Managing Sensory Overload with Multiple Sclerosis | MS Coping Tips

Understanding and Managing Sensory Overload with MS

Living with multiple sclerosis can be challenging in many ways. One common struggle for people with MS is dealing with sensory overload. When MS causes nerves miscommunication, even normal sounds, lights, and sensations can feel intolerable.

Sensory overload is a common symptom tied to MS fatigue and brain fog. But with certain lifestyle adjustments and treatment strategies, sensory overload can be better managed.

This comprehensive guide covers how MS can contribute to sensory overload, tactics to prevent episodes, and ways to find relief when your senses feel overstimulated.

What is Sensory Overload?

Sensory overload refers to a heightened sensitivity to sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and tactile sensations in the environment. Normal stimuli end up feeling abnormally intense or uncomfortable.

Common sensory inputs like bright lights, background noises, scents, and crowds can become unbearable. This overwhelms the nervous system, making it difficult to function and concentrate.

Sensory overload often triggers other MS symptoms like fatigue, vertigo, nausea, anxiety, and cognitive dysfunction. Frequent overstimulation of the senses acts as a major stressor on the body.

What Causes Sensory Overload with MS?

Multiple sclerosis damages the myelin coating around nerve fibers in the central nervous system. This myelin damage disrupts transmission of neural signals in the brain and spinal cord.

Experts believe sensory overload may stem from this neural signaling dysfunction. The brain has trouble filtering and processing the stimuli correctly, so normal input feels amplified.

MS symptoms like fatigue, vertigo, pain, and numbness can also heighten sensitivity to sensory input. Damaged nerves have a lower threshold for what they interpret as irritating or exhausting.

Common Sensory Overload Triggers

For those living with MS, sensory overload can be unpredictable and occur suddenly. However, common triggers include:

• Noisy environments - concerts, busy restaurants, crowds
• Bright, flickering lights - stores, offices, screens
• Strong scents - perfumes, cleaning products, smoke
• Weather shifts - rapid drops in barometric pressure
• Temperature extremes - very hot or cold environments
• Touch sensations - tags in clothing, tight fabrics, tactile pressure
• Tastes/textures - overly spicy, sweet, bitter foods

Stress, lack of sleep, MS fatigue, and fevers can also increase likelihood of sensory overload episodes occurring.

Signs of Sensory Overload

Watch for these common signs that sensations are becoming intolerable:

• Feeling easily startled by noises
• Getting irritated by smells, lights, textures
• Having difficulty concentrating
• Experiencing “brain fog” confusion
• Developing headaches or nausea
• Feeling dizzy, off-balance
• Fatigue, exhaustion
• Elevated heart rate, breathing changes
• Anxiety, panicking, anger
• Needing to withdraw from stimuli

Paying attention to these early cues can help you take action to manage symptoms before they escalate into a severe episode of overload.

Preventing Sensory Overload Episodes

While living with MS means some sensory overload is inevitable, certain lifestyle measures can help reduce frequency and severity of episodes. Prevention tips include:

1. Identify and Avoid Triggers

Track experiences that commonly trigger overload like crowded venues, perfume departments, flickering lights, pressure from clothing, weather shifts, etc. Avoiding these preventable triggers as much as possible will help.

2. Use Sunglasses and Headphones Out

Wearing sunglasses can dim intense light while headphones or earplugs help muffle loud environments. These tools create a barrier to common sensory triggers.

3. Make Your Home a Low-Stimulation Zone

Keep your home dimly lit with minimal clutter and soothing natural sounds like fans or white noise machines. Having one calm, controlled environment reduces overload.

4. Plan Breaks into Your Day

Schedule short breaks to retreat to a quiet place after activities like shopping or social gatherings that involve heavy sensory stimuli.

5. Communicate Needs with Loved Ones

Let close friends and family know what triggers overload for you. They can help accommodate your needs and sensitivities.

6. Optimize Sleep, Nutrition, Exercise

Prioritizing sleep, healthy food, light exercise, and stress management bolsters nervous system functioning and resilience.

7. Explore Stress-Relieving Practices

Meditation, deep breathing, yoga, massage, and time in nature can all help calm the nervous system and body.

Coping with Sensory Overload in the Moment

Even when taking precautions, sensory overload episodes can still occur. Tactics to find relief in the moment include:

1. Create a Low-Stimulation Space

Keep a darkened, quiet room or area you can retreat to during overload episodes. Noise-canceling headphones, soft blankets, soothing scents, and favorite objects can add comfort.

2. Step Away

If you’re out in a stimulating environment, politely excuse yourself to a bathroom, lobby, or outdoors for fresh air and reduced input.

