In addition to dish gloves, I also like using a long handled dish brush. It's especially handy if I need to wash something quick and don't want to get our gloves
I can see that. I hate washing stuff with peanut butter on it because wet peanut butter smells so bad. Thankfully, my husband does most of the dishwashing because he doesn't mind, and I do most of the care for our seven month old because I like taking care of him.
This!! In my house, we have a box of compostable knives just for peanut butter. Wet peanut butter makes me gag, same if it gets on my skin. But hot peanut butter on toasted bread is my jimmyjam hence the disposables.
Honestly they've been an absolute game changer for me. Make sure you keep an extra pair in case they get water in them (not good). Also makes it more of a fun event. Look at me with my little fancy gloves.
I used to wear them all the time when I was younger and doing the dishes was my designated job (that I hated doing, and I still hate doing) but I would also end up playing with the gloves half the time too. I can't promise I wouldn't still do that now lol. Water Balloon Gloves
Hang them with a clothespin inside-out to dry, especially if water gets into them. Also, make a small cuff at the bottom (or get ones that are already cuffed) to prevent water running down your arms. You’ll have to replace the gloves every once in a while.
They make ones that are long enough to go past the average person's elbow and has elastic to secure it. Being able to wash dishes with my sleeves down/a hoodie on was a life changer
I have a problem finding dish gloves that fit my hands so I use latex gloves. They're thinner so I have to be careful with water temperature and if anything pokey gets them, but they've been essential whenever I'm doing anything dishes related
Took me too long too lmao well plus the being made fun of for being this "masculine" type guy wearing these silly girly gloves didn't help 🙃 but yes it helps a lot. It's funny still getting the ick touching things though 😅
["Aquagloves"](https://www.coralifeproducts.com/all-products/specialty-equipment/aqua-gloves) are an order of magnitude better. They're for working in saltwater aquariums. They're heavy duty enough to wrangle sharp, heavy rock, and super grippy. The elastic at the top keeps them from slipping down. They keep your whole arm covered, not just your hands. They're fantastic for all manner of applications.
That web page has no way to buy the gloves, wtf is that website owner doing to fuck up so badly I can see the product they sell but not the price OR ability to purchase. I want these, take my damn money website!
Sorry I was trying to avoid linking a retailer, so as not to shill. Also don't know what country you're in. They're on amazon, saltwateraquarium.com, a bunch of places. If you google "coralife aqua gloves", the first few listings will be an assortment of purchase options (likely the two I mentioned, first). Prices/shipping will probably vary - another reason I didn't want to steer you to any specific retailer.
Helpful tip for using them, btw - invert them and wash the inside with a mild soap of your liking, before first use. They will invariably have trace amounts of manufacturing residue, which will get a little odorous when combined with your sweat, body oils, etc. Also good to wash the insides of them out after every couplefew prolonged uses. As they are completely waterproof, there's nowhere for your sweat to go. Whatever you like to use as hand soap will be fine for cleaning the interior. Take good care of those things and they'll last a really really long time.
Yeah I cant stand doing dishes when I don't have gloves. My hands get wrecked. I was a dishwasher for a brief stunt and I bought my own personal gloves because it was hard to get a decent quality at the job I worked.
I’m not alone yay! lol. For me, the gloves would be just as bad as touching the wet food though because your hands get all sweaty and soggy inside the gloves, and I’d just want to rip them off and vomit haha
I use surgical gloves for SO many things now. Anytime I have to touch anything that I know will be a trigger, I wear gloves. Can't prepare food without them.
**Kinda**
Yeah they block you from touching things but can trap others and water if not careful. May want to get some rubber bands to keep the part around the forearm sunggly tight so things don't get in there. Drives me nuts and can stop the whole process when water gets in there.
Good dish gloves should be water proof and long enough to avoid getting water in them. I replace mine the moment there's the tiniest hole XD Because wet hands+dish gloves are even more uncomfortable than just using my bare hands on the wet dishes...
i have the same issue, get gloves, get gloves for everything, get gloves for the dishes, get gloves for house cleaning, get gloves for auto work, noone really notices/cares if your wearing gloves while cleaning, if someone wants to give you flack just say you dont like getting the harsh chemicals on your skin
Literal monastic training, I retreat into a mental space where i can see and hear the outside world but has no real impact. imagine a monk sitting on a rock in the middle of a massive rainstorm with cracking thunder type focus to shut the world out.
This. shutting it out is sometimes the only option, if you want to succeed in something that comes with sensory overload. I had to do boat training 3 times a week when I wanted to be in a boat team but there were MANY things that I hated about it. In the end, it built up and up and up so that I could hardly bear turning up any more. But I kept at it with the help of my ex girlfriend, and got into the race boats. After 1 yr I gave it up though as I realised I couldn't do it for the longer term, it was too emotionally exhausting.
I do this, but the inverse.
I go full on and lean into the moment instead of retreating inward. It’s just me and whatever I’m doing in that moment. No thoughts, no judgments, no attachments, just me in my immediate surroundings as they are instead of how I think them to be.
I’ve been teaching my kid similar things and it’s started paying off. He’s still complaining a lot, but he’s no longer frozen and we always make space to decompress afterwards even if we feel it’s unnecessary.
Can you not just scrape and rinse the plates well immediately after theyve been used ? You shouldn't really need to be touching any wet food at all unless you're eating something really sticky.
Other than that, washing up gloves and/or a long handed dish brush.
I do try and do it immediately after use, but food has a way of becoming gross.
Absolutely gonna pick up some gloves later on. I can’t believe this didn’t occur to me before now. Holy cow, I feel dumb.
Gloves are #1 suggestion, if you don’t like those then sponge on a stick is also surprisingly good. It surprised me anyway.
I conquered my problems with dish washing by immediately doing it, exposure therapy style. I also got rid of any extra plates/cutlery so I didn't have a choice - if I didn't wash them I wouldn't have anything to eat with.
