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This trait is normal--it is inherited by 15 to 20% of the population, and indeed the same percentage seems to be present in all higher animals.
Being an HSP means your nervous system is more sensitive to subtleties. Your sight, hearing, and sense of smell are not necessarily keener (although they may be). But your brain processes information and reflects on it more deeply.
Being an HSP also means, necessarily, that you are more easily overstimulated, stressed out, overwhelmed.
This trait is not something new I discovered--it has been mislabeled as shyness (not an inherited trait), introversion (30% of HSPs are actually extraverts), inhibitedness, fearfulness, and the like. HSPs can be these, but none of these are the fundamental trait they have inherited.
The reason for these negative misnomers and general lack of research on the subject is that in this culture being tough and outgoing is the preferred or ideal personality--not high sensitivity. (Therefore in the past the research focus has been on sensitivity's potential negative impact on sociability and boldness, not the phenomenon itself or its purpose.) This cultural bias affects HSPs as much as their trait affects them, as I am sure you realize. Even those who loved you probably told you, "don't be so sensitive," making you feel abnormal when in fact you could do nothing about it and it is not abnormal at all.

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Happily, after decades of apartment dwelling, I finally am a homeowner (and therefore have not too much compunction about telling my tenants to keep it down )
What say you to this?

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Excerpt from The Highly Sensitive Person Survival Guide

My Neighbors Are Driving Me Crazy: What Can I Do?
(Questions from "How to Deal with Difficult Situations")

Q; I have a neighbor who was very noisy and we got into quite a battle over his loud music that he refused to turn down. After the manager made him turn down his music, he ended up moving to another apartment in the same building, but whenever I see him he always gives me dirty looks which really irritates me. What can I do to make him stop?

A; Although your neighbor may have been 99 % at fault in the disagreement for not turning down his music, if you were a non-HSP you may not have been bothered by the noise. You were likely angry when you told him to turn down the music or when you reported him to the manager. He may have felt attacked by you. He was the one who had to leave his home due to your demands. I recommend that you either tell him or write him a note using the 1% apology technique. Apologize for your 1% responsibility of the dispute. Tell him that if you didn't have a sensitivity to noise, there wouldn't have been a dispute and apologize for any inconvenience that you caused him. The chances are high that if you apologize, he will eventually stop giving you dirty looks and both of you will feel more at peace.

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One isn't really diagnosed, but you recognize yourself in questions like these:
I am easily overwhelmed by strong sensory input. Yip, loud noises, strong smells etc
Other people's moods affect me. Oh yeah-particularly relevant since I am an adult child of an alcholic
I find myself needing to withdraw during busy days,into bed or into a darkened room or any place where I can have some privacy and relief from stimulation. Hmm, not so sure about this one...I do like company..But at work at least once a week I curse my openplan office and wish I had an office door to shut
I am made uncomfortable by loud noises. Definitely me
I startle easily. Absolutely, I jump at the smallest thing, BF thinks its hilarious
My nervous system sometimes feels so frazzled that I just have to go off by myself. Has happened a few times
I make a point to avoid violent movies and TV shows. I look away!
I am bothered by intense stimuli, like loud noises or chaotic scenes. Yes
When I was a child, my parents or teachers seemed to see me as sensitive or shy. Sensitive maybe, I used to cry a lot when I was a kid, shy never, I was always very outgoing

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