Are there textures you can't bear to touch?

[HelzBelz]

I'm reluctant to say this, but running water! I hate holding my hands under a running tap or being in the sea or river. I struggle with showers but love a bath or lazing in the pool as long as no one else is in it. If water is moving, I find it soothing to be near but don't like it moving over my skin. Yes, I keep myself clean, but it's a struggle at times!

 

[Datura]

I can't think of any textures that I can't bear to tuch, but there as some I would rather not.
Soggy food is the worst. It sickens me and makes me feel contaminated just touching it.
Microcloth also bothers me. I can feel countless tiny hooks clinging to the very surface of my skin in a fassion that is most disconcerting.
Though it doesn't bother me now I used to find it physically painful to touch the skin of a zucchini. It was so bad I would cry.

 

[xudo]

Things like this. If they were soft spines on there then fine, but solid ones These are dryer balls, but my sister has a dog chew for her rat dog that's bigger but very similar and I can't stand to touch it. Even the thought of something like this makes my skin crawl as I can imagine exactly what it would feel like. The only other thing I can think of is deflating balloons. You know when they've been hanging about for a while, gradually losing air? And then you think "hmm, better throw them away" and you go to pick one up and the rubber just sort of shrivels when you touch it? Yeah, that. Makes me feel physically sick.

 

[Atreyu]

Pantyhose and microfiber dish cloths. I have a soft microfiber blanket that i love, so not all microfiber is made the same. In particular I'm talking about these.

I hate any cloth that "sticks" to skin. Particularly dry skin. My hands and feet are rough from working and I don't like the way it makes me feel. It gives me chills and makes me want to clench my teeth.

 

[deedledee90]

For me it's most anything wet:
Wet Hair that has fallen into the shower
Cold wet washcloths
Wet paper products
Also small soap suds
And more.
Also I don't know if it's relevant but also I can't watch someone brush their teeth without gagging. It grosses me out. I even avoid looking in the mirror when I brush my own teeth.

 

[deedledee90]

View attachment 33993

Things like this. If they were soft spines on there then fine, but solid ones These are dryer balls, but my sister has a dog chew for her rat dog that's bigger but very similar and I can't stand to touch it. Even the thought of something like this makes my skin crawl as I can imagine exactly what it would feel like. The only other thing I can think of is deflating balloons. You know when they've been hanging about for a while, gradually losing air? And then you think "hmm, better throw them away" and you go to pick one up and the rubber just sort of shrivels when you touch it? Yeah, that. Makes me feel physically sick.

When I was younger I had a true fear of those "koosh balls" with the finer strings. I don't anymore but I generally avoid them. I totally get this.

 

[Diagnosed2015]

It wasn't until the most recent diagnosis that we put together the sensory issues my children had and I realized I had my own.

1. My kids wouldn't sleep on bedsheets
2. One child had to be swaddled in blankets (even if it was sweltering outside)
3. Two had acute hearing
4. One wouldn't eat certain foods, etc.

For me,
1) I could never wear turtlenecks comfortably
2) I don't wear sleeves that cling; prefer short sleeve t-shirts over everything else
3) I don't wear makeup (I can 'feel' it -- greasy)
4) I don't like to be touched
5) I don't touch newspaper or newsprint unless I have Windex or hand cleaner close by (usually Windex)
6) I have acute hearing, I'm more apt to freak out over distracting noise than I am about touch
7) I remember when I was younger, I found corduroy to be very sensual, but no longer

There's more -- but -- Aspies often have several sensory issues

 

[amusicalheart]

I hate the feeling of plastic gloves or a raincoat against my skin, especially when I'm hot and sweaty. I nearly freak out when anyone or anything inadvertently brushes up against me; not sure how to explain it but it almost makes me angry and I want to swat whatever is touching me away. I however don't mind firm pressure but I don't like hugs except from certian people. Not sure if that was an answer or not since it wasn't specifically about texture.

I asked a lot of NTs about this and hardly anyone related ever.

I ok with most things, but I cannot bare to touch metal, wire wound guitar strings, and any plastic that has ridges of a similar size and frequency.

I get a horrible, skin crawling feeling that is very strong.

 

[garnetflower13]

The texture of certain fabrics like velvet, silk, and other cheap synthetic fabrics which I don't know the names of, memory foam. Also, I absolutely cannot handle cutting up raw chicken or putting my hand inside one. Ugh!

 

[toothless]

anything rough i get massive overload throughout me if i touch it,or if i walk in my wetroom i cant stand the feeling of the floor on my feet even if im wearing shoes i can feel it.
i cant tolerate water it riddles me with pain and overload,i know its not a texture as such [or is it?] but i only started using water in my twenties,up till then i did baby wipe washes.
and like others-slugs/snails,however,my patio is always covered in slugs and snails as i feed the local stray moggies including our facilities resident stray;'black cat', but i have to pick these snails/slugs up in order to remove them off the food bowls or if i spot one drowning in the water bowl i will remove it,or if they are in the middle of the way of us doing the rabbit hutch every day i will move them to avoid them being walked on,i love the little buggers so i will do anything to help them despite being in sensory agony when i touch them,they cant help having that horrible sludge on them,they have that so a possible partner can find them.