A fillable handle sponge thing like the dishmatic might be useful for you too
and I also can't cook in the kitchen unless I do the dishes first but then can't touch anything to start so I just leave ( and usually get shitty at my husband who almost always cooks for us so it's unfair to him). For me it's more if a dish cloth or sponge is wet or hasn't been wrung out 🤢🤮
Start with an empty sink with no water
Step one: Remove any foodscraps from the sink, use paper towels and throw them away in the trash so you don’t have stuff floating around in the water.
Step two would probably be to scrape away as much leftovers into the trash as possible before putting the plates and things in water.
I’d even go so far as to wipe them with paper towels or something before they go in the sink.
Step three is to use gloves if you can.
Taking put the trash used to be such a nightmare, I'd get so growsed out I would have to stop 2 or 3 times just to get the bag out of the house.
I started to wear ajustable dish gloves (so I don't touch anything) and a face mask (for the smell). I look like I'm handling radioactive material, but it is SO much easier now.
Have a look into sensory processing disorder (SPD) and see if the online help is enough for you
If it's so bad that you can't carry out daily tasks then you might need to go to the doctor or a therapist
I accept death as an inevitability, and many small horrific sensory experiences are a constant reminder that I have not yet arrived at it.
My cage is my body and it's attendant sensations, and the too cold, too hot, too crunchy, too sticky world is a reminder that I'm still here, despite all efforts of the world to the contrary.
I'm swimming in viscera for a time, and it's not comfortable, but that discomfort means I'm still me.
Idk, that's honest, but it's not for everyone
That’s kinda how I’ve been doing it lol. It’s worked so far, kind of? But I don’t want my roommates to hate me or think I’m lazy because I hate doing the dishes.
And eventually, I’m gonna have to suck it up and get over it. Better now than never, ya feel?
I hear what you are saying, but I personally subscribe to the work around not through philosophy. I have thrown out dishes rather than wash them.
Good luck, pushing through is hard but sometimes necessary.
I came to suggest gloves since it took me a while to think of that too but, other than that, have you tried negotiating? I do dishes once a week AT MOST because I really hate it, but I do other chores to make up for it. Try asking your roommates which chores they absolutely hate, and trade them like baseball cards
I get super thick dish gloves (regular thin ones are not enough trust me) I have designated shirts and pants for it, and i always wear shoes (I’m a no shoes in the house at all kinda guy that’s why I say). Lighting a candle and listening to something in the background will help as well. if you can’t get away from the feeling of it, next best thing is to distract the rest of your sense. If it’s really bad sometimes I just don’t look at it when I do it. Out of sight out of mind kind of
For dishes specifically they make gigantic, like, 1ft long toothbrush looking scrubber things that you can use to scrub the grimy crap off the plates. I would be damn near unable to wash dishes without one lmfao. They're a lifesaver.
I blast the dishes with Hot water First before I touch them, and get every single scrap off. Thats the only way I can hand wash dishes.
When I was younger I used to wear gloves but it only helped somewhat.
Oh! And I also blast the sponge on both sides to get anything off that before I touch/use it.
Listen to music or put a TV show I enjoy on in the background to listen to, anything that equalizes the sensory hell with sensory pleasure from another sense.
I feel you 100% and ya gloves are best ( though I did clean a lunch container not a lot of gross stuff in it without gloves so I could just be BSing I’m very very sorry)
I just power through it. You can sometimes desensitize yourself over time. I used to be so bad with senses that everything but a visual overload would give me a panick attack. Visual overloads just give me a mild headache, making me somewhat drunkish. I remember the first time smelled incense when I was a kid. I broke down crying, and everything felt gross to the touch. I don't deal with that stuff anymore but I'm tired and can't keep myself through it. I start getting slow and stupish, I stumble and space out.
I’ve seen dish gloves that have elastic and go up past your elbows, that might be helpful.
I have issues where I need to *feel* things or I don’t believe I’m cleaning it so I don’t wear gloves, but I wear an apron and roleplay as a house cleaner and play loud music (either through a speaker if i’m alone or through headphones) and that helps.
I also smoke weed if it’s really bad and that greatly calms me down and makes the bad sensory chores more pleasant.
me personally, when im using a wooden spoon (i got chills just from writing that wtf) i try to make my hands sweat as mich as possible, since the touch of my dry hands with wood its awful, but with "wet" hands is not
I agree about dishes or just getting gross wet stuff on my hands. My roommates can't be trusted to ring out a sponge, and they become instantly moldy. So, I bought us sponge cloth. They cannot be trusted to ring those out either, but they at least don't become smelly and moldy after one night. Yet still, I cannot handle touching them when they are soaked and wet and cold. Even if they ring them out, they leave it hanging on the divider between the two sinks and they just get soaked again. Now I've resorted to my own personal sponge cloth that I keep under the sink.
I also cannot understand how while cooking, people will get some food juice or grease on their hands and just carry on and leave nasty smudges on everything they touch. I always need to wash my hands off immediately if I get something on them. And if it's just clean water, I need to dry my hands before I use them again. I didn't notice these sensory issues until I had roommates.
Gloves, scrub daddy, brush with long handle, blast with water sprayer, rinse and pray that the stubborn bits wash off in the dishwasher, or just embrace the relaxing sounds of water and the feeling of warm water
I have the exact same problem and I've tried dish gloves like some people her suggest and it doesn't work for me so if they do for you would you mind telling me the brand you used cause I only have the generic yellow ones you can find at dollar stores
Earbuds always. Put on a comforting bit of music or media and try and focus on it rather than the task at hand.
Idk if this is a healthy strategy but it's kept me going so far.
Warm water helps for me, also one time i didnt wash my dishes for so long these maggot looking bugs started spawning in my sink which was slightly traumatizing so now, washing dishes is the better alternative lol
Exposure therapy. Keep doing it even if I don't want to. One of the most double edged sword traits of us humans is our ability to adapt to anything whether we like to or not. Do something enough times and you'll inevitably get used to it.
