Benefit Of Hypervigilance?

[Fiadh]

I work with young adults who are in mental health crisis- it means that my hypervigilance has at times been quite helpful. I'm always on the lookout on the unit for risks. I'm worried that when I get better this might slip, that I may miss something due to being more relaxed and not noticing something. Has anyone else had worries like this about getting better?

 

[Gs172003]

I work with young adults who are in mental health crisis- it means that my hypervigilance has at times...

Yes. I don't want to lose this part.

 

[The Albatross]

I'm not really aware that "hyper" anything is a benefit. Just sayin'. We can, for instance, calm the personal toll it has but still be of worth to others. It can, no doubt be a benefit... however conversely it is an extra hurdle for those like us who have limited resources to "jump" through. I guess I am understanding the topic but it can/does come at a cost. A personal cost in the longer term. It is not, really a matter of either/or... and that is where the progress lies... what you need to determine for yourself, I expect.

 

[The Albatross]

Curious what aspect you suppose will be lost if you are able to arrest "hyper"vigilance?

 

[The Albatross]

The op says something about "worrying" about missing something. Let's discuss that further.

 

[Fiadh]

At the moment my mind feels like it's always on the go at work. Because there is a real risk of other people hurting themselves or others I'm trying to prempt what might happen and keep people safe. I'm scared that I might miss something if I didn't feel the way I do now. I agree that hyper anything is not a good thing- I don't want to feel so wound up.

 

[Friday]

2 things.

First, IME, anything you want to keep? You can. It typically takes a whole helluva lot of work to blunt any symptom set, and they still come back.

Second, I've learned to draw a line between hypervigilance and vigilance, since being here on this forum. One thing I've realized, parsing what just effing worked the last time I got my head on straight, is that I didn't "keep" my hypervig. I retrained my vigilance. So that I could relax, and just count on my mind to "pop" or "grab" anything that was out of the ordinary. I could keep track of a screaming-running-roiling-puppy pile of kids with one eye (knowing absolutely everything that's going on with them and around them) whilst still going about my life. Whether that's in the middle of them or ... The same way I could keep track of everything going on around me in a firefight or sports match. Situational awareness to the Nth degree, running hawt as f*ck, and always accurately pinging information I needed, when I needed it, now. This is very much opposed to hypervig making shopping in the market impossible, because everything is pinging / can't see-hear-think-move, bursting awake because a mosquito farted half a mile away (but so freaking exhausted, and so used to false alarms, I'm sleeping through true emergencies).

So for myself, I very much encourage & work on retraining / solidifying the one, while sanding away as much as possible the other. How? By using my vig as much as possible. And when I kick up into hypervig? Deliberately slowing things down to sort them manually.

Vigilance? Useful.
Hypervig? Life wrecking.

 

[Fiadh]

I can imagine it takes a lot of work to not react to everything that pops up at that moment. I want to relax, but had it in my mind that it might blunt my response to potentially important stuff. Thankfully I work with a great team of people so at times they help, notice me struggling and I take time out to regroup and try and calm myself down. It's good to hear that it's something that I might be able to 'retrain' as I get better

 

[Powder]

From my research, if you have the keen ability to detect minute body language and cues that most miss, from long-term or growing up Having to Have that, it goin' nowhere.

 

[Hanala]

I hate my hypervigilence. I flinch or jump all the time and it definitely doesn't go unnoticed. It also means I'm constantly living in a place io of stress hormone which is exhausting. I live like I'm primed for war and it makes it impossible to relax. I tend to get really overstimulated to the point where loud smells and sounds make me physically sick. I would love to get rid of those PTSD symptoms.

 

[Amethyst]

My hypervigilence is helpful sometimes. I survived a mass shooting over the summer and now I'm quick to call 911 any time I hear gunshots in my student apartment complex. It's usually not gunshots (once it was someone working on their roof, another time it was fireworks) but one time, it really was gunshots, and the school sent out an alert to everyone in the complex.

 

[EveHarrington]

Mine manifests itself in other ways too so I just want it to get better even if I lose some benefit. It kind of is hell.