Nightime Spidey Senses? (1 Viewer)

[Jason Pancake]

Does anyone else experience a heightened sense of hearing at night when going to bed? Not that I can hear any better but I am much more SENSITIVE to the smallest sounds such as a pen being set down or a light switch being turned off. It usually begins after I am bed and trying to go sleep. My personal theory is that I am more sensitive because I am more aware of "strange" sounds that may pose a threat.

Anyone else experience this?

JPancake

 

[Wade K]

Something similar in my case. I can sleep through a blaring stereo or television (or alarm), yet I'll bolt up at the really small sounds like someone turning the doorknob or walking outside. Could be some kind of survival reflex.

 

[Christ Reynolds]

same with me, i have to BLAST the alarm just to wake me up, but if someone is walking up the stairs (which barely make noise) i can hear it, even though the stairs are 20 feet away, and through a door. the doorknob always wakes me up every time. could be a survival reflex as wade says, seems like a good explaination for it.

CJ

 

[Jeffrey Noel]

The main reason you hear better is because you are "shutting down" most of your other senses (ex: sight) and focusing all on your sense of hearing. Lacking stimuli in those other senses will heighten your receptiveness to the audible stimuli.

 

[Ted Lee]

i think that the lack of daytime ambient noises also helps. you don't have as much stuff going on...so the other sounds "stand out" more.

but you definitely know when something isn't right. i can hear weird sounds and know that it's the kids/pets/neighbors/etc. but a strange creak will definitely get my attention.

 

[Steve_Tk]

I learned about this in a class in college. Your brain adapts to things that are 'normal' without you even knowing. So while you will fall asleep to your TV blaring, or the dog next door barking, or people walking down the street, or the rain. But you will wake up if you hear something at your back door, earthquake (just had my first a while back), a car alarm, water running (pipe broke).

It's pretty neat stuff. I used to never wake up as a child at my parents house when I would hear the train in the middle of the night. Now when I visit, I wake up to the sound of the whistle, even though it's a mile away. If I lived there again I would never hear it.

One thing that drives people that stay at my place nuts is my clock. It's dings at every 15 minutes, and the dings get longer with every 15 minutes at half hour, 45 minutes, and one hour. I honestly never hear the thing go off at all anymore, unless I'm looking at it.

 

[Mike Lenthol]

I think Jason is referring to sensitivity of ear which definitely adjusts just like eyes do. Being in a quiet environment is just like being a dark room, with time the pupils adjust and you see more and more detail. Same with ears.

That’s why the TV and the car radio with the volume adjusted the previous day seem so loud in the morning. The hearing 'threshold' is raised during the day from all the noise.

Try sitting in a very quiet room for half an hour before listening to a CD, totally changes the experience.

Overrated: big speakers
Underrated: that

 

[Christ Reynolds]

The main reason you hear better is because you are "shutting down" most of your other senses (ex: sight) and focusing all on your sense of hearing.

its not that for me, i can sleep right through a very very loud alarm clock. it sounds more like what steve is describing, although it cant be exactly that either, beceuse the alarm is a sudden thing too.

CJ