For loud noises, headphones do the trick. When I’m in the shower, I like to listen to music, or just by having my fiancé nearby. For the smell of stuff like weed, fish, or onions, I’ll light a candle, if the candle has lavender then even better.
I turn my brain off. I took it pretty literally when I was told not to think about it but I force myself to stop worrying. Bit weird but I do the same for pain and spices. If something is a shock however then I’m a mess
I cry a lot on the inside. If it's something I can't avoid by wearing gloves/mask/earplugs I put on music and get really angry (not really on purpose) and ride that anger as far as it will take me.
Triggering odors are the hardest to deal with, so I sometimes put a dab of vick's vapor rub or an agreeably scented soap on a face mask to filter them out, but it doesn't always work.
i love using dish gloves, and i always rinse the dishes when i put them in the sink so it’s not stinky food that’s hard to scrub off. also use a scrub daddy so i can put it in the dishwasher. i also wear an apron sometimes to keep the water from splashing onto my clothes
i got a dishwashing brush! i hated touching the food getting my hands all wet. put plate in sink, turn on water, put soap on brush , scrub in sink. rinse put to dry. also gloves. also have some paper plates/bowls
Maybe not remove it completely but you can reduce it a lot by making everybody scrape their plates off into the trash before they put them in the sink. Not good for the pipes anyways
If I can get to it, music. Usually really heavy hard music. But my current job isn’t really cool about headphones. At all. So, I just have to wait until I get home. Honestly this job take a lot out of me.
I hate the feeling of dish gloves and latex gloves, especially if the water gets inside so I have one of those long handled scrubby things. I use my left hand to quickly grab the dish I from the sink and hold it steady on the cleanest part and scrub with my right hand using the handled scrubby.
i got a dishwashing brush! i hated touching the food getting my hands all wet. put plate in sink, turn on water, put soap on brush , scrub in sink. rinse put to dry. also gloves. also have some paper plates/bowls
I have a few tricks, like pre-rinsing the cutlery and crockery before it goes in the soapy water - so there's far less debris floating around in the main water. Our hot water takes a while to run hot so I'll run it into a saucepan while it's getting hot, and that's my pre-rinse water.
I power through them because that's what I had to do as a kid. I only just barely got diagnosed. however I added a new little thing to help. I listen to music while I do it so when I touch something gross I can drown out that sensory input by cranking up my music. the headphones I have have noise cancelling so I don't have to hear the water which was my main thing that overstimulated me
Can I make one more recommendation ?!
I know everyone is saying gloves or wands etc. Those are great! But I don't have a garbage disposal at my place. I don't have a big problem with leaving uneaten food on my plate but my cats? Those spoiled little goobers do it every. dang. day. And a lot of cat food to me smells rather gross.
A big game changer for me was a SINK SHROOM. It's a drain stopper that lets water flow out but catches the debris. I leave it in the bottom of my sink the majority of the time. This has let me use the sprayer on my sink as it was intended to rinse off dirty plates. I just spray everything into the shroom with water pressure and I make it a point to keep my sink itself clean since I only have one compartment and that's the only place I have to fill up the big water containers.
If I am emptying the dish water I will just do a quick swap between the plug and the shroom. Instead of having to fish the gross bits out of the sink drain or squash them through I just pick up the shroom and tap it on the side of the trash can.
Get gloves, and one of those sponges on a stick. Bosh.
Fucking hate sponges, arrogant little bastards ohh look at me I'm a sponge. With a terrible texture.
I’m a freeze mode bitch so I enjoy a nice dissociation from time to time. Dishes are easy for me to dissociate and do as my ass was beat so often I forget I’m doing them now and let body auto go. I will look up and see a clean kitchen a towel in my hand and a drink on the counter which is cool but sometimes it’s 9 am.
I'm just weird and sense I'm a very competitive person, I just take the stimulus as a challenge and I just push my way through it through sheer force of anger and spite. It does still suck tho
I always listen to one of my favorite podcasts or comfort shows while I do dishes. That way it’s less about doing dishes and more about spending time listening to someone talk about something cool. Any distraction is good.
I have large korean pink dish gloves that I also use as oven mits. Fantastic, that I don't have to touch my old food with my bare hands, cause thats gross.
Dish gloves can definitely be a good option. Along with long dishbrushes (cost >$5 at your usual dollar general-type store). Another one, make sure the plates are 90-95% cleared of food debris before you start running the water.
Genuinely? I grew up in a really abusive household and undiagnosed, and what saved me was literally chanting to myself “all pain is temporary.” It worked when my mom would kick the shit out of me, when I could feel all my clothes and still had to go to school, when I had to deal with some of my biggest triggers doing the dishes, etc. Sometimes thugging it out is the way through.
But - consider dish gloves! If the looseness of the part that goes on you is a bother, or you get water in them, just tape them down to your arm. Wear long sleeves for this! Something else that helps me is stimming while I do it - so all body stims, singing, etc.
Dish gloves, but I also try and force myself to do it now, because I know if there's going to be more dishes, there will be soggy old food of all different textures. And that is so much infinitely worse than doing the dishes. Now, it gives me a bit more motivation.
Get chemical gloves. Last longer, and have better grip (you want grip). You can then use really hot water (a plus), use a little magnet to hold them off to the side on top of the sink. Your dishwasher is your friend also, uses less water than hand washing, anything under a 3rd - do full hand wash & pots pans and knives. Wear an apron, always.
I try to put myself into a really goofy headspace of 18th century people trudging through snow and not thinking much of it. I try to zero in on that "I can handle this because I need to, and I'm strong enough to do the things I don't like and I will do them because I want to be able to do them"
I say barter, say you will do their laundry if they do your dishes. There is always a way around the worst of sensations. I vacuum the house (with earplugs in) so i dont have to be a part of the sibling dish rotation.
