When The World Is Too Loud

The coffee machine hissed and grumbled. The dishes clanged in the sink. The juice blender roared. The construction site opposite the café was a ruckus with all the hammering and sawing. The honking and revving of the traffic intensified by the minute. The rumbling of trucks made the walls vibrate. The neighborhood dogs barked as if in a fight. Club music blasted from the speakers even though it was only 11 AM. The crowd in the small cafe chatted pleasantly, their voices bouncing off the walls. The person at the table on my right was having a video call. On my left, a person’s phone pinged with each incoming text.

I popped in my earplugs and sighed with relief.

“What’s that in your ears? Is it a hearing aid?” asked my new friend Tina, seated opposite me.

“They’re just earplugs,” I smile awkwardly.

“Why though? Is it too loud for you?” she frowns, glancing around the cafe.

“Yeah. I have noise sensitivity. The earplugs help me tune out background noise so I can focus on your voice.”

“Oh,” she chuckles, looking relieved, “I thought you just didn’t want to listen to me anymore.”

“No no. Nothing like that. It helps me hear you better actually.”

“That’s so interesting. I also have trouble focusing when there’s noise in the background.”

“I get that. It’s not just about the volume though. It’s the complexity of all the different noises going on at the same time.”

“Yeah, you’re right! Maybe I’ll try them too.”

“I got you, sis.”

Before I discovered earplugs, I often wondered why my energy got so drained whenever I socialized at a dinner party or networking event. I would arrive at the party excited to see my friends and to meet new people. Within half an hour, without fail, I would feel overwhelmed and cranky. I chalked it up to my introversion; however, I discovered it’s more than that.

Noise sensitivity is one aspect of sensory sensitivity, which refers to heightened senses that are hypersensitive to stimuli. My internal volume settings are always turned up to the maximum, so I hear all the surrounding sounds without being able to tune them out. This can be disorienting and uncomfortable.

Quite frankly, it made me question my sanity a few times. For instance, I used to work at a customer service call center. I once expressed to my colleague at the office, “I can hear the electricity. Can you hear it?”

We fell silent, listening.

I heard the buzzing of the fluorescent lights, the blinking of one of the lightbulbs, the whirring of the fridge, the high-pitched whistle from the TV in the other room even if the volume was off, the hum of computers, the rattling of the air purifier machine, the beeping of the door every time someone tagged their keycard, and the dull hum of the air conditioning.

“I don’t hear anything. Just the phones ringing,” my colleague shrugged. She readjusted her headset and went back to work.

I felt like an idiot for being bothered by something that clearly did not affect any of my co-workers. Back then, earplugs were not possible because I had to wear a headset to talk on the phone all day.

Now that I can wear them everywhere, I feel much calmer.

Here’s what one study I found has to say about it:

“How does the work of a person who is overwhelmed by all kinds of stimuli look to that person? At its worst, the work and its environment are absolutely chaotic: a bombardment of strong, senseless stimuli that effectively disrupt every task. As a result, the work is incomprehensible and unmanageable, while it is robbed of its meaning as well. This works the other way around as well: when one gives up understanding and managing work and its environment and stops giving meaning to it, it becomes a source of chaotic stimulation.”

Noise sensitivity is linked to Sensory Processing Sensitivity (SPS) which in turn is linked to neurodivergence and Highly Sensitive Persons (HSP). It’s more common than people think; they’re just not aware of it.

The World Health Organization says:

“Some groups are more vulnerable to noise. As children spend more time in bed than adults, they are more exposed to night noise. Chronically ill and elderly people are more sensitive to disturbance. Shift workers are at increased risk because their sleep structure is under stress. In addition, the less affluent who cannot afford to live in quiet residential areas or have adequately insulated homes, are likely to suffer disproportionately.

Nuisance at night can lead to an increase in medical visits and spending on sleeping pills, which affects families’ budgets and countries’ health expenditure. The gap between rich and poor is likely to increase if governments fail to address noise pollution.”

Noise sensitivity is no joke. One of my friends says “You have super hearing! Consider it a superpower.” I wish I had her positive attitude about it. For those of us who experience it, all those constant sounds and racket can honestly make us feel overwhelmed and drained, even if it doesn’t seem like a big deal to others. The good news is, we’re not alone! Lots of people have this heightened sensory awareness thing going on.

Using inexpensive earplugs has been a total game-changer for me in crowded situations. I really wish I had discovered them sooner! If you struggle with noise too, I’d encourage you to give earplugs a try.

Having a way to turn the excess noise down is such a simple solution, but it can make a huge difference in feeling calm and focused. At the end of the day, a little more understanding of different sensory needs can go a long way in making environments more inclusive for everyone.

We’re all just wired a bit differently!