Why Wild Sensitives are NOT HSP’s

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮… 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝐟𝐢𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐥?

For years, I carried the label of “Highly Sensitive Person” (HSP). At first, it felt like finding a long-lost map, finally, a way to make sense of why I felt so much, noticed so much, and seemed to move through the world in ways others didn’t understand.

But as time went on, I began to see the cracks in the map.
The roads didn’t lead where I thought they would.
The village I had entered didn’t feel like home.

The truth I uncovered changed everything.

And it might change something for you too.

𝐋𝐞𝐭 𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤.

It was a stormy winter night. Snow streaked against the window, the kind of night when the world feels hushed but restless. I sat listening to a podcast, a man’s voice weaving through the air. He spoke of people who feel deeply, who notice subtleties, who care beyond measure.

He spoke of Highly Sensitive People.

My heart quickened. Could it be? Could this finally explain the sense of difference I had carried my entire life?

I dove in headfirst. I read books by Dr. Elaine Aron, the pioneer who gave language to Sensory Processing Sensitivity (SPS). I studied research. I joined communities. For the first time in decades, I thought I had found my people.

I even took up the banner proudly, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the HSP community, declaring, “We’re not weak, we’re strong!”

But here’s what I began to notice over time: in the books, in the workshops, in the social media reels, one refrain kept repeating.

𝙊𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙢.

“𝑊𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑖𝑙𝑦 𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑙𝑚𝑒𝑑. 𝑇ℎ𝑎𝑡’𝑠 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑤𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒.”

𝙄𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚.

So constant, it became the heartbeat of the community.

At first, I nodded along. But inside, something resisted.

Because overwhelm wasn’t the headline of my life.

Yes, I felt deeply. Yes, I noticed subtleties. Yes, I processed things others breezed past. But when the world got loud or complicated, I didn’t collapse. I didn’t retreat.

I leaned in…

I sought challenge.
I invited stimulation.
I wanted to be pushed to my edges, because that’s where growth has always lived for me.

And that’s when the question formed:
Maybe I wasn’t actually an HSP.

𝐌𝐚𝐲𝐛𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮’𝐯𝐞 𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐭𝐨𝐨.

Maybe you read about Highly Sensitive People, and something in you sighed with relief, finally, a reason for the way you are.

But maybe you also felt an itch. Something that didn’t quite line up.

Maybe you joined HSP groups online, expecting belonging, but instead left drained by the endless drumbeat of fragility, caution, and overwhelm.

Maybe you tried to accept the label, but deep down, you wondered: Is this really me? Or am I just pretending again?

That was my experience…

And so, as I always do, I questioned the narrative. Was this story of fragility an accurate reflection of sensitivity, or was it a cultural script that people had simply repeated long enough to believe?

𝐃𝐫. 𝐄𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐀𝐫𝐨𝐧 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟 𝐰𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐞: 

“𝑂𝑢𝑟 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑛𝑠 𝑤𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑜 𝑏𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑢𝑠, 𝑖𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑, 𝑛𝑒𝑒𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑥𝑡𝑟𝑎 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑎𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑒… 𝑓𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑠𝑒 𝑙𝑎𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑠, 𝑤𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑦 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑖𝑘𝑒 𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑠. 𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑏𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑟-𝑎𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑠𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑒𝑑.”

This quote, led to the exaggeration of the “overwhelm narrative.” A narrative so ingrained it was rarely questioned.

But I questioned it. Not because I disagreed with sensitivity itself, but because I didn’t see myself in the story.

That questioning opened a new door.

I discovered that yes, I absolutely have the Sensory Processing Sensitivity (SPS) trait. I rank high on Dr. Aron’s assessment. But I also discovered something else: I scored high in all four aspects of 𝙃𝙞𝙜𝙝 𝙎𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙎𝙚𝙚𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 (𝙃𝙎𝙎), the drive for novelty, intensity, adventure, and expansion described by Dr. Marvin Zuckerman and Dr. Tracy Cooper.

And when you merge these two traits, SPS and HSS, you don’t get the stereotypical HSP.

You get something different.

You get a 𝙒𝙞𝙡𝙙 𝙎𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚.

