Disordered environment brought about symptoms?
 

I've been feeling improved lately, not perfect, but no more constant headaches for the most part, and while I have some rebound headaches after my massage therapy, in general I feel greatly improved a day or so later....

This weekend, my husband decided to tackle some unpacking that has been a long time coming (we married two years ago, but were living in a super small house, so last october we moved to a larger home, but between a new job, a miscarriage and then my concussion we haven't had much time to get HIS stuff out of boxes)...

Anyways, the more clutter he introduced into the environment, the more nervous I felt myself becoming... by the end, I was downright cranky and developing a headache. This happened two nights in a row... by the end of last night, I needed to resort to taking advil, which I haven't used in about two weeks....

Is it possible that just the visual change of my environment caused symptoms? I wasn't doing any of the work, only my husband....

I've also noticed outside stressors (including little things like the clutter you mention) exacerbate my feelings of anxiety and can bring on headaches, crankiness and the like.

I'll try mindfulness meditation which helps some.

Clutter and disorganization are my biggest triggers...Sets off migraines, mega-stress, frustration and anxiety. It's the only trigger that causes me to feel extreme irritability.

I've noticed that I almost crave a more visually simple environment... its like my brain is already having such a hard time filtering things that adding more visual stimulation is just too much.

I replaced my desk with an armoire so all the clutter of unpaid bills, networking equipment etc, is now behind closed doors instead of sitting out. That's helped a great deal.

I've always leaned towards being a bit of a minimalist for knick knacks and clutter and now that seems even more amplified.

So yeah, I can totally see how unpacking boxes would amp things up a bit... I don't think I could sit in the same room with that going on or spend any time in there until it was cleaned back up.

The worst part with this is managing the need for tidying and the very little energy i have to do anything about it. Makes it a long process. But I am working away at it... because when part of it is done, its like there's just a little less stress around to deal with and that's as close as I'm getting to relief right now.

Starr

After reading your responses, I let DH know I had posted here on the topic, and that I wasn't just using my concussion as an excuse for being a mrs. cranky pants, but that it was a true side effect... HE just laughed at me and said he knew... and that he could really tell it was bothering me...

I've always been a bit ocd about environment... I like a tidy house (even if things are just stuffed into a drawer to get them out of sight)... but since I hit my head, I REALLY NEED a tidy house... it's a different sensation when it's a mess. I just never realized it till my house was upside down and my head was throbbing.

Yep, me too. If my room is chaotic in any way (which happens often because it's small and I have a lot of stuff) then I get really aggravated. It didn't happen before - I just accepted my room was usually a mess.

But it takes me about 10x as long to tidy things, dust, vacuum, do dishes or whatever. Typically it takes me a whole day to clean 2 rooms properly.

My housemate leaves a lot of things on the floor that I'm always tripping over or manage to manoeuvre into because I lose balance. It's very annoying.

I also get really frustrated when I'm walking and there are people directly in front or behind me, or just anywhere near me. Or if there's something in my

I'm pretty much cranky all the time these days :(