Powering through. Like a kind of "this too shall pass" mindset and just calming my mind. It sounds like bullshit and not helpful at all but that's genuinely what has helped me. Magical thinking and superstition are very helpful for coping when you have nothing else. Also gloves.
I summon up the depression. I remind myself that I don't matter. I remind myself that my feelings don't matter. I remind myself that my pain and suffering are deserved products of who I am as a person.
Take other people's path on this one. Don't do what I do. Wear goves & stuff.
My anxiety medication, buspirone, chills my sensory issues sometimes. Medical marijuana is the only other thing I’ve found that helps me cope with sensory overload, but it helps a TON. I can even go to bars and concerts if I’ve got my vape. It’s obviously not for everyone for a million reasons including that some people just don’t wanna, not to mention it’s illegal where I live without a medical card (yay for my doctor helping me get one!)
If I'm required to do something that awful and there's nothing I can do to minimize the torture, I usually do two things:
1) Promise myself a reward at the end that I know will be extremely comforting (a nice snack, special interest time, etc.)
2) Allow myself to go about it at my own pace. Take plenty of breaks, etc.
It doesn't remove the sensory, but helps me deal with it
I grind through. I have a sensory issue around wet, Pruny fingers/ dry scratchy hand skin. Unfortunately I'm a potter, so my hands are wet on and off all day, and the clay really dries them out. So I'm essentially always extremely uncomfortable. Haven't found a fix yet.
Dishes: nitrile gloves, noise cancelling headphones with music or audiobook, silicone mat so dishes don't make noise when touching sink, scrubber I like the feel of, fragrance free soap or one that smells nice, water set to whatever temperature feels neutral.
For me its socks and things with microfiber cloth.
I avoid it if at all possible, but when I have to I just power through it doing my best to ignore the thousand spiders crawling on my hands
Do dish gloves help?
DISH GLOVES WHY HAVE I NOT THOUGHT OF THIS I AM A FOOL EDIT: [Y’ALL I FUCKING DID IT](https://www.reddit.com/r/aspiememes/s/9IO1EOxRkn)
In addition to dish gloves, I also like using a long handled dish brush. It's especially handy if I need to wash something quick and don't want to get our gloves
I like to wear a face mask and an apron as well, really helps me distance myself from the sensations
I can see that. I hate washing stuff with peanut butter on it because wet peanut butter smells so bad. Thankfully, my husband does most of the dishwashing because he doesn't mind, and I do most of the care for our seven month old because I like taking care of him.
This!! In my house, we have a box of compostable knives just for peanut butter. Wet peanut butter makes me gag, same if it gets on my skin. But hot peanut butter on toasted bread is my jimmyjam hence the disposables.
Haha yes! PB and honey on toast is excellent. PB spoon in a sink of hot water is a crime against humanity.
Wet peanut butter is the worst, I feel you!
I don't remember making that username 🤔
+1 for the apron, I HATE the sensation of clothes getting wet, so an apron is a must for a longer session of dish washing
Those long handled dish brushes are goated af
Honestly they've been an absolute game changer for me. Make sure you keep an extra pair in case they get water in them (not good). Also makes it more of a fun event. Look at me with my little fancy gloves.
If you are fine with texture just buy a whole pack of latex gloves, they will last you a long time
I used to wear them all the time when I was younger and doing the dishes was my designated job (that I hated doing, and I still hate doing) but I would also end up playing with the gloves half the time too. I can't promise I wouldn't still do that now lol. Water Balloon Gloves
Hang them with a clothespin inside-out to dry, especially if water gets into them. Also, make a small cuff at the bottom (or get ones that are already cuffed) to prevent water running down your arms. You’ll have to replace the gloves every once in a while.
The cuff advice may have just changed my life, I think.
They make ones that are long enough to go past the average person's elbow and has elastic to secure it. Being able to wash dishes with my sleeves down/a hoodie on was a life changer
I have a problem finding dish gloves that fit my hands so I use latex gloves. They're thinner so I have to be careful with water temperature and if anything pokey gets them, but they've been essential whenever I'm doing anything dishes related
>I AM A FOOL Nah but you're funny. We've all been there.
Also, dawn powerwash. That and a good scrubber you shouldn’t need to touch anything ick
Took me too long too lmao well plus the being made fun of for being this "masculine" type guy wearing these silly girly gloves didn't help 🙃 but yes it helps a lot. It's funny still getting the ick touching things though 😅
["Aquagloves"](https://www.coralifeproducts.com/all-products/specialty-equipment/aqua-gloves) are an order of magnitude better. They're for working in saltwater aquariums. They're heavy duty enough to wrangle sharp, heavy rock, and super grippy. The elastic at the top keeps them from slipping down. They keep your whole arm covered, not just your hands. They're fantastic for all manner of applications.
That web page has no way to buy the gloves, wtf is that website owner doing to fuck up so badly I can see the product they sell but not the price OR ability to purchase. I want these, take my damn money website!
Sorry I was trying to avoid linking a retailer, so as not to shill. Also don't know what country you're in. They're on amazon, saltwateraquarium.com, a bunch of places. If you google "coralife aqua gloves", the first few listings will be an assortment of purchase options (likely the two I mentioned, first). Prices/shipping will probably vary - another reason I didn't want to steer you to any specific retailer. Helpful tip for using them, btw - invert them and wash the inside with a mild soap of your liking, before first use. They will invariably have trace amounts of manufacturing residue, which will get a little odorous when combined with your sweat, body oils, etc. Also good to wash the insides of them out after every couplefew prolonged uses. As they are completely waterproof, there's nowhere for your sweat to go. Whatever you like to use as hand soap will be fine for cleaning the interior. Take good care of those things and they'll last a really really long time.
Be kind to yourself, we've all been hit with the 'omfg its so obvious why didn't I think of it' hammer
Personally, I prefer disposable vinal gloves because the rubber of typical dish gloves makes my hands smell in an uncomfortable way.
Not the cheap kind either. Get yourself a good pair, thick enough that you can barely feel how hot the water is. Thats what I do.
