they are fine with the smell, yet later on get a headache or feel drained. Maybe HSPs are sort of a canary in the coal mine in a sense (no pun intended).

obyvatel said:

From this

HSPs only appear inhibited because they are so aware of all the possibilities in a situation.

Click to expand...

it seems that what Jung termed as the function of intuition is overactive. In Jungian psychology, the function of sensation attends to sensory stimuli while the function of intuition which "sees possibilities inherent in any situation" is related to the perception of the unconscious. This function is also related to creativity and imagination. Since Aron mentions Jung in her book, does she refer to the intuitive function?

Click to expand...

Here's what Aron has to say about the different functions:

THSP page 221 - Soul and Spirit said:

In general, anything that has been our particular specialty has to be balanced by it's opposite, what we are bad at or afraid of trying. One polarity Jungians talk about is the two ways of taking in information, through sensation (just the facts) or intuition (the subtle meanings of the facts). Another polarity is the two ways of deciding about the information we take in, through thinking (based on logic or what appears to be universally true) or feelings (based on personal experience and what appears to be good for ourselves and others we care about).

We each have out specialty from among these four "functions" - sensing, intuiting, thinking and feeling. For HSPs it is often intuition. (Thinking and feeling are both common among HSPs.) However, if you are introverted as are 70 percent of HSPs - you use your specialty mainly in your inner life.

While there are tests designed to tell you which is your specialty, Jung thought we could learn more from careful observation of which function we are worst at. This is the function that regularly humiliates us. Do you feel like a rank amateur when you want to think logically? Or when you have to decide how you personally feel about something? Or when you need to intuit what is going on at a subtle level? Or when you must stick to the facts and details without elaborating, getting creative, or going off into imaginary realms?

No one become equally skilled at using all four functions. But according to Marie_louise von Franz, who wrote a long paper on the development of the "inferior function," working to strengthen this weak and bumbling part of ourselves is an especially valuable path toward wholeness. It puts us in touch with what is buried in the unconscious and therefore make us more in tune with all of it. Like the youngest, most foolish brother in the fairy tales, this function is the one that comes home with the gold.

If you are an intuitive type, (more likely for HSPs), your inferior function would be sensing - sticking to the facts, dealing with the details. Limits in the sensing function show themselves in individualized ways. <snip>

Click to expand...

Oxajil said:

Thanks truth seeker. Interesting timing that you posted this as a couple of days ago I helped a fellow student with her research on HSP's by filling in a questionnaire, the questions and the answers I gave then prompted me to go through the checklist on the website you mentioned, and since then I've been thinking about that I might be a HSP to some extent at least. It does clarify some of the things I've been struggling to understand (and thought to be some kind of weakness of mine).

Click to expand...

It's helped me along those lines as well. Now I feel as if I can stop asking myself "What's wrong with me?"

Gawan said:

Thanks for sharing truth seeker! I came across this book some weeks before myself and at that time I was not sure if I should buy this one or not. Now I like to and give it a go :).

Click to expand...

I'm glad and hope it helps. :)

Cyndi said:

Thank you so much for this review truthseeker. I just ordered a copy for myself as I could check all of the boxes but two on the test. It certainly adds a deeper perspective on many issues.

I wonder also if intuition is meant in the same way as Jung means as Obyvatel asked. I score high on the N function on the Meyers Briggs assessments so it seems it maybe at the very least related. Would need a bigger sample size, though, to gage correctly, of course.

Click to expand...

As I currently understand it, it is. I posted a quote above regarding that and hope it helps :)

edit: clarity

Here is a quote from the book I find interesting. Aparrently Jung was an HSP and did write about them also.

Jung thought very highly of sensitive people, but then he was one himself. That Jung wrote about HSPs is a little- known fact. ( I did not know this when I began my work on the trait.)For example, he said that "a certain innate sensitiveness produces a special prehistory, a special way of experiencing infantile events" and that 'events bound up with powerful impressions can never pass off without leaving some trace on sensitive people." Later, Jung began to describe introverted and intuitive types in similar ways, but even more positively.He said they had to be more self-protective - what he meant by being introverted. But he also said that they were " educators and promoters of culture.... their life teaches the other possibility, the interior life, which is so painfully wanting in our civilization.


Such people, Jung said, are naturally more influenced by their unconscious , which gives them information of " utmost importance," a " prophetic foresight". To Jung, the unconscious contains improtant wisdom to be learned. A life lived with deep communication with the unconscious is far more influential and deeply satisfying.


But such a life is also potentially more difficult, especially if in childhood there were too many disturbing experiences without a secure attachment.

