Do You Have Sensory Issues, Too?

I'm wondering if anyone else with PTSD/CPTSD has sensory issues.

My clothing has to have the right amount of pressure in order to keep me calm. If its too tight, I get agitated. If its not tight enough, it doesn't calm me. I liken it to those thunder jackets that dogs wear!

My PJ's are two sizes too small. I can only wear PJs on my torso, with short shorts or boyshorts. I can't wear anything on my legs or feet. My blankets have to be SUPER light. I have two or three down blankets that I layer so that I can be warm enough, but they don't constrict me when I sleep. I only run into problems when I use my electric blanket on really cold nights. Accidentally falling asleep with too many clothes on or clothes that are too tight will ruin an entire night's sleep.

I had a weighted blanket but it was too heavy and just agitated me. I do like the weighted neck wraps and want to get one that will blend in with my clothing (plain black) but most of the one's I've found online have "fun" prints for kids or are made of fleece (which I hate....) I can't stand "fleece" as in that polartec kind of stuff, its probably the only material I truly can't stand. (I love *real* fleece though, and have since I was a kid, I just wish it wasn't so expensive!) Right now I make do with one of the microwaveable neck wraps that you pop into the microwave to heat it up.

I have similar issues with temperature. I *hate* being too hot. It makes it impossible to sleep. Coolness is very calming to me. I love the fall/spring when I can sleep with the windows open and pile on the blankets.

I've had these issues for years....you'd think that I'd get it "right" by now, but its always a balancing game. If I gain a few pounds, suddenly certain clothes are too tight and then they agitate me instead of calm me.... If my clothes unexpectedly shrink in the dryer (or even just after washing) then again, they're too tight and agitate me instead of calm me. Much of the time I can catch it if I wear it for a little while before leaving the house, but in the case of PJs that shrink, I don't catch it until I wake up exahusted the next day.

Anyway, there are more issues but I'll stop there.

Thanks for reading.

Cold calms me. And my sleeping improved when I got a very lightweight duvet that doesn't constrict me.

It's the smells that are the worst for me, together with the images that aren't quite there...sort of like spectres that have a form but no voice, and my bones ache with wanting to stop remembering.

Brown noises give me headaches.

I can't drive because of the glares from the sun and headlights blind me.

I'm sensitive to certain smells.

I can hear those mosquito boxes that business like to put up to drive away young customers. They make a high pitched ringing sound that I can feel in my muscles, eyes, eardrums and teeth.

I'm not sure if it's related to PTSD.
I can't stand tight, itchy clothes or elastic. I can recall smells of people or places in my mind and actually smell the scents. I am so sensitive to music that I once checked out of a hotel because they had on a soundtrack playing the same three songs over and over. I can tell when it's going to rain and how long it will last long before the storm rolls in. I get really depressed from humidity, really scared of the dry heat in Arizona, my joints ache and I get teeth-chattering, shaking convulsions from cold. I have environmental allergies and sneeze from the sun, like when I first walk out into the strong sunshine.

I wonder if people who are more sensitive are more likely to get PTSD.

any kind of uninvited sound seems to send me into a rage most days. especially whistling or tv noises. i'm really sensitive to smells as well, but everyone's always attributed it to me quitting smoking? like i can't leave a candle burning for more than a few minutes before i start to gag. people who wear cologne can just keep 20 feet away from me at all times. and any kind of musty smell is the devil.

i have the same thing you describe with the temperature though. some nights my feet and legs will just BURN UP and there's no way to cool them down and it's so uncomfortable. it always has to happen at night when i'm trying to sleep. it'd literally make me cry when i was a kid. now i just openmy windows and let oklahoma freeze me to cryogenic sleep. then i'd get this horrible rash anytime it got too cold? temperature sensitivities were a nightmare for me as a kiddo.

Maybe.

I was born senstive, cholicy, screaming all the time, wouldn't eat, wouldn't sleep.

My sister comes along, calmest baby ever. My dad thought there was something wrong with her because she didn't cry in the hospital, just went right to sleep. The nurse looked at him a bit shocked.

Yeah, I was born a sensitive soul. Who knows if it added to getting PTSD, but I know for darn sure that its made the healing journey harder.

I'm sensitive to smell. A single scent can re-open "closed" wounds.

I think it has to do with altered fight-or-flight response; I was never so over-sensitized like this until I reached a certain point with the type and number of trauma I eventually had to contend with. I'm now much less easily triggered by big events in the moment that most people would naturally be more triggered by, like a swerving car or other threatening situations, while against many little things I'm entirely helpless to defend myself. For me I think it was when my instinct to always be bracing myself for the potential of bigger trauma became second nature that as a result I became hypersensitive to things like noises or temperature changes or things touching my skin that ultimately shouldn't be that big of a deal. My body is bracing for the wrong things, making the whole system wonky.. thermoregulation and heart rate being especially out of whack for me.

My fingers are very sensitive , I don't like the sensations from mixing things with my hands in the kitchen. I don't like wearing wool. I get really irritable when it's hot out. Cool humid weather makes me happy. I love fog, clouds , storms , rain. The sun and blue sky actually depresses me during the summer.

I have sensory problems too. With certain colors, lighting, textures. I'm like you with the clothes. I can't wear on bottoms or socks. I hate even wearing them with shoes. I can only wear black clothing because bright colors trigger anxiety and agitation. When I do wear shoes, my socks have to be the athletic kind that come to your ankle. Any further, I get anxious about them around my calves like that.

I do not like socks, I wear no show or ankles high only. My coats must be heavy. I hate any blankets... I hate wearing jewelry but made a compromise and wear them as I have partner And yes I have PTSD..

I have problems with thermo regulation , don't like anything constricting and loud unexpected noises.

I'm the same way about socks! Well, for years I wouldn't wear socks at all. I even bought fleece flip flops to wear in the winter because no socks were needed. Now things have gotten a little better as I can wear socks when I run and with certain shoes. I just hate that constricting feeling on my feet.

I just thought about the jewelry thing. I have so many rings but I hate wearing them. Who knows why I keep buying them. I only wear a watch on my wrist and a light gold chain on my neck. I can't stand much else.

Purple gives me a headache between the eyes.

The feel of paper towels on a roll freaks me out because they feel so dry. I usually get my husband to change the rolls so I don't have to touch them.

But loud noises are the worst. I became very anxious, and yes, sometimes, enraged... Like violently.

Oh, and the sound of TV in the morning makes me nervous. I can't handle the noise.

I have high functioning autism and PTSD. I've always had sensory issues, they are classic of autism. But the sensory issues seem to have gotten worse since I uncovered a childhood trauma. Yes, I have severe sensory issues.