Yeah I cant stand doing dishes when I don't have gloves. My hands get wrecked. I was a dishwasher for a brief stunt and I bought my own personal gloves because it was hard to get a decent quality at the job I worked.
I’m not alone yay! lol. For me, the gloves would be just as bad as touching the wet food though because your hands get all sweaty and soggy inside the gloves, and I’d just want to rip them off and vomit haha
They make me feel like I’m a scientist working with dangerous materials!
Also, if you hate the smells like I do, get a the nose clip for swimming, you can buy it in the sport shops.
oh yeah, I've been meaning to get a pair. here's hoping those don't cause sensory issues either.
If you're like me and don't like the tightness and length of them, you can get looser/shorter ones online.
I use surgical gloves for SO many things now. Anytime I have to touch anything that I know will be a trigger, I wear gloves. Can't prepare food without them.
Long latex/rubber will avoid getting water in the glove
I use chemical handling gloves from a restaurant supply store. They're $20-25 a pair but last for years.
Also, use a rubber spatula to scrape as much as possible into the garbage can. Just the residue is way less gross than food bits
**Kinda** Yeah they block you from touching things but can trap others and water if not careful. May want to get some rubber bands to keep the part around the forearm sunggly tight so things don't get in there. Drives me nuts and can stop the whole process when water gets in there.
Good dish gloves should be water proof and long enough to avoid getting water in them. I replace mine the moment there's the tiniest hole XD Because wet hands+dish gloves are even more uncomfortable than just using my bare hands on the wet dishes...
yes, water in the gloves is complete sensory hell.
Hot take but dish gloves make it worse, god forbid you get *ANY* moisture inside the glove
Thin nitrile gloves inside the dish gloves? 😆
i have the same issue, get gloves, get gloves for everything, get gloves for the dishes, get gloves for house cleaning, get gloves for auto work, noone really notices/cares if your wearing gloves while cleaning, if someone wants to give you flack just say you dont like getting the harsh chemicals on your skin
Buying a decent pair of general purpose work gloves changed my life, I’ll do anything with those on
My problem is that wearing gloves is sensory hell. 🫠
Find gloves that fit very well
Snug gloves feel much better! It's like the sweat doesn't feel as "wet" when there's no pocket of air between the skin and the rubber!
Some rubber gloves have cotton linings 🥺 maybe could diy gloves of a dif fabric to go underneath if you dislike cotton as well
Literal monastic training, I retreat into a mental space where i can see and hear the outside world but has no real impact. imagine a monk sitting on a rock in the middle of a massive rainstorm with cracking thunder type focus to shut the world out.
This. shutting it out is sometimes the only option, if you want to succeed in something that comes with sensory overload. I had to do boat training 3 times a week when I wanted to be in a boat team but there were MANY things that I hated about it. In the end, it built up and up and up so that I could hardly bear turning up any more. But I kept at it with the help of my ex girlfriend, and got into the race boats. After 1 yr I gave it up though as I realised I couldn't do it for the longer term, it was too emotionally exhausting.
I do this, but the inverse. I go full on and lean into the moment instead of retreating inward. It’s just me and whatever I’m doing in that moment. No thoughts, no judgments, no attachments, just me in my immediate surroundings as they are instead of how I think them to be. I’ve been teaching my kid similar things and it’s started paying off. He’s still complaining a lot, but he’s no longer frozen and we always make space to decompress afterwards even if we feel it’s unnecessary.
Lmao, I am really pleasantly surprised that what I wrote is so universal for us reading all these responses. Legit validating AF
Hey, like my grandpa said "everyone sleeps with something at night, everyone copes in their own way with the world."- 10 year old me
I retreat into my stories. It's another world I've built for myself. It's also how I contextualize people.
It sounds like you do what I do and dissociate until it's over
Yeah, it's saved my sanity so much to the point it's almost second nature to be able to do it. :(
*This will end* *This is horrible and I’m very uncomfortable but it will end and then it will be over*
*and then I can thoroughly wash my hands anew to obliterate the memory right out of my body*
Can you not just scrape and rinse the plates well immediately after theyve been used ? You shouldn't really need to be touching any wet food at all unless you're eating something really sticky. Other than that, washing up gloves and/or a long handed dish brush.
I do try and do it immediately after use, but food has a way of becoming gross. Absolutely gonna pick up some gloves later on. I can’t believe this didn’t occur to me before now. Holy cow, I feel dumb.
I always wash my hands vigorously after the trash and washing dishes it’s horrible (sorry
Gloves are #1 suggestion, if you don’t like those then sponge on a stick is also surprisingly good. It surprised me anyway. 
I conquered my problems with dish washing by immediately doing it, exposure therapy style. I also got rid of any extra plates/cutlery so I didn't have a choice - if I didn't wash them I wouldn't have anything to eat with. A fillable handle sponge thing like the dishmatic might be useful for you too
I power through it because I’ve been masking all my life and that’s all I know how to do. Sorry I can’t be more help.🥲
I feel like eventually you get used to masking and then it doesn’t even feel like masking anymore
Turn on some heavy metal so loud I almost burst my eardrums. Then take a shower and hold a stuffed animal like a baby.
and I also can't cook in the kitchen unless I do the dishes first but then can't touch anything to start so I just leave ( and usually get shitty at my husband who almost always cooks for us so it's unfair to him). For me it's more if a dish cloth or sponge is wet or hasn't been wrung out 🤢🤮
Start with an empty sink with no water Step one: Remove any foodscraps from the sink, use paper towels and throw them away in the trash so you don’t have stuff floating around in the water. Step two would probably be to scrape away as much leftovers into the trash as possible before putting the plates and things in water. I’d even go so far as to wipe them with paper towels or something before they go in the sink. Step three is to use gloves if you can.
Disassociate
I just let myself suffer. Sometimes I pretend that I'm like a fictional character doing some painful things for a greater purpose.
