Let's Play AQ-10 • I often notice small sounds when others do not

I thought it could be fun/interesting to go through an autism test question by question, and see what resonates with people, and how we approach thinking about the questions. So to start, here's question 1 of the AQ-10.

1. I often notice small sounds when others do not.

Definitely Agree
Slightly Agree
Slightly Disagree
Definitely Disagree

Is this statement true for you? Can you think of any examples? Is it an easy or difficult question for you to answer?

You can find the full AQ-10 test here. Note this test is intended as a quick screener, and cannot diagnose or rule out any condition on its own.

next post
conclusion and results

24 comments

I notice small sounds, yes. Sibling likes to talk about the time I heard a faint 'tk tk tk' sound and went to find it because it was driving me mad.
It was a spider several feet above my head making a web. The 'tk tk tk' was its legs clicking together as it spun.
- IRL spidey senses
- Wow, what you do about the spider spinning too loudly?
  
  Once I knew what was making the sound, I could ignore it easier! I left the spider be because he was making a web near the door, and that caught outside insects which was good.

It's a definitely agree for me. We had to change some smart light bulbs because they omitted a very high pitched sound that nobody but me could hear. Also had to change our dog walk route because in one of the houses on our old route they bought one of those machines to keep animals away and I almost cried when we passed it. Also can hear phones ring in cars passing our house.
- I'm sure the dog would like to thank you for noticing
  
  He's quite old and almost deaf so it bothered him a lot less 😂

This first one is an easy question for me. Nobody else seems to be bothered by TVs hissing to themselves on standby. Nobody else notices that fridge compressor that squeals when you leave the door open. I'm usually first to notice drips, leaks, animals, equipment left running. I used to be bothered by bat calls, and that's supposedly inaudible to humans.
That's a Definitely Agree for me.
- "What do you mean the thermostat clicks when it engages and that wakes you up?"
  "How can you not hear it??"
- I used to be bothered by bat calls, and that's supposedly inaudible to humans.
  Some species do partially chirp into the human audible range. But yeah it still requires moderately good hearing.
  
  Thanks, that's actually quite validating to know. I'm not sure if hearing is even the right word - I'd just notice I was flinching as if there were a loud noise, and then - hey, there's bats outside. Getting older now, so I think I'm cured of that at least.
- Nobody else seems to be bothered by TVs hissing to themselves on standby
  I'm not the only one that can hear electricity then?

Oh god yes, and it sucks. Especially high pitched sounds that always provoke a panic response from me.
I work with computers, and the sounds that fans make can be super annoying on some devices, especially when they speed up and slow down. As well, I find it hard to sleep sometimes because of the sounds of the fridge in the kitchen in the next room, or some weird rumbling that I think comes from pipes...
I tried using a white noise app on my phone (well, I think it was some other colour; white noise hits those panic producing high notes), but I just got super frustrated at hearing the point where they looped the sample.
Can't say for sure if I can actually hear things others can't, or if it's just that people have the ability to just ignore them.
- or if it’s just that people have the ability to just ignore them
  This is really what is going on most of the time. Their brain filters are working as intended and they can ignore quite a bit of noise. That said, studies have shown the filter has its limits, and after reaching a certain point the noise will cause stress regardless of whether you actively hear it.

I'd rather play AQ20. /s
1, definitely agree. Not diagnosed but several self tests encourage investigating further. I hear sounds all the time everywhere, and I'm especially annoyed by low frequency noise such as ventilation or computer fans, sounds my colleagues do not even notice. It steals my focus which is probably more exhausting than the sound itself.

