Sleep is crucial for HSPs, so make sure its highly quality and your night-time sleep is long. Most HSPs need at least 8 hours, and many sleep over the average -- 9 or 10 hours nightly. If you're not getting enough sleep you WILL burn out and edge towards depression, anxiety and become less capable of functioning.
Because they can get easily overwhelmed, HSPs may need more sleep than others. Sleep restores our bodies and minds and readies us for the other two thirds of our lives.
For a HSP, feeling drained and exhausted emotionally, mentally, and physically, is a constant struggle. There are a lot of reasons for this since everything can be overwhelming for a highly sensitive person.
Answer: Empaths are sensitive souls in all areas–sleep is one of them. Deep sleep is necessary for empaths to decrease their sense of being overstimulated by life. Many empaths have a harder time for sleep and need a specific kind of sleep hygiene.
HSP struggle to witness arguments, hear raised voices or see any form of physical violence because they are highly attuned to the emotions and energy of other people. They also tend to avoid conflict because they don't like the thought of upsetting others, or other people being upset with them.
Unfortunately, many HSPs become more stressed and are more prone to anxiety disorders. They have a hard time with conflict and tend to avoid confrontation. This can be challenging in the workplace or at home. They also feel responsible for others' expectations, which makes it harder to let people down.
HSPs thrive in relationships where they feel seen, heard, and valued. When a partner validates an HSP's words and feelings — and without judgment or condescension — it's very gratifying.
Fearing intimacy and getting closer.
Some empaths may avoid dating or romantic commitment because they fear being overwhelmed by a partner's energies and emotions.
Stress & Sensitivity Can Worsen With Age for HSPs. Here's How to Prevent That. If you are a highly sensitive person (HSP) you might be growing larger stress centers in your brain without even knowing it, and if you don't do anything about it, they will become even bigger.
Sights, sounds, smells, and other forms of sensory input may cause a heightened experience for HSPs. A sound that is barely perceptible to most people may be very noticeable, and possibly even painful, to an HSP. There's more to being a highly sensitive person than just being sensitive to stimuli.
“The higher an individual's IQ, the more likely the person is to fit the characteristics of a sensitive person.” This correlation has been observed across a wide range of fields, from the arts to science to business.
Similar to feeling irritable, when our HSP minds and bodies experience too much stimulation, we may struggle to tolerate everyday situations. As a result, we may find we cry more easily. Whereas a commercial for The Humane Society may have brought tears to our eyes before, now we're experiencing a downpour of tears.
HSPs like to handle their emotions in silence.
We often prefer to handle things alone because we must process them before verbalizing them.
HSPs are more sensitive to other traumatizing experiences. With HSP and Trauma such things as: Experiencing or witnessing actual or threatened death or serious injury. Threat to the physical integrity of self or others (such as physical or sexual abuse)
Characteristics of hypersomnia
In extreme cases, a person with hypersomnia might sleep soundly at night for 12 hours or more, but still feel the need to nap during the day. Sleeping and napping may not help, and the mind may remain foggy with drowsiness.
How Much Sleep Is Too Much? Sleep needs can vary from person to person, but in general, experts recommend that healthy adults get an average of 7 to 9 hours per night of shuteye. If you regularly need more than 8 or 9 hours of sleep per night to feel rested, it might be a sign of an underlying problem, Polotsky says.
It could be due to poor sleep quality, lifestyle factors such as stress, poor diet, lack of exercise or an underlying health condition. It is also possible that you may not be getting enough deep sleep or REM sleep, which can leave you feeling tired even after a full night's sleep.
Dr Elaine Aron often mentions in her essays that highly sensitive women are considered great lovers. They experience ecstasy more intensely, and at the same time are open to the other person, attentive, empathetic. They listen to the needs of their partner, they look at the reactions of the other person's body.
According to Dr. Elaine Aaron, author of The Highly Sensitive Person, sensitive people tend to cry more easily than others.
The 5 Love Languages (Chapman, 2015) include: Words of Affirmation, Quality Time, Receiving Gifts, Acts of Service, and Physical Touch. Words are powerful for HSPs, who tend to replay conversations over and over again.
The Sensitive Diplomats
Of the four Diplomat personality types, Introverted Advocates (INFJs) and Mediators (INFPs) may be among the most likely to have HSP qualities.
Bjelland noted a belief that all empaths are HSPs, but not all HSPs are empaths. Dr. Orloff said that an empath indeed carries all of the attributes of an HSP but with more developed intuition and a sponge-like ability for absorbing emotions.