Here’s the shift that changed my life:

For me, the “𝙊” in my D.O.E.S. is 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙊𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙢. It’s 𝙊𝙗𝙨𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣.

That single word changes everything.

Because while many HSPs retreat at the first sign of noise, I step forward.
While many seek the false safety of their caves, I step into the jungle.
While many view sensitivity as a liability, I recognize it as my greatest asset, paired with my hunger for sensation.

𝙆𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙤𝙗𝙨𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣, 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙒𝙞𝙡𝙙 𝙎𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙨𝙪𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙥𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙧.

We track patterns.
We notice what others overlook.
We feel energy shift in a room before words are spoken.
We sense authenticity from a mile away.

This isn’t fragility. This is strength.

And that’s the inconvenient truth: many HSPs find comfort in staying inside, venturing out only when the world feels soft enough to meet them. Wild Sensitives? We walk out willingly, into the unknown, because curiosity and growth pull us forward.

It’s not that one way is better than the other. But they are different.

𝙃𝙎𝙋𝙨 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙮 𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣… 𝙒𝙞𝙡𝙙 𝙎𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙮 𝙘𝙪𝙧𝙞𝙤𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙮.

𝙃𝙎𝙋𝙨 𝙤𝙛𝙩𝙚𝙣 𝙛𝙧𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙢… 𝙒𝙞𝙡𝙙 𝙎𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙛𝙧𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝙞𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙖𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣.

And here’s the astonishing thing: we are not rare.

Research suggests there are 2 𝙗𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙙𝙬𝙞𝙙𝙚 with the SPS trait. Half of them, 1 𝙗𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚, also carry the HSS trait. That’s 1 billion Wild Sensitives.

𝙎𝙤 𝙬𝙝𝙮 𝙙𝙤𝙚𝙨 𝙞𝙩 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙡 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙬𝙚 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙫𝙞𝙨𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙚?

Because most of the conversation has been dominated by the HSP narrative. Because overwhelm sells. Because fragility is a tidy marketing hook. Because social media rewards quick labels over complex truths.

But here’s what I know: if you’ve ever felt like you almost fit in the HSP world but not quite, you are not alone. You may not be “just Highly Sensitive.” You may be a Wild Sensitive.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐉𝐮𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐈𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐲

Here’s the danger of labels: they can explain us, but they can also trap us.

For years, I wore the HSP label like a badge, until I realized it was also a cage. It told me I was supposed to be easily overwhelmed. It told me I was supposed to retreat more than advance. It told me my sensitivity was a limitation.

But the truth is, I’m not fragile. I’m not weak. And neither are you.

Being a Wild Sensitive is about holding both sensitivity and sensation seeking. Feeling the depth of the world and daring to explore its edges. Being attuned enough to notice the subtlest detail, and bold enough to step into the unknown.

It’s not always easy. This path is not for the faint of heart. But it is rich. It is alive. It is whole.

𝐀 𝐁𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠

Think about it: if there are 1 billion Wild Sensitives in the world, then chances are you’ve already met one, or are one yourself.

We are the ones who crave meaningful adventure. Who notice the silence between heartbeats. Who can sense danger in the air and opportunity in the smallest spark.

We are the ones who refuse to be defined by someone else’s idea of our limits.

And yet, too often, we walk alone. Because the spaces we’ve found don’t quite fit.

That’s why I write this today. Not to insult or dismiss the HSP community, it has its place and its gifts. But because Wild Sensitives need their own village. Their own language. Their own story.

And that story begins here.

𝑆𝑜 𝑡𝑒𝑙𝑙 𝑢𝑠, 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑑𝑖𝑑 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑙𝑖𝑧𝑒 𝑎 𝑙𝑎𝑏𝑒𝑙 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑐𝑎𝑟𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑑 𝑑𝑖𝑑𝑛’𝑡 𝑓𝑖𝑡 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑎𝑛𝑦𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑒?

Share this with someone who needs to hear it.

For those who feel this story in their bones, the Wild Sensitive Village is your next step. It’s where we will finally find each other.

𝙏𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙚𝙧: Next week’s Tale of the Jungle will explore the “Goldilocks Zone”, the place where Wild Sensitives thrive most.

📩 Sign up for the Wild Sensitive Newsletter at wildsensitive.com, where more personal stories are shared.

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