Click to expand...

truth seeker said:

One thing I'd like to stress about the book is that as with Women Who Run With the Wolves isn't just helpful for women, but men as well, I think THSP can be very useful for those who don't consider themselves highly sensitive as the information in it can be helpful in understanding those who are. In addition, because I view HSP more along the lines of a continuum as opposed to a 'boxed set' of behaviors, perhaps many people may recognize some of their own coping mechanisms that stem from some form or another of sensory awareness.

Click to expand...

Being a rather down to earth and very skeptical male and having read this book way back in 2002 when the Dutch translation was freshly published (six reprints in that one year) --which was about six years before I discovered this forum with all that encompasses-- I can firmly state that this book helped me enormously in understanding a host of long standing issues which were a nagging nuisance, as well as a severe handicap which up to then I had been unable to handle properly.

I recall a strong sense of relief while reading it, because the text made sense of quite a few things I could not make sense of on my own. The reading started a new hope in me for a possible recovery and offered an impetus to work through my issues again once more in new ways and from a different perspective. I never regretted having bought it, although I couldn't really afford it at the time; in hindsight it proved to be money well spent, as a fruitful investment into better living on the basis of a fuller understanding.

Thanks for starting this topic and sharing your thoughts, truth seeker, as it gives me the opportunity to write down what I just did and strongly recommend this book to anyone who might only even remotely suspect it has something to offer for his/her current situation. It's very readable I think, and awfully practical and down to earth. It offers valuable insights to everyone -- even when you yourself wouldn't be highly sensitive, as it helps understand the quirks of those who are.

@ Cyndi: Not only Jung was an HSP but so was Friedrich Nietzsche, as I was reminded of in a post just recently which I couldn't find right now.

Here's a link to a paper written by Aron titled Revisiting Jung's Concept of Innate Sensitiveness for anyone interested:

_http://www.psychologytoday.com/files/attachments/36190/japaronjune04sensitiveness.pdf

Palinurus said:

Being a rather down to earth and very skeptical male and having read this book way back in 2002 when the Dutch translation was freshly published (six reprints in that one year) --which was about six years before I discovered this forum with all that encompasses-- I can firmly state that this book helped me enormously in understanding a host of long standing issues which were a nagging nuisance, as well as a severe handicap which up to then I had been unable to handle properly.

I recall a strong sense of relief while reading it, because the text made sense of quite a few things I could not make sense of on my own. The reading started a new hope in me for a possible recovery and offered an impetus to work through my issues again once more in new ways and from a different perspective. I never regretted having bought it, although I couldn't really afford it at the time; in hindsight it proved to be money well spent, as a fruitful investment into better living on the basis of a fuller understanding.

Thanks for starting this topic and sharing your thoughts, truth seeker, as it gives me the opportunity to write down what I just did and strongly recommend this book to anyone who might only even remotely suspect it has something to offer for his/her current situation. It's very readable I think, and awfully practical and down to earth. It offers valuable insights to everyone -- even when you yourself wouldn't be highly sensitive, as it helps understand the quirks of those who are.

Click to expand...

I couldn't have put it any better.

obyvatel said:

A well-written summary, truth seeker. I enjoyed reading it. I have not read the book. Reading the description of the HSP, the impression I got was that they tend to acquire more sensory information from the environment than others. Sometimes the incoming information is more than what a HSP can process adequately with their thinking and feeling (evaluative) functions - so there is a sort of information overload which drives behavioral coping mechanisms like withdrawal. Does that sound right?

Click to expand...

Inded, it is a well-written summary. I read the book many months ago and I truly appreciated it.

It helped me quite a lot and I would recommend it to everyone.

truth seeker said:

I'm not sure if HSPs tend to acquire more sensory information than non HSPs or if it's that HSPs perceive the same information everyone else "gets" differently. So an example is those stores that only sell scented candles. I find those a bit overwhelming but non HSPs may be able to go in. We are both aware of the smell, but perceive it differently. What might be interesting to find out is if those who don't feel bothered by the sensory information still experience the effects of it. Using the scented candle example above, maybe they are fine with the smell, yet later on get a headache or feel drained. Maybe HSPs are sort of a canary in the coal mine in a sense (no pun intended).

Click to expand...

I'm not sure that HSP acquire more sensory information but my understanding of the book is that HSP are more conscious of the available information. Entering in a room, a HSP will note quite easily lot of details while a non HSP will not consciously see them.

If y'all liked HSP, you should also check out Dabrowski's stuff. He goes into more detail on the types of 'overexcitabilities' that contribute to developmental potential.

