Not sure about the aliens thing. It may just be that he is searching for more stuff to take his mind off the pain and keep him occupied. I never spent so much time on the internet before (I was always too busy doing stuff) but now I would say I have an obsession with certain things that before were only a mild interest before. Or it could just be he has gotten bored with the cars to some extent and just needed something new.

Just having something that helps you take your mind off the pain and refocus is a way of dealing with it. When I was working I actually was able to deal with the pain better at work because I had so many things on my mind that needed attention while I was there and it was easier to push that pain towards the back. It was still there and by the end of the day was agony...but while focused on those other things I just wasn't thinking about it constantly. When your thoughts are all consumed with pain, pain, pain you just can't function. We all need something to focus on to help us keep the rest straight.

I don't sleep well at all...I wake up many times during the night and sometimes can't fall back to sleep at all. Other times I am just up for hours at a time and catch small bits of sleep here and there during the night. I'm lucky if I can get 2 hours of sleep together.