Had this since before I can remember

I've always worn long sleeves and long pants, even in the heat of summer, have to wear shirts turned inside out to ignore the seams and the tags, no jewelry- no necklaces or bracelets- they'll just feel like they're sawing away at my skin. The slightest touch at the top of my head or the middle of my back feels like insects crawling under my skin. I've never actually put them together before in my mind, always just thought 'that's just how I am', different quirks that had no bearing on each other, until today.

People have offered me so many explanations- 'you're just a naturally reserved person', or 'you have sensitive skin', or one of the weirder ones, 'it's herd behavior, you're getting signals to run from predators through touch'. But this makes so much more sense.

As I went down the list, none of the other categories really fit me, but tactile defensiveness I practically went down the list and checked off every box. It even explains some of the foods I can't stand- onions in particular, I love the taste of onions, but the texture of them feels like eating beetles to me. And the slightest touch of something unexpected when I'm in bed- even if it's just my foot brushing against a pen I've accidentally forgotten to put away- has me lurching back like someone's electrocuted my foot.

Thank you so much for finally offering me an explanation. These things just seem so normal to me, it never really dawned on me that other people might not get them.