3. Loosen Clothing

Remove hats, scarves, tight collars, belts, or constricting clothing touching skin to ease tactile discomfort.

4. Use Calming Essential Oils

Essential oils like lavender, chamomile, and sweet orange help relax the nervous system when inhaled or massaged into temples.

5. Practice Grounding

Grounding techniques reconnect you to the present moment to relieve anxiety. Describe objects around you, inhale deeply and feel feet on the floor, listen for subtle sounds like a ticking clock.

6. Splash Cool Water on Face

Splashing your face with cool water can instantly help “reset” your senses when they feel overwhelmed and irritated.

7. Apply a Cold Compress

Resting a cold towel or ice pack on the eyes, neck, or cheeks has an analgesic, numbing effect that calms the nervous system.

Sensory Overload Treatment and Management

While coping techniques help in the moment, those with chronic overload issues may need longer term treatment strategies. Medical, therapy, and lifestyle approaches can improve sensory regulation.

Medications

Doctors may prescribe medications to dampen sensory irritation, reduce nerve pain signals, improve MS symptoms like fatigue, or address overload-related issues like anxiety, nausea, and insomnia.

Medications that may help include anticonvulsants, tricyclic antidepressants, anti-anxiety drugs, antiemetics, and muscle relaxants. Beta blockers like propranolol help regulate heart rate and calming effects.

Occupational Therapy

Working with an occupational therapist can help identify sensory triggers and develop effective coping strategies. They introduce techniques like using adaptive equipment, altering environments, and practicing sensory integration therapy.

Physical Therapy

A physical therapist can teach exercises, balance training, and mobility aids to help overcome symptoms like vertigo, pain, and numbness that may worsen sensory overload.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Cognitive behavioral therapy helps reframe negative thought patterns and develop healthier behavioral responses to sensory input. This can reduce perceived sensitivities over time.

Relaxation Practices

Regular relaxation techniques like breathwork, mindfulness, meditation, yoga, massage therapy, float tanks, nature therapy, and art or music therapy can help retrain how the nervous system responds to stimulation.

Dietary Changes

An anti-inflammatory diet high in omega-3s may calm hypersensitivities. Some people sensitive to textures do better minimizing raw fruits and vegetables. Avoiding additives, MSG, and food sensitivities can help too.

Strength Training

Regular strength training helps repair and maintain neural connections. Building muscle also protects nerves and may boost nervous system functioning.

Adapting day to day routines to accommodate sensory needs alongside these management approaches helps ensure dynamic life participation despite MS-related sensory challenges.

The Impact of Sensory Overload on Mental Health

Frequent sensory overload often takes a toll on mental health for those living with MS. Common psychological effects include:

• Social Isolation – Avoiding triggering environments can lead to withdrawing from social activities.
• Anxiety and Depression – Struggling to manage unpredictable symptoms is distressing.
• Low Self-Esteem – Ability to work, parent, or participate in hobbies may be impacted.
• Loss of Independence – Overload makes completing tasks or traveling alone difficult.
• Anger – Irritability often arises from sensory discomfort and loss of control.

Seeking mental health support is important for processing these challenges. Counseling, peer support groups, medication, and practicing self-compassion can help prevent isolation and maintain emotional well-being.

Coping Strategies for Caregivers of Those with Sensory Overload

For family and friends caring for loved ones with MS, sensory overload can be difficult to understand. With compassion and these coping techniques, caregivers can better support their loved ones:

• Educate yourself about sensory overload to increase understanding.
• Help identify triggers and modify environments to reduce stimuli.
• Learn gentle communication skills – don’t take anger personally.
• Encourage taking needed breaks during activities.
• Check in on mental health impacts like depression.
• Suggest stress management practices like meditation, yoga, massage.
• Provide resources on occupational/physical therapy.
• Ask how you can best help in overwhelming moments.
• Know your own limits as a caregiver and prioritize self-care.

With patience, teamwork, and compassion, families can work together to make sensory challenges more manageable.

The Outlook for Overcoming Sensory Overload

Sensory overload can be a frustrating and detrimental symptom for those living with MS. However, while not fully curable, overload episodes can be better prevented and managed with lifestyle adaptations, therapy, medication, and self-care practices.

No single approach eliminates overload, but a combination of environmental changes, sensory-calming techniques, communication, and professional treatment teaches how to better tolerate stimuli and function in daily life.

Committing to a sensory integration regimen helps MS patients take back control, reduce anxiety, and improve quality of life impaired by sensory hypersensitivities. With time and consistency, overload occurrences tend to diminish in frequency and severity.

While sensory challenges associated with MS may persist lifelong, appropriate coping strategies let individuals remain active members of their communities and find joy within their circumstances.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult with a healthcare professional before starting any new treatment regimen.