[Imah]

I use the method of keeping my senses calm to help my moods.

When I am more prone to react to my surroundings - over stimulization of some senses pushes me over the edge quicker, and if I can keep my environment stable, I can sometimes avoid over-reactive responses.

Examples, low lighting, using sound on low - or noiseless. Shutting away to keep surroundings calm. Using light scents.

My spouse is a quiet person, we both use headphones, and our dogs don't bark - maintaining sounds (and for him lighting must be low) help us both immensely.

Does anyone else use this method - or would like to try it and share.

[middlepath]

I don't follow the same lifestyle, but i do notice that any type of busy atmosphere will cause me to overstim, and I always melt down afterward. Maybe I should consider a super tranquil home environment to contract the loud, overstimulating world! By the way, I hate any type of sensory overload: wind, loud noises, flashing lights, etc. It is just too much for me. There is some part of me that wants to be able to enjoy those things, but I just can't and I just don't. I don't know if that helps you, but that is all i have : )

I'm sensitive to noise and light, too. Even prime-time TV is often too much for me. Too many flashing images, especially commercials. I live alone so i get lots of quiet time. My dog and i are ideally suited because she is so quiet i named her "Hush!"

[Standup2me]

Originally Posted by apfei

I'm sensitive to noise and light, too. Even prime-time TV is often too much for me. Too many flashing images, especially commercials. I live alone so i get lots of quiet time. My dog and i are ideally suited because she is so quiet i named her "Hush!"

TV too because people's voices scratch my brain
Loud noisy cars & trucks make my skin crawl

I find that sometimes I have to sit in a cool (17 celsius) dark room
just to calm down

Sometimes they bother me more than at other times. If I'm feeling particularly sensitive in those regards, I've learned to be very careful with things like where to be and what activities to do (NOT ones likely to bring frustration) etc., because I noticed a correlation with exploding. The "tripwire" gets shorter.

Certain noises (yippy little dogs, kids whining etc.) always grate on my nerves immediately. I can't take strobe lights at all. Any sudden noise will make me jump a mile. But where I live is quite noisy (airport, sirens, trains) and aside from the sirens occasionally bothering me, it's fine. In fact, I think of the highway (a few blocks away) as white noise. Haha. Schshshshshshshsh.

[fingers1]

Originally Posted by Imah

I use the method of keeping my senses calm to help my moods.

When I am more prone to react to my surroundings - over stimulization of some senses pushes me over the edge quicker, and if I can keep my environment stable, I can sometimes avoid over-reactive responses.

Examples, low lighting, using sound on low - or noiseless. Shutting away to keep surroundings calm. Using light scents.

My spouse is a quiet person, we both use headphones, and our dogs don't bark - maintaining sounds (and for him lighting must be low) help us both immensely.

Does anyone else use this method - or would like to try it and share.

Hi Imah !

Yes I am sensitive to sound and light. Ever since I was diagnosed in 2004
I have made sure I lead a completely quiet and stress free life.
I believe that It is when you are in a hypomanic or manic phase that sound and light become a problem. You are on to something big here when you talk about low lighting.

Here are three things that can help you further.

1. Reduce your computer screens light output with F.lux a free program on the internet.

2. Google Bipolar disorder, light and darkness treatment implications.
This might just save your life !.

3. Keep a daily routine (bipolar loves routine)
Go to bed and wake up at the same time every night in a totally blacked out room. Try to have a sleep or at least lay down for one hour after lunch
again in a totally blacked out room.

I hope this helps ! PAY IT FORWARD !
Good luck !
Fingers 1

[yagalada]

Light, noise and physical stimulation bother me immensely. Its difficult to maintain right now because my 4 year old wants every bright light on, my husband chews chips loudly and I live in a building with loud people. I have to escape to my bedroom with lights off and headphones on.

[HALLIEBETH87]

Bright light hurts my eyes. Chaotic loud noises makes me anxious, LOTS of noises make want to hurt people lol they put me in panic attack mode. I thought I was the only one!!

[Imah]

Originally Posted by yagalada

Light, noise and physical stimulation bother me immensely. Its difficult to maintain right now because my 4 year old wants every bright light on, my husband chews chips loudly and I live in a building with loud people. I have to escape to my bedroom with lights off and headphones on.

Yagalada, I raised 2 kids with untreated bipolar and borderline personality disorders. I learned early that occasionally in order to maintain sanity I had to be alone. As my kids grew older I taught them to please understand my alone time (my title, My Alone Time) wasn't to punish them, but to protect them. I would say," I am overly sensitive and if someone says or does something that I cannot process, I may react in a way that I wouldn't another time. So I am in here (my bedroom) not because you are doing anything wrong. But because I know I might". I wish so much I had respected my diagnosis and sought the professional care and medication I needed. Its my guess that alone time is very - very common for parents.

Best of luck to us all, and thank you so much for all the responses everyone. I am going to share this with my Dr.