For me a big part of being Highly Sensitive is that I experience things intensely and through my heightened senses I notice details and subtleties in my environment. This can cause me great agony at times and I can struggle to make sense of my sensory experiences. I sometimes wish I could just switch off and be impermeable but as I grow older I am learning to treasure the pleasures that my senses can bring me both physically, emotionally and spiritually. Through my senses I can really nurture myself and I can connect with and enjoy the world around me on deep levels.

John O’Donohue writes beautifully about the senses in his book “Anam Cara” and he describes the senses as divine thresholds.

Here is his blessing for the senses (Anam Cara, p. 105)

May your body be blessed.
May you realise that your body is a faithful and beautiful friend of your soul
And may you be peaceful and joyful and recognize that your senses are sacred thresholds.
May you realise that holiness is mindful gazing, feeling, hearing and touching.
May your senses gather you and bring you home.
May your senses always enable you to celebrate the universe and the mystery and possibilities in your presence here.
May the Eros of the Earth bless you.

Here is a nice overview of how to cope with sensory overload http://recovery-community.tumblr.com/post/88654102707/sensory-overload-and-how-to-cope-click-on