Concussion Symptoms: How to Deal with Sensory Overload
Sensory Overload
Confession: I still sleep with my head between two pillows with one arm wrapped over the top to squish everything into a cozy pillow burrito. This was my go-to escape from sensory stimulation post concussion.
Away from home, I spent a lot of time laying down in the backseat of a car. Loud music, fluorescent lights, bright colors, and busy environments were too much for me. They made my brain fire up and then shut down.
What is/was the most painful stimulus for you? Light and noise sensitivity is common, but so is sensitivity to smells, textures, and more.
Prolonged hypersensitivity can make life uncomfortable and overwhelming. You may feel on edge leaving the house.
Brain injury and hypersensitivity
Hypersensitivity is common after a brain injury. A healthy brain judges what incoming information is/isn’t important. Then, it filters out the unimportant information. An injured brain can’t filter information in the same way. It has to pay attention to a lot more information than before.
Processing speed is also slower. The brain has a hard time dealing with all of the extra information fast enough.
These changes result in hypersensitivity. Hypersensitivity can lead to cognitive overload, increased fatigue, and a triggered fight-or-flight response if the brain gets too stressed. It’s important to manage hypersensitivity so this doesn’t happen.
Like most things in concussion recovery, managing hypersensitivity is tricky. You may not realize what triggers it in the beginning. Ongoing pain and fatigue can take some of the resources you need to deal with sensory overload. This makes it harder to problem-solve when you get overwhelmed.
If you’re tempted to just stay home, don’t!
Concussion recovery is hard enough without hypersensitivity. It may be tempting just to stay home. But, it’s important to still expose yourself to stimulation. Understimulation can actually delay recovery and make you more sensitive.
You also don’t want to tough it out. If symptoms approach a moderate-severe level, it’s important to take a break. Too much overstimulation can strain your brain.
To be honest, it’s hard to balance too little vs. too much stimulation. There are some strategies that help, like:
Self-monitor
Predict and plan
Set yourself up for success
Switch senses
Use relaxation techniques
It’s important to know that sensory sensitivity will improve with time, and there are things you can do to increase your tolerance (more on that below).
But first, here are those strategies in more detail.
Strategies for hypersensitivity:
Self-monitor:
The best way to manage sensory overload is to notice it early on. Self-monitoring helps you do that. If your symptoms approach the moderate-severe range, take a break. You can also use relaxation techniques when symptoms first start to increase so they don’t spiral out of control.
Predict and Plan:
Sensory overload impacts your ability to make decisions in the moment. Predict how you will react to different environments during the day and plan for accommodations to manage symptoms. Some ideas include wearing earplugs for noise sensitivity and sunglasses for light sensitivity. Also plan time to rest after you’ve been in an overwhelming situation.
Set yourself up for success:
Take care of yourself before a stimulating event to improve your body’s ability to handle the event.
Rest up and fuel up before you go. Sensory overload is worse when you feel hungry, tired, or dehydrated.
Avoid drinking caffeine and alcohol. These stimulants do not help sensory sensitivity (you aren’t supposed to drink these anyway while you are still symptomatic, anyway).
Bring a “sensory overload kit” with you. Your kit might include earplugs for noise sensitivity, a baseball hat and sunglasses for light sensitivity, water, high protein snacks, peppermint gum, and a stress ball.
Switch senses:
If you are hypersensitive to one type of stimuli, give your brain something else to focus on. This sounds counterintuitive at first. But, it can keep your brain from getting overloaded. Here are two ideas:
Pressure- squeeze a stress ball, clench your fists, give yourself a hug, etc.
Flavor- Suck on a strong flavor like peppermint or cinnamon
Use relaxation techniques:
Relaxation techniques help calm your brain. An anxious brain has a harder time processing stimuli. Use these techniques if you start to get anxious:
Pause: When you notice hypersensitivity, don’t take a break right away. Try some relaxation techniques to manage stress first. Deep breathing or a body scan can help.
Deep breathing: Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth to calm your body. Breathe out longer than you breathe in. For example, count to 2 breathing in and count to 4 breathing out.
Body scan: Close your eyes. Start “scanning” your body at the top of your head. Notice any tension and release that tension. Continue scanning other parts of your body until you feel relaxed.
Take a break: Before hypersensitivity reaches a moderate to severe level, take a break. You can try more meditation techniques like deep breathing and body scans. Some other ideas are:
Gentle yoga: Gentle yoga may help calm and center the body
Music: Instrumental or other types of soothing music can relax the body
Communicate:
This last tip might be the hardest, but it’s also one of the most important! Let your support system know what is happening and what you need.
Let them know how overstimulation affects you. Ask them to help you by keeping noise down from conversations and TV, etc.
Tell them ahead of time that you will be wearing earplugs, taking breaks, etc.
Friends and family may notice that you are getting overstimulated before you do. In that case, ask them to tell you when you're starting to look overwhelmed.
Have a code word with friends/family when you need to leave an event due to overstimulation.
Increase Your Tolerance:
You can work towards increasing your tolerance by slowly exposing yourself to more stimulation.
If you haven’t worked on self-monitoring and self-regulation skills, start there. These skills will help you understand your current limitations and test these limitations safely.
Once you know your limitations, start exposing yourself to more stimuli. It’s important to scale your exposure. Don’t go from 0% to 100% in one afternoon! For example, if you’ve been avoiding the grocery store, try going to the store for a few items instead of a whole list.
A slight increase in symptoms is okay. If symptoms reach a moderate-severe level, you’ve done too much. Continue testing your limits and exposing yourself to more stimuli. Your sensitivity should normalize with time.
Hint: If you have not seen a physical therapist or occupational therapist, ask your doctor for a referral. These therapists work on issues like balance and vision that also impact hypersensitivity.
For a bit more on this topic, I like this post from brainline.org: Lost & Found: Dealing with Sensory Overload After Brain Injury.