Published on 12, July, 2020
At the moment, im struggling with insomnia. I've been working hard this year and feel burnt out. At night I wake up at 2 or 3am and my body, in my stomach just below my ribs in the centre, feels like I am running a motor, a fast pulsing.
Does anyone else get this? It feels like what I imagine mania to be?
I experience something similar which affects my sleep.
It is a pulsating sensation from various pulse points around my body. It can be in my head, neck, back, ribs or even arms and legs. Whichever side I lie on it is worse on that side, if I turn over the sensation moves.
After being told by GPs for years that it is due to anxiety, I recently discovered on here that it is actually an autistic sensory issue. The official term is hypersensitive interoception. It means that I am much more aware of my own internal body sensations. I experience it during the day as well. However at night, when there is little to distract me from the sensations, it can make it hard to sleep.
https://www.kelly-mahler.com/resources/videos/how-i-feel-episode-4-in-cases-of-too-much-interoception/
The best technique I have found is distraction. I listen to an audio book or a you tube video about one of my interests. I keep my eyes covered with an eye mask while listening, so that I am not affected by the light from the screen. I usually drop off to sleep before the end of whatever I am listening to.
Id wondered about interoception, thanks for mentioning this again. Hypersensitivity in general causes me so many issues. But how do I dull my senses? Hmm
Really exhausted by having to avoid things that might be over sensitising now