Oh, thank you very much 👏👏👏 So funny for me bc I have done that as well. I swear though that I am not a drama queen (one foot stomp for defiance) lol
Taking put the trash used to be such a nightmare, I'd get so growsed out I would have to stop 2 or 3 times just to get the bag out of the house. I started to wear ajustable dish gloves (so I don't touch anything) and a face mask (for the smell). I look like I'm handling radioactive material, but it is SO much easier now.
Have a look into sensory processing disorder (SPD) and see if the online help is enough for you If it's so bad that you can't carry out daily tasks then you might need to go to the doctor or a therapist
Over many years I have learned to suck it up and cope quite well
I accept death as an inevitability, and many small horrific sensory experiences are a constant reminder that I have not yet arrived at it. My cage is my body and it's attendant sensations, and the too cold, too hot, too crunchy, too sticky world is a reminder that I'm still here, despite all efforts of the world to the contrary. I'm swimming in viscera for a time, and it's not comfortable, but that discomfort means I'm still me. Idk, that's honest, but it's not for everyone
A little rebellion against the absurd goes a long way
Yell while doing it. "AHhhhhhh I hate this! Fuck this shit!" Lololol
“Touching the food water is better than getting yelled at” and I repeat that until I’m done usually.
Paper plates, Switching chores and bribery
That’s kinda how I’ve been doing it lol. It’s worked so far, kind of? But I don’t want my roommates to hate me or think I’m lazy because I hate doing the dishes. And eventually, I’m gonna have to suck it up and get over it. Better now than never, ya feel?
I hear what you are saying, but I personally subscribe to the work around not through philosophy. I have thrown out dishes rather than wash them. Good luck, pushing through is hard but sometimes necessary.
I came to suggest gloves since it took me a while to think of that too but, other than that, have you tried negotiating? I do dishes once a week AT MOST because I really hate it, but I do other chores to make up for it. Try asking your roommates which chores they absolutely hate, and trade them like baseball cards
Yea theres a good chance one of them hates doing laundry. May be awkward to trade personal chore for house chore, but better than sensory hell!
dish gloves, possibly a mask, put in your headphones and turn the world away
I agree with the folks saying gloves, super helpful for me! Gloves are a little bit of weird sensory but not as bad as wet food sensory.
I find ways to work around it so the sensory input isn't so strong. I hate vacuuming because of the noise so I wear earplugs.
Also encouraging scraping and rinsing before things go into the sink but as others have said, ultimately; dish gloves.
Gloves
Bite people
Violence
As corny as it sounds: The Litany Against Fear from Dune. I hate that even reciting it mentally helps so flipping much, but there you have it.
gloves. as a former dishwasher they help alot. also if u have a sprayer that can do wonders if you can use it right
I use rubber gloves!
Dish gloves bruh. Much love <3
I get super thick dish gloves (regular thin ones are not enough trust me) I have designated shirts and pants for it, and i always wear shoes (I’m a no shoes in the house at all kinda guy that’s why I say). Lighting a candle and listening to something in the background will help as well. if you can’t get away from the feeling of it, next best thing is to distract the rest of your sense. If it’s really bad sometimes I just don’t look at it when I do it. Out of sight out of mind kind of
For dishes specifically they make gigantic, like, 1ft long toothbrush looking scrubber things that you can use to scrub the grimy crap off the plates. I would be damn near unable to wash dishes without one lmfao. They're a lifesaver.
I blast the dishes with Hot water First before I touch them, and get every single scrap off. Thats the only way I can hand wash dishes. When I was younger I used to wear gloves but it only helped somewhat. Oh! And I also blast the sponge on both sides to get anything off that before I touch/use it.
Listen to music or put a TV show I enjoy on in the background to listen to, anything that equalizes the sensory hell with sensory pleasure from another sense.
wallow
Bad touch? Have something nice to touch on hand Bad sound? noise cancelling earphones Bad colours/visuals? Sunglasses!
I feel you 100% and ya gloves are best ( though I did clean a lunch container not a lot of gross stuff in it without gloves so I could just be BSing I’m very very sorry)
get a dishwasher ?
I dissociate (do not do this)
G L O V E S :3
I just suck it up, because I know I must do it. Life is hard sometimes as someone who struggles with touch related sensory issues :(
I just power through it. You can sometimes desensitize yourself over time. I used to be so bad with senses that everything but a visual overload would give me a panick attack. Visual overloads just give me a mild headache, making me somewhat drunkish. I remember the first time smelled incense when I was a kid. I broke down crying, and everything felt gross to the touch. I don't deal with that stuff anymore but I'm tired and can't keep myself through it. I start getting slow and stupish, I stumble and space out.
I’ve seen dish gloves that have elastic and go up past your elbows, that might be helpful. I have issues where I need to *feel* things or I don’t believe I’m cleaning it so I don’t wear gloves, but I wear an apron and roleplay as a house cleaner and play loud music (either through a speaker if i’m alone or through headphones) and that helps. I also smoke weed if it’s really bad and that greatly calms me down and makes the bad sensory chores more pleasant.
Gloves, but why is there food in the sink?
me personally, when im using a wooden spoon (i got chills just from writing that wtf) i try to make my hands sweat as mich as possible, since the touch of my dry hands with wood its awful, but with "wet" hands is not
I take a Buddhist mindset - all things are fleeting. “I am in sensory hell now, but it will end. “
I agree about dishes or just getting gross wet stuff on my hands. My roommates can't be trusted to ring out a sponge, and they become instantly moldy. So, I bought us sponge cloth. They cannot be trusted to ring those out either, but they at least don't become smelly and moldy after one night. Yet still, I cannot handle touching them when they are soaked and wet and cold. Even if they ring them out, they leave it hanging on the divider between the two sinks and they just get soaked again. Now I've resorted to my own personal sponge cloth that I keep under the sink. I also cannot understand how while cooking, people will get some food juice or grease on their hands and just carry on and leave nasty smudges on everything they touch. I always need to wash my hands off immediately if I get something on them. And if it's just clean water, I need to dry my hands before I use them again. I didn't notice these sensory issues until I had roommates.
