Some children are more sensitive than others. Overwhelmed by their emotions, they find it difficult to cope on their own. How do you recognize a hypersensitive child? What are the causes of hypersensitivity? How to help a hypersensitive child? Anne-Claire Kleindienst, clinical psychologist, enlightens us on the subject.

A child is considered hypersensitive when he cannot manage the emotions he feels because they overwhelm him. Unlike other children, his sensory channels are highly developed and he perceives what he is experiencing more intensely. “A hypersensitive child is a child who has sensors that are very open to the world. In addition to his own emotions, he perceives those of those around him and the energies of the places where he evolves ”, develops Anne-Claire Kleindienst.

On a daily basis, the hypersensitivity of a child can manifest itself in several ways:

• A child who has very subtle and sensitive hearing will be able to enter a state of hypnosis if the vibration of the music is harmonious. Conversely, it will be difficult to endure a shrill noise or will not be able to stay long in a room that is too noisy. Sometimes a hypersensitive child hears sounds that others cannot.
• Its sensitivity can also be cutaneous. Thus, if a garment bothers him because of its material or because it is too tight or because of its scratchy label, the hypersensitive child will not stand it.
• If the sensitivity is taste, the child will be able to block certain foods whose flavors and textures he strongly perceives.

“Whatever the channel, the child will be all the more reactive and susceptible as he will be overwhelmed in his capacity to face what is complicated for him”, specifies the psychologist.

To this sensitivity is added a form of intelligence which is characterized by interpretation from perceptions. The problem is that the hypersensitive child’s interpretations often turn into beliefs if they are not taken up and worked on with an adult. “Unfortunately, these beliefs will not always be on the side of the most heartwarming and encouraging beliefs about himself. By virtue of his intelligence and his intransigence, he will always seek to reach a much higher level ”. Consequently, the hypersensitive child is constantly confronted with a gap between his ambition and what he believes to be, which makes him unhappy and anxious. To try to manage this anxiety, the child tries to control everything, to stiffen, to master, to a point where he can no longer do it.

Hypersensitivity is multifactorial:

• It can be hereditary. That is to say, it can be transmitted by one of the two parents. “It should be noted that with epigenetics, we now know that everything experienced marks the cellular memory and is transmitted in the genetic heritage. This discovery is revolutionary because it invites us to let go of guilt and the feeling of fatality to ignite the feeling of responsibility. Understanding that nothing is final, we can decide what we want to experience and what we want to pass on to our children and grandchildren ”.
• It can be linked to experiences in utero, during birth and / or in all the early stages of life. “The memories of the body and all the precocious imprints can be at work in this or that reaction of a child. Some of the archaic reflexes which are normally integrated in the first stages of life may not yet be integrated and generate imbalances, agitations, attention disorders, etc… ”, explains Anne-Claire Kleindienst.
• It can be favored by psycho-affective disorders weakening the child in his security and his inner development.
• Environmental toxicity factors could also be involved in hypersensitivity: endocrine disruptors, excess sugars, overly processed food, dyes, electromagnetic waves, etc.

“By reassuring him, again and again and again!”, insists the psychologist. But how ? By helping them find ways to self-regulate. This obviously does not go through sentences of the type ” do not worry”, “it does not matter” ou “everything is fine”. Concretely, it will be a question of being more flexible and more understanding in the face of the reactions of the child, to put oneself in his place. Then to seek with him solutions allowing him to move forward despite the situations which, for him, are difficult.

These solutions can be meditation, breathing techniques or even activities that allow the child to evacuate an emotional overload through body movements. “The role of parents and adults close to the child is to encourage and support him on this path of progress towards more inner harmony and self-control. That is to say, show him that he can be an architect of his life, that he can activate a wider field of possibilities, that he can be an actor in his life, more committed, more responsible, more respectful towards himself and towards others, in short, more accomplished and fulfilled ”, details Anne-Claire Kleindienst.

If, however, the manifestations of hypersensitivity become disabling on a daily basis and prevent the child from growing serenely, and the parents no longer know how to help him, it is better to consult a specialist.

It is impossible to answer yes or no to this question. Every child is different. But for the psychologist, there are positive aspects in hypersensitivity that it would be a shame to get rid of while growing up just to blend in with the crowd. “What we can wish for these children is to keep intact this ability to feel the world and others, and to feel joined and understood by their adult circle in order to be able to grow up with who they are. So they can be happy hypersensitive adults! ”, concludes the specialist.