 

[Mary Terry]

I'm NT and I share most of the aversions mentioned in this thread. I don't mind touching plastic dish scrubbers and love watermelon, but despise microfiber cloths and any kind of clothing made of synthetic materials. I hate any kind of food that is grainy like crumbled cornbread in chili, and chia seeds and poppy seeds on food, but do like creamy grits and polenta with butter. Sweet potatoes are gross to me - they have a strange texture and flavor and remind me of earwax. Yuck.

 

[Mary Terry]

Oh, yeah, tapioca is the worst.

 

[ladybug]

I cannot stand the feel of wet balls of cotton wool...
I cannot stand limp (dead fish ) handshakes of people, who cannot grip properly....
I ** LOVE ** the pop of bubble wrap...

 

[Full Steam]

anything rough i get massive overload throughout me if i touch it,or if i walk in my wetroom i cant stand the feeling of the floor on my feet even if im wearing shoes i can feel it.
i cant tolerate water it riddles me with pain and overload,i know its not a texture as such [or is it?] but i only started using water in my twenties,up till then i did baby wipe washes.
and like others-slugs/snails,however,my patio is always covered in slugs and snails as i feed the local stray moggies including our facilities resident stray;'black cat', but i have to pick these snails/slugs up in order to remove them off the food bowls or if i spot one drowning in the water bowl i will remove it,or if they are in the middle of the way of us doing the rabbit hutch every day i will move them to avoid them being walked on,i love the little buggers so i will do anything to help them despite being in sensory agony when i touch them,they cant help having that horrible sludge on them,they have that so a possible partner can find them.

You do well, I've never touched a slug in my life. I've eaten snails though, but they aren't slimy when cooked.

I think I'd get kitchen tongues to do that.

Funny, I mind fish, sea food, or are meat, but I've never touched a slug and never want to.

 

[Ambi]

I asked a lot of NTs about this and hardly anyone related ever.

I ok with most things, but I cannot bare to touch metal, wire wound guitar strings, and any plastic that has ridges of a similar size and frequency.

I get a horrible, skin crawling feeling that is very strong.

Fabric, cardboard, and carpet. I can't stand the friction feeling or sound of it being rubbed. Brief, momentary instances don't register - thankfully! But otherwise, I can't even stand the sound of it when others do it!

 

[Melissa]

I'm NT - Styrofoam peanuts!

 

[Questella]

Tapioca pudding and cottage cheese, just gross, I don't even know what they taste like because there texture is so gross I could never imagine having it in my mouth.

And having chalk on my hands, like sidewalk chalk, my kid plays with it outside but I can't and when it's wet from getting rained on, omg what's up with that?

I'm NT - Styrofoam peanuts!

I haven't seen these in ages, thank goodness, they're so bad for just everything.

 

[Stitch]

Oh, how can I list all the textures that bother me? Any synthetic fiber, especially in socks and shirts. Anything slimy in the bottom of the sink. Furry animals. (I prefer reptiles.) And I can stand yarn but I'd pick almost any other cloth first. I know there are more I'm forgetting.
As far as textures in my mouth? ...yeah, I hate almost all of them. My parents had a daunting task in front of them when teaching me to 'train yourself to eat things you don't like'. I was always extremely touchy about trying new foods, so the first time I had seconds of a new dish they took a picture to commemorate the occasion.

 

[Gerti]

WOOL - and just about anything made from wool. When I touch it I get tingling sensation ALL over my body (not just my hands). When I was a young girl, I was ejected from a local girl scout group in my country because of the fits I would throw when the troop manager tried to put that wool sash around my neck and force me to wear the little wool hats. Eventually I was asked not to return!
Wool and felt products have always been a big problem for me, even as an adult.

-BRASS (anything that looks or smells like brass leaves a strange coating that I can "feel on my skin until it is completely washed away.

-Human HANDS (I think it is the texture of the fingerprint grooves or something, but I get strange electronic sensations that pulse through me when someone puts their hand to my skin. And if they are wet or too cold or too hot, or too anything - forget it, I just can't deal with it. During sex or intimate moments with another, this is not usually a problem for me, but I think in those moments my mind has already created the needed distractions in advance without any effort from me specifically - LOL!.
Also I can touch animals (fur or skin) without any problem - it is only related to human flesh that triggers my involuntary reactions.

-Metal FILES or metal objects with a lined surface - anything made of a case hardened steel with sharp lines or patterns with parallel teeth or edges like nail files or metal tools for resurfacing

-My own DRY SKIN - I hate touching just about ANY surface if my hands are excessively dry, same with my feet, I can't walk around with extremely dry feet either, my spine ends up with little spasms, it is really quite annoying!!

The texture of an open flame often offends me too, LOLOL!!!

 

[Gritches]

Oh, also: When you're eating Cheetohs or something similar, that cheese dust that cakes up on your fingers.

It averts me enough that I don't eat any kind of food that leaves residue on my fingertips.