HSP Traits and Difficulty with Trains: Things I Reconsidered When Feeling Drained by Personal Space, Noise, and Information Overload
In the morning, I board the train to head to work.
The distance between people is close.
Conversations reach my ears, and various smells are mixed together.
If it's an unfamiliar route, I have to keep worrying about transfers and the station where I need to get off.
Work hasn't even started yet, but by the time I get off the train, I'm already exhausted.
Some people with HSP traits might feel this kind of burden on trains.
I have worked in a job involving interaction with people as a pharmacist for 10 years.
Personally, I am quite uncomfortable with the close proximity to others on trains and in crowds.
I am bothered by voices and smells, and on unfamiliar trains, the amount of information I need to check increases, sometimes making me feel like my head is going to explode.
In this article, rather than just leaving it at "I'm bad with trains," I will break down and organize what is particularly difficult about being on a train.
Building on that, I will also introduce small measures you can try the next time you ride a train.
🫧 Key points of this article
・Even if you are bad with trains, the burden isn't necessarily just one thing
・It is easier to organize if you break it down into personal space, sound, visuals, and travel information
・First, identify just one thing that was the most difficult・For your next ride, think about whether you can reduce that one burden
Being bad with trains isn't necessarily due to one single reason
Personal space, sound, and visible information tend to overlap
On trains, the distance between people becomes close, and conversations or announcements reach your ears.
The movements of people around you and advertisements also enter your field of vision, and there may be times when smells are bothersome.
Even if one thing alone wouldn't bother you, the burden can become significant when several things overlap.
Therefore, before deciding that "I'm just bad with trains," let's try to separate what was difficult.
Unfamiliar trains mean more information to check
When taking a route I'm not used to, there's more to check, such as which platform to use, transfers, and which station to get off at.
When you're trying to navigate while keeping an eye on your surroundings, you tend to have too many things to focus on.
In my case, this abundance of information becomes a burden when I'm on unfamiliar roads or trains.
Even if the travel time is short, I can get quite exhausted on days when there is a lot to check.
I find trains particularly difficult when people are too close
I am very bad at situations where I cannot maintain distance
What I find particularly difficult about trains is the proximity to other people.
I'm okay if there's a certain amount of space, but having to stay close to others for a long time is quite painful.
Moreover, in a crowded train car, you can't always easily move away.
For me, it's not so much that I'm bad with crowds, but rather that the proximity to strangers is a major burden.
Voices and smells can also be a burden
Voices and smells are also things that bother me on trains.
Because there is little conversation on trains, if someone is talking, that voice can sometimes sound strangely piercing.
The quieter the surroundings, the more conversations stand out, making it easy for my attention to be drawn to them.
As for smells, I find it difficult to deal with not just one strong odor, but also a mix of various smells.
Breaking down why I'm bad with trains into four categories
Looking at personal space, noise, visuals, and travel information
On days when you feel exhausted by the train, don't just end it with "the train was tough"; try breaking down the burden.
Look at the following four things.
・Personal space
・Conversations and ambient noise
・Visual information such as people's movements and advertisements
・Travel information such as transfers and route checks
There is no need to analyze everything in detail.
It is enough to just say, "Today, the talking was particularly bothersome" or "The proximity to others was the hardest part."
Choose one thing that was the hardest
The next thing to think about is which of those was the biggest burden.
If you try to change everything at once, the number of countermeasures you have to take will also increase.
Once you know the one thing that was the hardest, it becomes easier to narrow down what to try on your next ride.
Rather than thinking "I'm bad with all trains," breaking it down into "Today, the noise was tough" makes it easier to find areas to adjust.
Reduce just one burden on the next train
Look for things you can change before adding more tools
Once you understand the burden, think about whether you can reduce just one thing next time.
If the proximity to others is tough and you are in a situation where you can move, change your spot.
If the amount of information on an unfamiliar route is a burden, check the route before boarding.
If smells are difficult, there are ways to move to a different spot or use a mask.
If noise is the hardest part, choose the noise-reduction method that works best for you.
You don't have to change everything at once.
🧭 For those who want to know more specific ways to manage stimulation
I have compiled the methods I actually try to reduce stimuli such as sound, visuals, and odors in this article.
You don't have to try to make everything comfortable
On the train, there are things you cannot change yourself.
There will be days when people are talking nearby, and times when it is too crowded to move to a different spot.
It is also not realistic to completely eliminate sounds and odors.
That is why, instead of trying not to care about everything, I adjust just one thing that is causing the most burden that day.
🌊 My experience
When I find talking voices so loud that they are frustrating, I sometimes use noise-canceling headphones. If the smell is strong, I change my seat if I can move, and if that is difficult, I might wear a mask. Rather than eliminating everything, I deal with things according to what is particularly difficult at that moment.
⚠️ Things to keep in mind
The content introduced here is an example based on my own experience. HSP is not a medical diagnosis, and there are individual differences in what people find burdensome on trains. When using items like headphones, please prioritize safety so that you can hear announcements and check your surroundings. If you continue to experience strong discomfort or anxiety from riding the train and it significantly interferes with your daily life, do not judge it solely as an HSP trait; consulting a professional, such as at a medical institution, is also an option.
Summary: Look at what is painful rather than the train itself
🫧 Key points of this article
・Even if you are not good with trains, the things that are burdensome are not necessarily limited to one thing
・It is easier to organize if you divide them into personal space, sound, visuals, and travel information
・First, identify just one thing that was the most difficult. Think about whether you can reduce that one burden on your next ride
When you get tired just from riding the train, you might want to sum it up by saying, "I'm just not good with trains, so it can't be helped."
However, the content of the burden changes depending on whether it is the distance from others, the sound, the visual information, or the unfamiliar travel.
First, the next time you get off the train, please look back on just one thing: "What was the most difficult thing today?"
Once you understand one thing, it becomes easier to find things you can reduce on your next ride.
It is perfectly fine if your goal is not to force yourself to get used to trains.
Identify what is draining you, and try to reduce the burden by just one thing within your capacity.
That makes it easier to decide specifically what to try next.
🧭 Read Next
Once you understand what you find burdensome on the train, the next step is to figure out how to reduce those stimuli.
I have compiled the measures I actually use to deal with stimuli like noise, visuals, and odors in this article.