So I was just thinking about how some senses get heightened to compensate when another has been weakened, and I was wondering how many of you have ever experienced this yourselves?

Myself? I actually have a few weakened senses.

When I was a child my ears developed poorly and I had chronic ear infections; as a result I now suffer from some hearing loss in both ears. I generally can't hear people speak unless their voice is being projected towards me, and even then I'll have to resort to lip-reading to fill in some blanks. I'm not fluent in ASL (I know the basics, but not enough to hold a conversation) and I don't have hearing aids - but I get by. =)

I have an astigmatism in both eyes, too - so I need to wear glasses. My sense of smell (and thus taste) are also slightly dulled from a decade of smoking (they've bounced back a bit since I quit a few years ago, but I doubt they'll ever fully recover).

As for my heightened senses?

Touch is the main one. It's a really strange one to have, but I've noticed that my pain tolerance is absolutely through the roof (though I'm always entirely aware of it). The ongoing joke that if I complain about pain, it MUST be bad. I'm also very perceptive of any temperature/weather changes, too. It can sometimes suck, though; since my skin is so sensitive, I can't wear certain materials without it really irritating me (I HATE socks, for example). My wardrobe focuses more on comfort, rather than what's fashionable, since I really can't handle being even remotely uncomfortable. XD

And I know I mentioned I have crap eyes, but despite that I have amazing night vision. My eyes adjust to sudden light changes impressively fast, and it seems I can make out greater details in the dark than anyone else I've met so far. ...Assuming I have my glasses on, of course. =P

Anyways, please feel free to share your own experiences. I'd love to hear about 'em! =D

Well, my eyes are crap. VERY sensitive to light (headache alert), nearly blind in the dark. My sense of smell isn't much better what affects my sense of taste as well of course. Cannot say much about touch BUT to make up for everything else my ears still work like a charm even though I'm 35 years old already. knocks on wood Sometimes that can be a curse as well though, I apparently can hear sounds others can't and especially high-pitched notes can be so damn annoying.

I believe that I have sensory processing issues (no real benefit to getting diagnosed at my age, unfortunately, since it's too late for treatment), especially with touch. I can't wear clothing that is at all tight as it freaks me out. Certain fabrics would make me have anxiety attacks as a little kid and now just make me severely uncomfortable. Normal bed sheets, for example, are a no-no for me.

Loud noises also severely freak me out and have done so for as long as I remember. I can't have soft foods that have something with a "crunch" in it (think mashed potatoes with the skins in them, for example).

I technically need glasses too, but my vision isn't bad enough to where I have to wear them.

For the record, I'm not self-diagnosing. I'm just saying what it sounds exactly like.

; I'm hypersensitive for light and sound. And I recognize not being able to wear certain fabrics. I can't wear wrist watches at all. I have about 5 lying around (because when I was younger people kept insisting on buying me watches), but I just can't wear them. They feel wrong for some reason. This issue seems to be expanding to rings, bracelets, necklaces lately. There is one bracelet I can still wear; it's made of a nice soft leather.

The light sensitivity means that my curtains in my house are almost always closed (at work I just need to deal with it) and I have sunglasses with me at all times even in winter. The sound sensitivity is the most annoying though, because just out of the blue sounds seems to be pressing down on me (like a room full of people that suddenly just sounds like an angry swarm of bees) or a scooter racing past my apartment.

Years of working with animals has dulled my sense of smell (and probably taste, since I'm not much of a foodie and any given food item tastes the same to me along all brands, pretty much). Once you smell certain things, you are scarred for life. o.o I have recently gotten into a relationship, and I'm starting to learn from my new boyfriend that there are certain things that have smells to them that I never even realized. Like apparently water/water fountains have a smell?

I've always wondered what it would be like to have amazing hearing like that. I imagine it'd be nice to not have to ask people to repeat themselves thirty times, or to recognize when I'm being waaay too loud in public. XD

I know what you mean! I still can't touch cotton balls. I have no idea why, but something about them just freaks me right out. It's the same with fleece and flannel. Or those hoodies that have the super-soft fluffy interior? Can't do it, and I have no idea why.

Because I'm hard of hearing, lots of noise happening all at once tends to end up getting all jumbled together and none of it will really register. Like when people start to talk over one another in conversation, or if there's any street noise (which happens a lot; I live downtown). So while it's not exactly the same, I can definitely sympathize with being frustrated by excessive noise.

(Also, sometimes my husband will come home to me hanging out in a pitch-black apartment; I'll have forgotten to turn the lights on and accidentally went about my business in total darkness. XD)

Edit: I actually worked with animals myself for 5 years. Even with a weakened sense of smell, I definitely have a nose for decomp. Probably the most unpleasant odour I have ever come across (to date). D=