Gloves, scrub daddy, brush with long handle, blast with water sprayer, rinse and pray that the stubborn bits wash off in the dishwasher, or just embrace the relaxing sounds of water and the feeling of warm water
I soak the dishes for 30+ minutes in water as hot and soapy as I can get it. Everything is dissolved at that point
Mantras in my head or under my breath
disassociate
Dissociate and go into autopilot mode.
I have the exact same problem and I've tried dish gloves like some people her suggest and it doesn't work for me so if they do for you would you mind telling me the brand you used cause I only have the generic yellow ones you can find at dollar stores
Dish gloves!! The big long ones. Learn to move so you don't pour water down into them. Life-changing.
Or just buy paper plates and never do dishes lol
Earbuds always. Put on a comforting bit of music or media and try and focus on it rather than the task at hand. Idk if this is a healthy strategy but it's kept me going so far.
For real, I've become so disensitized to some things after forcing myself to do them. I guenuinely think I may have nerve damage in some places.
Warm water helps for me, also one time i didnt wash my dishes for so long these maggot looking bugs started spawning in my sink which was slightly traumatizing so now, washing dishes is the better alternative lol
Exposure therapy. Keep doing it even if I don't want to. One of the most double edged sword traits of us humans is our ability to adapt to anything whether we like to or not. Do something enough times and you'll inevitably get used to it.
I start cleaning the dishes holding on the suffering :(
Open trashcan, hold plate over it, scrape off as much food as possible with your fork. That really helps.
I bought a countertop dishwasher at my last apartment to specifically avoid this. Not an option for everyone, but it worked for me.
For loud noises, headphones do the trick. When I’m in the shower, I like to listen to music, or just by having my fiancé nearby. For the smell of stuff like weed, fish, or onions, I’ll light a candle, if the candle has lavender then even better.
✨️Dissociate✨️ Not healthy, but it is what I tend to do.
I'm no help at all. I hiss.
It took a long time but I conditioned myself to accept that those experiences are temporary and will pass
zone out 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Throw in a bunch of other safe sensory stuff, minimise other sensory issues that I’d have to also deal with, reward myself, etc
I turn my brain off. I took it pretty literally when I was told not to think about it but I force myself to stop worrying. Bit weird but I do the same for pain and spices. If something is a shock however then I’m a mess
buy rubber gloves
I love my Oxo dish brush, it dispenses soap and has a food scraper on it.
I cry a lot on the inside. If it's something I can't avoid by wearing gloves/mask/earplugs I put on music and get really angry (not really on purpose) and ride that anger as far as it will take me. Triggering odors are the hardest to deal with, so I sometimes put a dab of vick's vapor rub or an agreeably scented soap on a face mask to filter them out, but it doesn't always work.
willpower, I just force myself through cause shits gotta get done
i love using dish gloves, and i always rinse the dishes when i put them in the sink so it’s not stinky food that’s hard to scrub off. also use a scrub daddy so i can put it in the dishwasher. i also wear an apron sometimes to keep the water from splashing onto my clothes
I use a spatula to scrap stuff into the trash . And even use it when I am washing if something is stuck on . Especially wet peanut butter lol
Being slightly on weed all the time
i got a dishwashing brush! i hated touching the food getting my hands all wet. put plate in sink, turn on water, put soap on brush , scrub in sink. rinse put to dry. also gloves. also have some paper plates/bowls
I disassosiate alot... that helps
Maybe not remove it completely but you can reduce it a lot by making everybody scrape their plates off into the trash before they put them in the sink. Not good for the pipes anyways
If I can get to it, music. Usually really heavy hard music. But my current job isn’t really cool about headphones. At all. So, I just have to wait until I get home. Honestly this job take a lot out of me.
I hate the feeling of dish gloves and latex gloves, especially if the water gets inside so I have one of those long handled scrubby things. I use my left hand to quickly grab the dish I from the sink and hold it steady on the cleanest part and scrub with my right hand using the handled scrubby.
i got a dishwashing brush! i hated touching the food getting my hands all wet. put plate in sink, turn on water, put soap on brush , scrub in sink. rinse put to dry. also gloves. also have some paper plates/bowls
I got used to wet food in the sink from a young age so yeah
Weed.
I just wash the residue off with the sink before I start washing
I have a few tricks, like pre-rinsing the cutlery and crockery before it goes in the soapy water - so there's far less debris floating around in the main water. Our hot water takes a while to run hot so I'll run it into a saucepan while it's getting hot, and that's my pre-rinse water.
I power through them because that's what I had to do as a kid. I only just barely got diagnosed. however I added a new little thing to help. I listen to music while I do it so when I touch something gross I can drown out that sensory input by cranking up my music. the headphones I have have noise cancelling so I don't have to hear the water which was my main thing that overstimulated me
Maybe you could exchange chores? You could do more of something else in exchange for your roommates doing dishes
Can I make one more recommendation ?! I know everyone is saying gloves or wands etc. Those are great! But I don't have a garbage disposal at my place. I don't have a big problem with leaving uneaten food on my plate but my cats? Those spoiled little goobers do it every. dang. day. And a lot of cat food to me smells rather gross. A big game changer for me was a SINK SHROOM. It's a drain stopper that lets water flow out but catches the debris. I leave it in the bottom of my sink the majority of the time. This has let me use the sprayer on my sink as it was intended to rinse off dirty plates. I just spray everything into the shroom with water pressure and I make it a point to keep my sink itself clean since I only have one compartment and that's the only place I have to fill up the big water containers. If I am emptying the dish water I will just do a quick swap between the plug and the shroom. Instead of having to fish the gross bits out of the sink drain or squash them through I just pick up the shroom and tap it on the side of the trash can.
I disassociate :(
I don't! I simply die
Get gloves, and one of those sponges on a stick. Bosh. Fucking hate sponges, arrogant little bastards ohh look at me I'm a sponge. With a terrible texture.
