What makes a person ticklish?

[Kres01]

I've had this kink for a while now, but I'm not ticklish at all. I'm sure there are others in the same boat. So I want to find out what the difference between me and someone who is ticklish is.

Does exposure to tickling make you more/less ticklish?
Is ticklishness a property of your skin or is it all in your head?
Does wanting to be tickled make you less ticklish?
Does muscle/fat have an effect on ticklishness?
Gender, age?
Has your level of ticklishness changed over the years?

My experiences alone aren't enough to find any answers, so I was wondering if anyone reading this had any insight.
I'm thinking of collecting a bunch of answers and seeing if I can find trends in the data, but I need to know the right questions to ask first.

 

[hopefulscrambl]

I think its likely a lot of factors.

I think it is at least somewhat psychological. People are less ticklish when they're sad, scared or angry, so it makes sense that people who are consistently sad, scared and angry will be less ticklish than those who are generally happy and secure, and that does somewhat fit with my observations. But also I know highly ticklish and deeply miserable, or happy and non-ticklish people, so that's not all that's going on. I do know some people who can switch their ticklishness on and off, and maybe some people do that more subconsciously in whichever direction.

I also do think there is likely a genetic one. Ticklishness doesn't really give much of an evolutionary advantage or disadvantage, so it's probably pretty likely to wildly genetically shift. If you get a genetic trait that makes you very or not very ticklish, that'll just pass on. It's also like any other sensation, so your nerves can theoretically get numb to it, or lose the ability to detect it. Still, unless you're regularly being tickled nonstop for hours at a time, I doubt most people experience enough tickling to have a non-negligible effect. I think its probably more likely that if you're not tickled for a long time, especially growing up, your nerves might lower their ability to recognize the sensation.

I know that some studies show that men are more ticklish than women, and people get less ticklish as they age, but these seem to be broad trends rather than hard and fast rules.

One thing I have noticed, and this is purely speculation and not based on anything scientific, is that I find autistic people are more likely to be explosively ticklish than allistic ones. Not always, but it's something I've not a notable trend. Maybe to do with sensory overload or problems around touch? Or maybe more difficulty suppressing reactions. Or maybe just coincidence.

I think most likely people have a natural baseline ticklishness, and then psychology shifts it in varying directions, but I can't give you more than "it's probably very complex"

 

[yinzer]

I could be way off, but I think it has a lot to do with where people hold their tension. People who tend to be tensed up and maybe nervous as they anticipate something like being tickled likely makes tickling more intense than for people who are able to completely relax their bodies? Also of course has to do with places that maybe have more nerve endings, like in the toes maybe??

 

[WickedTouch]

I've had this kink for a while now, but I'm not ticklish at all. I'm sure there are others in the same boat. So I want to find out what the difference between me and someone who is ticklish is.

Does exposure to tickling make you more/less ticklish?

For me, in the short term (in a session or a day or two after) my body becomes much more reactive, like the reflexes to tickling are more on edge and ready to fire. Though, if continuously tickled, a single spot can easily become desensitized, but moving to another one allows that to reset. Long term, I also think exposure to it has made me more reactive to tickling. That may be because I am usually tickled with a lot of intensity, so my body and brain are learning that it's a "threat."

Is ticklishness a property of your skin or is it all in your head?

In a way, we're biological machines. The nerves and nerve endings in the soft tissues are the wires and sensors that pick up the signals to transfer them to the brain. The brain is the set of processing units that interpret those signals. A major part of the brain that is responsible for the experience of tickling is also responsible for things like pain and emotions. So, the body and the extended nervous system, and all the many elements of biochemistry that affect them are important, but that person's unique brain signature and emotional or other mental states can have a profound impact on ticklishness. Because we're all so unique, especially with how plastic brains can be, two different people can have the opposite triggers for what makes them ticklish. For example, some people are more ticklish when nervous, while others are less.

Does wanting to be tickled make you less ticklish?

Hmm...no I think it makes me more. At the subconscious level, my body or whatever is always nervous about being tickled and basically wants nothing to do with it. But consciously, if I don't want it, say because of who might be doing it, I am substantially less ticklish.