Thanks for posting this truthseeker, it is much appreciated. I scored high on the self-test as well. This below was what resonated with me the most:

[quote author=truthseeker]
5. Social Relationships: The Slide into "Shy"
HSPs can consider themselves shy due to being told so by those who don't understand the trait. Aron instead uses the term 'social discomfort' which I also think is more accurate. Because HSPs can feel overwhelmed in social situations, this discomfort can often and incorrectly be interpreted as shyness.

She clarifies that while HSPs may seem unsociable, they are not. What happens it that they have a heightened awareness of information in it's various forms (sound, sight, etc), they can have greater difficulty navigating the same situations (parties, large crowds, etc) that many others find enjoyable. Instead HSPs in general, tend to prefer smaller groups and have a few close knit friends.

What's also interesting is that she makes the distinction between introversion and HSPs. While 70% of HSPs are considered introverted, I don't think this holds true for every HSP.

She cites Jung's philosophy and gives advice on how to navigate social situations, relationships and developing social skills.[/quote]

I am shy and for being assertive takes enormous amounts of inner energy. Mind you the assertiveness issue could also be due to a number of other factors (be-nice programs, turn the other cheek, narcissistic wounding and boundary issues etc). Public speaking is trying as well, but less so if I am passionate about the topic (it is an art form, or so I think). So the question I have is this- in regards to the Work (which I am very new at, and have not read all the books), is shyness a hallmark of self-importance? In another thread somewhere (or perhaps it was the Knowledge and Being videos), it was mentioned that how people react to being asked to participate in Karaoke could be a gauge for determining their own self-importance. I would be mortified at having to sing (which I do badly to begin with) and especially in a room full of people I don't know. It would be externally considerate for all involved Not to hear me sing! ;D

Thanks for starting this truthseeker -- I think it will be helpful to a lot of people. I had started to read The Highly Sensitive Person several weeks ago and unfortunately had to put it aside in deference to some more pressing matters, but I intend to finish it as soon as I have the opportunity.

I also score very high on the HSP self-evaluation, and coming across this information was very liberating for me as well. It makes sense of a lot of my childhood experience up through the present, and I really want to go back and give my younger self a big hug. There were many instances when I reacted in certain ways to situations that most other kids didn't and was teased and laughed at for it -- in one case, my mom was even bullied by another mother (!) because she was afraid I was going to "rub off" on her son.

I cried about things that most other kids wouldn't, like watching "When the Red Fern Grows" when the dog dies at the end, or seeing a bunch of other boys chase a mouse in choir practice one day until they were able to step on it and crush it's skull. I also lived in my head a lot (which doesn't work so well when you're doing something like playing soccer), and was overwhelmed in certain situations that didn't seem like such a big deal for most other kids.

I think that without this information, there tends to be a lot of cross-projection between HSPs and non-HSPs onto each other. Non-HSPs do tend to stigmatize HSPs as "weak", "overly sensitive", and so on, and HSPs see non-HSPs as being stronger and generally "having it more together" and wonder what's wrong with them that they can't be that way. Without an understanding of the difference between the two groups, it would be difficult for things to be otherwise.

I also thought about this when I read this story on SOTT a couple weeks ago:

Verbal, physical abuse have similar affects on children

Although overt verbal abuse is not appropriate in any situation, it's nevertheless accepted more than physical abuse because it's not as overt; I think that HSPs will react strongly to this, and that there will be a perceived level of abuse that might not occur in the case of a non-HSP (at least not as traumatically).

Dr. Aron explains that in the past HSPs have been called "shy," "timid," "inhibited," or "introverted," but these labels completely miss the nature of the trait. Thirty percent of HSPs are actually extraverts. HSPs only appear inhibited because they are so aware of all the possibilities in a situation. They pause before acting, reflecting on their past experiences. If these were mostly bad experiences, then yes, they will be truly shy. But in a culture that prefers confident, "bold" extraverts, it is harmful as well as mistaken to stigmatize all HSPs as shy when many are not.

Click to expand...

obyvatel said:

It seems that what Jung termed as the function of intuition is overactive. In Jungian psychology, the function of sensation attends to sensory stimuli while the function of intuition which "sees possibilities inherent in any situation" is related to the perception of the unconscious. This function is also related to creativity and imagination.

Click to expand...

This is another point that seems rather important to me -- it does seem accurate. To the extent that any of us are actually aware of multiple probabilities -- and I don't think it has to all be related to past experience -- this is likely to cause overload for the HSP. I think that there are at least two potential reactions to it: either to get bogged down and freeze up in the way that Aron seems to be describing, or to learn to ignore it, which can lead almost to a certain kind of impulsiveness because one is choosing to ignore all possibilities and make decisions using a different modality of cognition. Either strategy will appear limited or defective to an observer who doesn't happen to struggle with the same sense of overwhelm resulting from these juncture points with multiple inherent possibilities.