[x] definitely agree (i think)
see what resonates with people, and how we approach thinking about the questions
^ this! i'm always happy to learn about how others actually function.
Me:
At first, "i have an objection ..." -- but what is it?
-- So, i definitely hear a lot of things which others seem to not notice. But how would i know if this happens often; what to relate that "often" to when people do not usually talk about such things. It just happened often enough when i started talking about it, that i learned to assume that most people don't notice the fine detail.
Then the train of thought is kicked off. I think there is a difference between general sensitivity (sensing) and sensibility (perception) which are not always at a constant level. E.g. i would put it as sensitivity when i can hear the whistling of chargers and power adaptors, a ringing of keys in the pocket or the occasional high-pitched screech of a car's brake. It's due to sensibility when such sounds become disturbing or uncomfortable/painful (other peoples' chewing noises, anyone?).
-- I think this question is about sensitivity.
Single leaves falling from a nearby tree. The sound of fine rain. A woodworm making its way through the furniture. I don't know if others notice that.
As a maker of drums, when a hair got caught under the skin and it makes a tiny snare ... unbearable.
Further, the sensitivity is not just about noticing small noises but it's related to an ability to distinguish components/patterns out of a mixture of sounds as well as distinguish small nuances of sounds. I notice the different perception only when i'm avidly describing why i'm so excited about something.
Vocalists who have several different singing voices which evoke different pictures of that person.
A masterful piece of electronic music where i count 10+ layers, and that minimalist ^pkk-pkk rhythm it started with still stands out.
I discovered they are using binaural beats on trance music dancefloors. There's a slight difference in the bass tones when moving between the speakers. I guess it's in the theta range, literally synchronising people's brainwaves. ...
- Thanks - this is a great answer. With regards to your objections;
  Those vague relative words - your 'often's and 'rarely's - they'll keep coming up as these questions continue. What to compare to? I try to compare to an imagined hypothetical 'typical' person, who has a broadly similar life to me. What does typical mean here? Is my idea of typical the same as the question setters'? Am I accurately imagining their hypothetical existence? Could the question setters have avoided this problem by wording the question differently? A big 'i don't know' to all. It gets me to an answer and that's all I need.
  As for the second point, what the question is specifically about, for me it's significant that they used the word 'notice'. It's not 'do you often hear sounds' or even 'are you often aware of sounds', it's 'do you often notice sounds'. And I think to notice something you have to assign some meaning to it. Whether that's as a coherent thought, associating it with an object in the environment, having an emotional response, getting a physiological reaction. It needs to be in your awareness as a piece of information you can do something with. If you ask someone "do you hear that?", and they furrow their brow for a moment, then go "oh yeah!", then they could hear it the whole time, maybe were even bothered by it, but only in that moment noticed it.

Yeah, I get pretty distracted by certain noises in particular. Lawn equipment is my downfall. I cannot concentrate on anything with gas powered lawn equipment running, and if the noise is present for long enough, I will get frustrated. Before noise cancelling earphones, I have left my house because of this noise. Another one, though it might not be exclusively an autistic thing, is gun shot noises. I hear every single one.
How about "brain shaking"? There are certain noises that make me feel like my brain is literally shaking in my head. Fire alarms, fire trucks, ...anything loud and piercing will make me have this experience. Interestingly, bass tones do not do this. Even if the bass feels like it's going to shake my heart out of my chest, it doesn't do the brain shaking thing.
- I don't know about 'literally shaking' (depends if you mean 'literally literally' or 'figuratively literally' haha). But loud shrill sounds do come with their own unique quality - a sort of pressing/shrinking sensation that leaves a sort of echo even after the sound stops.
  It's tough to know with these sort of things - nobody of any neurotype likes loud annoying noises. But without access to their experience, how can you know if you dislike it in the same way?
  
  Oh yeah, it's literally literal brain-shaking.
  But without access to their experience, how can you know if you dislike it in the same way?
  I don't think there is a definite way. Aside from some fantastic technology or intricate psychological setups, I think the best we can do is compare reactions to stimuli and then talk about differences.

Definitely Agree. I will often pause the television to better hear or track down the source of a barely audible sound...and feel like I can't resume normal activities until I identify it. It really annoys my wife who either doesn't hear it or just isn't as audibly observant...and then I'm annoyed at my wife for having no concern about the bizarre out of ordinary unidentified sound that she is content to ignore.

Slightly agree
I definitely notice little things that others don't, but I often find myself missing small, or even not-so-small sounds that everyone else hears.
Honestly I guess it just corresponds to how dissociated I am at the moment.

I find that I hear a lot of cracking (probably temperature change) at home. I'm sometimes not able to sleep because of that.

24 comments