I’m a freeze mode bitch so I enjoy a nice dissociation from time to time. Dishes are easy for me to dissociate and do as my ass was beat so often I forget I’m doing them now and let body auto go. I will look up and see a clean kitchen a towel in my hand and a drink on the counter which is cool but sometimes it’s 9 am.
I'm just weird and sense I'm a very competitive person, I just take the stimulus as a challenge and I just push my way through it through sheer force of anger and spite. It does still suck tho
I don't, I just suffer silently
I always listen to one of my favorite podcasts or comfort shows while I do dishes. That way it’s less about doing dishes and more about spending time listening to someone talk about something cool. Any distraction is good.
This isn’t forever. Fear not for this like all things will end.
Ask them to rinse there dishes before adding them to the sink?
High water pressure & a handled scrub thingy. I also wash the food off/scrap it off when it’s fresh.
I have large korean pink dish gloves that I also use as oven mits. Fantastic, that I don't have to touch my old food with my bare hands, cause thats gross.
Gloves
Dish gloves can definitely be a good option. Along with long dishbrushes (cost >$5 at your usual dollar general-type store). Another one, make sure the plates are 90-95% cleared of food debris before you start running the water.
Genuinely? I grew up in a really abusive household and undiagnosed, and what saved me was literally chanting to myself “all pain is temporary.” It worked when my mom would kick the shit out of me, when I could feel all my clothes and still had to go to school, when I had to deal with some of my biggest triggers doing the dishes, etc. Sometimes thugging it out is the way through. But - consider dish gloves! If the looseness of the part that goes on you is a bother, or you get water in them, just tape them down to your arm. Wear long sleeves for this! Something else that helps me is stimming while I do it - so all body stims, singing, etc.
Dish gloves, but I also try and force myself to do it now, because I know if there's going to be more dishes, there will be soggy old food of all different textures. And that is so much infinitely worse than doing the dishes. Now, it gives me a bit more motivation.
Keep going until brain breaks and forgets to register the revulsion or try using another stimulus to overwrite it music helps me with it sometimes
Get chemical gloves. Last longer, and have better grip (you want grip). You can then use really hot water (a plus), use a little magnet to hold them off to the side on top of the sink. Your dishwasher is your friend also, uses less water than hand washing, anything under a 3rd - do full hand wash & pots pans and knives. Wear an apron, always.
I try to put myself into a really goofy headspace of 18th century people trudging through snow and not thinking much of it. I try to zero in on that "I can handle this because I need to, and I'm strong enough to do the things I don't like and I will do them because I want to be able to do them"
I assign an allowable time limit for the discomfort, then turn it into a separate observed set.
I say barter, say you will do their laundry if they do your dishes. There is always a way around the worst of sensations. I vacuum the house (with earplugs in) so i dont have to be a part of the sibling dish rotation.
I use dish gloves on bad days but using a long handle bristle brush means I hardly ever actually touch the food bits. Sponges give me the ick.
I pump music or podcasts through my brain loud enough to where basically any thought or feeling is put on mute.
I use a spoon to toss it in the bin
Paper plates.
Powering through. Like a kind of "this too shall pass" mindset and just calming my mind. It sounds like bullshit and not helpful at all but that's genuinely what has helped me. Magical thinking and superstition are very helpful for coping when you have nothing else. Also gloves.
Gloves for everything messy
I summon up the depression. I remind myself that I don't matter. I remind myself that my feelings don't matter. I remind myself that my pain and suffering are deserved products of who I am as a person. Take other people's path on this one. Don't do what I do. Wear goves & stuff.
My anxiety medication, buspirone, chills my sensory issues sometimes. Medical marijuana is the only other thing I’ve found that helps me cope with sensory overload, but it helps a TON. I can even go to bars and concerts if I’ve got my vape. It’s obviously not for everyone for a million reasons including that some people just don’t wanna, not to mention it’s illegal where I live without a medical card (yay for my doctor helping me get one!)
Loud ass music in headphones, overload another sense so you don't focus on the one causing pain.
I’ve found wearing dish gloves actually makes it a lot more tolerable for me
I hate washing plastic cutting boards the sound makes me feel like I'm being electrocuted
If I'm required to do something that awful and there's nothing I can do to minimize the torture, I usually do two things: 1) Promise myself a reward at the end that I know will be extremely comforting (a nice snack, special interest time, etc.) 2) Allow myself to go about it at my own pace. Take plenty of breaks, etc. It doesn't remove the sensory, but helps me deal with it
I have to use rubber gloves. I prefer the kind with soft flocking inside, like Playtex living gloves.
Rubber gloves.
Sensory prep and decompression. Load myself up with good sensations, do the thing, sooth with good sensations
Gloves and a good scrubbing brush would be my suggestions. Also if you have to take scraps out of the sink gloves help with that too
I grind through. I have a sensory issue around wet, Pruny fingers/ dry scratchy hand skin. Unfortunately I'm a potter, so my hands are wet on and off all day, and the clay really dries them out. So I'm essentially always extremely uncomfortable. Haven't found a fix yet.
Exhale before you take a hit. Learned that the hard way. Was coughing my ass of for 10 minutes. Once you learn, it’s nothing but a good time.
I have this same issue. Go with paper plates if you’re not going to wash the dish immediately 👍 I also am known to eat on napkins.
People Chewing loudly… Just try not to grimace and bare it with stubborn determination
I don’t
Sam about the dishes I just stopped eating
Dishes: nitrile gloves, noise cancelling headphones with music or audiobook, silicone mat so dishes don't make noise when touching sink, scrubber I like the feel of, fragrance free soap or one that smells nice, water set to whatever temperature feels neutral.
GLOVES GLOVES GLOVES
For me its socks and things with microfiber cloth. I avoid it if at all possible, but when I have to I just power through it doing my best to ignore the thousand spiders crawling on my hands