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• in a 2025 study, Haigh explores whether reducing sensory sensitivity in one modality (e.g., vision) might also alleviate sensitivity in another (e.g., audition). This could occur if a shared neural mechanism, such as impaired cortical inhibition, underlies discomfort across senses—so easing excitation in one area lessens overall strain.
• Alternatively, improvement in one sensory domain might not change neural excitability directly but could increase overall tolerance to discomfort, reducing how overwhelming other sensations feel. Evidence linking thermal discomfort to reduced noise tolerance supports this broader cross-modal tolerance idea.
• the authors suggest that Testing interventions like tinted lenses, known to ease visual discomfort, could reveal whether they also influence auditory sensitivity. (Haigh et al., 2025)