Groundhog Day - tricking your brain

My day started off like a scene in the movie Groundhog Day. The main character wakes up over and over at the same time each morning but it is the same day. What happened to me was not nearly as dramatic, but it felt just as odd. I woke up to the dog barking, looked at my watch and saw it was 3 am. I called out to her and went back to bed. Some time later, I was woken up again, saw that it was 3 am again.

How can that be? The mind plays games with us sometimes. Well, at times, we have to play games or trick our brain also. I found out that I have central nerve syndrome after the stroke. I'm not going to be able to explain it fully so I've added the wikipedia information at the end of this post. For me, it mostly affects my right hand. My dominant hand. Most of the time it feels numb and at times I get a pins and needles feeling. From about 6 months after the stroke I have also felt a sharp, shooting pain when holding something metal, i.e. silverware or a key and when holding something made of hard plastic , i.e. laundry basket, it feels as if shards of glass are digging in. I went to occupational therapy and we worked on getting a normal feeling when using something that is metal or plastic. The body is interpreting the stimulus as a danger even though with the other hand nothing bad happens.

There were many strategies we tried. The most successful was mirror therapy. That is where you use a mirror to view your "normal" or unaffected part and visualize the affected part doing it without any pain. Basically we were tricking my brain. Over time this seemed to work for me.

From Wikipedia:

Central pain syndrome is a neurological condition consisting of constant, moderate to severe pain due to damage to the central nervous system (CNS) which causes a sensitization of the pain system. The extent of pain and the areas affected are related to the cause of the injury.

Signs and symptoms[:

Pain can either be relegated to a specific part of the body or spread to the entire body. It is typically constant, and may be moderate to severe in intensity. It is often made worse by touch, movement, emotions, barometric pressure and temperature changes, usually cold temperatures along with many other similar 'triggers'. Burning pain is the most common sensation, but patients also report pins and needles, pressing, lacerating, aching, and extreme bursts or constant sharp or unremitting excruciating pain. Individuals may have reduced sensitivity to touch in the areas affected by the pain, as if the part is 'falling asleep'. The burning and loss of sense of touch are usually, but not always, most severe on the distant parts of the body, such as the feet or hands, spreading until it is in some cases felt from head to toe. For some patients with intense affliction, there often can be unremitting nausea, causing vomiting. The pain can also bring on hyperventilation. Blood pressure can rise due to the pain.[1]

Cause:

Damage to the CNS can be caused by car accidents, limb amputations, trauma, spinal cord injury, tumors, stroke, immune system disorders or diseases, such as multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's, Graves or Addison's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and epilepsy.[2] It may develop months or years after injury or damage to the CNS