‘Stop crying, you’re not a baby!’ a teacher once said to me when I told her after class that boys were being mean to me. She decided to accompany me to the principal and inform him of how my classmates were treating me. I was fourteen back then and I was bullied every day. It had become worse after boys started hiding my pens before tests and throwing erasers at my head. The problem was that as a child I never really learnt how to defend myself and I took so many things personally. My classmates knew already from the beginning: she will cry. I’m still sensitive, even in normal situations. I see things that other people don’t notice. I feel something which will leave other people numb. Sensitive people are often seen as weak and annoying. But what do you do when you’re high sensitive? Does it just mean that you will cry more?
According to a German magazine, ‘Highly Sensitive People’ is the American terminology for people who are oversensitive. Many of them live in a world which society does not really tolerate. In our time, you’re supposed to be fast, quick, harsh and have no time for whining. Highly sensitive people are overwhelmed by their environment because they react so delicately to sensory stimuli. So many thoughts and feelings come up when they are in a mass full of people for example. Many aren’t able to attend a concert because there is a huge overrun of perceptions. Despite of these negative experiences, many highly sensitive people are gifted. Some can play the piano as Beethoven, while others are aspiring painters, writers or poets. Their sensitivity allows them to be creative and produce wonderful works of art. It is important to support children from a young age on when they’re diagnosed with high sensitivity. Teachers will then understand their behaviour better and this will make school life easier for them.
In order to make a clear difference, it is better to take part in a test, even just online, in order to make sure that you’re sensitive and not high sensitive. I’m sensitive because I don’t get overwhelmed so fast by my environment. Yes, there are certain things that I sometimes have to avoid because it makes me jittery and nervous, such as a big crowd. That’s why I can’t attend every concert or social gathering, but I don’t have any problems going to the cinema or see a play, because there is a certain order and balance in such places. I’m very sensitive to criticism, mostly negative and I really hate it when someone yells at me. But regardless of that, I love my life and if you’re sensitive like me, I’m sure it has taken some time to accept this trait. And remember you don’t have to justify what makes you emotional. It’s a part of you, embrace it!
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