Does muscle/fat have an effect on ticklishness?

I think it does. This may also vary a lot between individuals, but in general, I do think so. I wrote about why in my reply to this post. I think for light/soft style tickling, it probably makes less of a difference than for hard tickling.

Gender, age?

Nothing definitive here. Several studies say men are more ticklish and several say women. I think like most studies with small sample sizes, they are probably not very reflective of the greater population. I feel like I've observed women being more ticklish, but then a woman who is used to tickling other women says I'm the most sensitive she's tickled. I've also heard many people say both ways for age, largely speaking from their own personal experiences or for those close to them. I think changes to the body through the aging process can affect things in a variety of ways, to include increasing or decreasing ticklishness.

Has your level of ticklishness changed over the years?

It's really hard to tell because I was tickled significantly less for many years, and almost never in very vulnerable situations–Certainly not as vulnerable as today. I feel like it has been about the same overall. A big wrench to throw in here, is that I have a lot of variability day-to-day and even season-to-season. I've always wondered why, but don't know anything for sure. Activity? Diet? Sun exposure? Mood? Hydration? Alignment of the stars and planets? Don't know.

My experiences alone aren't enough to find any answers, so I was wondering if anyone reading this had any insight.
I'm thinking of collecting a bunch of answers and seeing if I can find trends in the data, but I need to know the right questions to ask first.

Well, I hope some of that is helpful. Good luck!

 

[aberdeen]

I think its likely a lot of factors.

I think it is at least somewhat psychological. People are less ticklish when they're sad, scared or angry, so it makes sense that people who are consistently sad, scared and angry will be less ticklish than those who are generally happy and secure, and that does somewhat fit with my observations. But also I know highly ticklish and deeply miserable, or happy and non-ticklish people, so that's not all that's going on. I do know some people who can switch their ticklishness on and off, and maybe some people do that more subconsciously in whichever direction.

I also do think there is likely a genetic one. Ticklishness doesn't really give much of an evolutionary advantage or disadvantage, so it's probably pretty likely to wildly genetically shift. If you get a genetic trait that makes you very or not very ticklish, that'll just pass on. It's also like any other sensation, so your nerves can theoretically get numb to it, or lose the ability to detect it. Still, unless you're regularly being tickled nonstop for hours at a time, I doubt most people experience enough tickling to have a non-negligible effect. I think its probably more likely that if you're not tickled for a long time, especially growing up, your nerves might lower their ability to recognize the sensation.

I know that some studies show that men are more ticklish than women, and people get less ticklish as they age, but these seem to be broad trends rather than hard and fast rules.

One thing I have noticed, and this is purely speculation and not based on anything scientific, is that I find autistic people are more likely to be explosively ticklish than allistic ones. Not always, but it's something I've not a notable trend. Maybe to do with sensory overload or problems around touch? Or maybe more difficulty suppressing reactions. Or maybe just coincidence.

I think most likely people have a natural baseline ticklishness, and then psychology shifts it in varying directions, but I can't give you more than "it's probably very complex"

The comment about autism is actually a phenomenon reported by many of the ppl I know in the T community...They seem to report being hyper ticklish and also hyper 'needy' for sessions... ie they seem to really want sessions a bit more than most others! And some with other neurodivergent diagnoses ie ADHD are the same as those w autism...and some say that a tickling session (especially regular sessions) seems to moderate their autism / ADHD better than meds alone!

That is why I truly believe we as a society would benefit from more specialized spas or clinics for tickling and touch / play therapy...
I mean we have spas and clinics for salt therapy for respiratory issues, massage therapy for muscles, aromatherapy for rlaxation...
Many people (young generation like 20s) also report feeling deeply touch-starved ...And they don't mean sexual touch but simply therapeutic touch : cuddling, hand holding, sitting beside someone while watching television with hips touching side by side or an arm on their leg....
But as far as the tickling...many have said they would want or need a session every week or so to keep themselves more 'balanced'...not so much a tickle torture session (although some do) but most want just a decent round of playful tickling!