Sensory experiences across conditions
One of our projects in the Dizzy Lab is considering the similarities and differences in experiences of subjective sensory sensitivity across different conditions, including PPPD.
Sensory subjective sensitivity refers to first person reports of experiencing different sensory stimuli as aversive or distracting.
For example, disliking loud or sudden noises, bright lights, certain fabrics or textures, strong tastes or certain types of movement. Sensory experiences can also be positive however, such as finding certain textures or movements soothing.
We are interested in what might cause both negative and positive sensory experiences, and how they might affect quality of life.
Published research on this project
We found individuals with (probable) migraine report higher levels of subjective sensory sensitivity. These sensitivities are not limited to those inputs known to trigger migraine (e.g., light), but instead are seen across senses, and were present between migraine attacks. We also found that part of the relationship between migraine and subjective sensory sensitivity was accounted for by anxiety symptoms, indicating partial mediation.
Therefore, anxiety symptoms are relevant to subjective sensitivities between migraine attacks, but sensitivities also appear to exist independently. It may be important to consider the implications of these sensory experiences in the daily lives of those with migraine.
In this paper, we found that PPPD is associated with avoidance and sensitivity to sensory information across all senses (vision and vestibular, but also touch, hearing, smell and taste). It may be that these sensitivities are driving experiences of ‘sensory overload’, which are sometimes reported by people with PPPD. Sensory overload refers to an inability to focus on the world around you, or a general oversensitivity to information.
Our research is now considering what might underlie visual (and more generally, sensory) overload.