HSAN: No pain, but...

There is a disorder that is abbreviated to HSAN, but since I cannot recall what it stands for...there is another term for it. Congenital insensitivity to pain disorder. The question I need, for an important character, is that...can a person with HSAN feel pleasure? Or are they just numb to all but certain temperatures?

Keyan said:

Are you talking of sexual pleasure that depends on nerve stimulation?

Or general enjoyment, like nice music or a pretty sunset or doing something fun with a friend?

The first one sounds iffy, but the second one - from everything I read, they certainly can enjoy life.

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I was referring to general pleasant sensations that include sexual stimulation, yes. Nerve stimulation. Mental formations of pleasure are not what I meant.

Izunya said:

If I read Keyan's article right, they've got issues with temperature, too. It mentioned that folks with HSAN can't tell if they're being scalded.

On the other hand, they interviewed an adult survivor of HSAN who was happily married. With two children, so I assume she must get something out of sex.

A google search showed me that at least one form of HSAN is also known as Riley-Day Syndrome. I didn't find any mention of sexual dysfunction, male or female, connected with it. It's worth noticing that someone with HSAN might not get a whole lot out of food, because (again from the article Keyan linked to) at least one child with the disorder has chewed her own taste buds off. So, someone with HSAN might get pleasure from sex, but probably not from chocolate.

Izunya

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I read the article, I just wasn't sure about the sex part or just general physical sensations. You know, like a light brush or something like that against your skin? I'm trying to understand if the person would simply acknowledge that sensation as a sensation, but not be moved by it.

I know by one article that in a person, the different chemicals that release pleasure and pain are released at different times. The pain chemical mentioned in the article must not be present in this person's brain or doesn't work properly. So, what I want to know is if they release a pleasure chemical FOR SURE or not. While most chew their tongues off, I really want a confirmation on stuff like sensual touch and sex in general They may have only had sex because they wanted children. Perhaps the husband led her through it or some off the wall thing?

This has all been really helpful. It's just that no article thus far has actually addressed pleasure. They just keep discussing pain. I mean, from my experience, if I didn't feel pain when I was hurt...Wouldn't there be some correlation there with only feeling pleasure? I would think (in my wild imagination) they would be an insensitive hedonist if they felt pleasure but no pain. But this most likely isn't the case with these people.