Monitoring the body at night? *TW*

Someone got me a fitbit with a heart rate monitor as a present a while back. I didn't actually realise at all that I had been leaving my house at night, I didn't even slightly suspect. It never would have occurred to me to monitor because I didn't even suspect I had a problem. But when you get the data from fitbit telling you you've left the house you will not be in any doubt whatsoever that that is what the data is telling you. Heartrate lots more elevated due to more activity. Thousands of steps during that period. Gap recorded in sleep log. It even decided to log it as exercise on my behalf automatically. I found with mine that when I had gaps in my sleep log without having the other activity, it meant I was tossing and turning enough in bed that it didn't think I was sleeping and sometimes this recorded a few steps in the process (usually around 50 or so). I went with a different tracker when my fitbit broke but it doesn't track sleep nearly as well even through it's light-years ahead of my fitbit in all other aspects. There are also trackers with GPS that can record where you went if you are that worried but it sounds like you might just be having some disturbed sleep so far...

It sounds really useful saltedlipstick. You've made me think maybe it is useful again. I've found I've been reading emails twice in the last week at night that I don't remember reading. One morning all my nail polish was chipped at the edges to about half way which I don't know if I had bitten it all off in my sleep, but not my nails somehow, or I'd been typing. It looked like how it looks if I've typed loads over night because it was fine the night before. If a Fitbit is good at measuring awake and asleep then it could be worth it but I'd have to wait a while till after Christmas really.

Did you find out where you had been going saltedlipstick?

Thank you salted lipstick,

We have found the fitbit will occasionally produce false positives in that it will declare we are asleep when we are awake, but attempting to sleep. That is, laying still and quiet in bed. So it is not surprising that excessive motion while asleep can be mis-interpreted as being awake.

None of the sleep anomalies we have captured have been accompanied by abnormal step counts, so we are feeling confident that no one is taking the body out of the house at night.

We plan to continue monitoring until the end of November, to be sure.

Rebecca

So we're still using this thing to monitor sleep stuff, and got a huge anomaly last night... basically went to bed around 22.00 but the fitbit says we were awake till 01.30 - like 3 1/2 hours difference.

Step count doesn't show any big differences tho, like about 100 steps unaccounted for which is nothing. The heart rate log tho was wierd. It definitely looked like 'awake' heart rate stuff?

So I dunno if we were really asleep but with unusual heart rate stuff happening, or if we were awake but stayed in bed, like reading or whatever?

Whatever it was, it looks like we're definitely not like leaving the house and stuff, so probably gonna stop monitoring this stuff soon.

Interesting coincidence, its the first night in 3 or 4 days where we didn't have nightmares - or at least, don't remember any nightmares. Don't remember any dreams at all from last night actually.

Viola

More strangeness last night.

The sleep tracker shows going to bed and to sleep at the right time, and getting up at the right time. But it also shows we woke up at 00.30 and were awake for 2 hours, then back to sleep again at 02.30.

And, I'm really tired. Like in total it ways we got just over 4 hours of sleep and I can believe it. Like we definitly didnt get a full night sleep last night.

The step counter doesn't record any big step count so I don't htink we were walking around... But the heartrate shows activity, like some spikes and stuff during that time, so it wasn't just like, our arm moving a bit jiggling the sensor.

It amkes me feel anxious tho. Like, wanna know whats going on but also don't wanna know.

Actually it makes me wanna stop tracking the sleep stuff lol, better not knowing.

Viola

Did you try to actively communicate with whoever could be possible active in this time frame? Like: leaving a note on the nightstand. (Sorry, if you did wrote this in the thread and I just overlooked it).

We did this with a headmate of us, who we suspected was out mostly at night, but ignored all journal and other communication tools and agreements (like not spending the night awake, when we have to work the next day). We figured out that they used our tablet though and left a big fat note on the start screen to invite them to communication

- Alea

Hey thanks Alea,

Feel silly to admit it but that never occured to us!

I set up a notepad and a pen and a little message on there that they're welcome to use the notepad and stuff.

We'll see how it goes...

Viola

had another 'anomaly' last night. We went to bed at 21.00 but the sleep tracker says we were awake till 00.30. As before the step count is low, but the heart rate during that time matches our heart rate when awake.

We checked the notepad by the bed and it was untouched.

We were looking into the stepcount thing, and I think its possible to trick it so it doesn't count steps (or at least so it'd miss some), if you keep your arm very still? Fitbit doesn't say too much about how it works, beyond the basics, but we know it works by measuring arm movement.

Amythyst wrote:had another 'anomaly' last night. We went to bed at 21.00 but the sleep tracker says we were awake till 00.30. As before the step count is low, but the heart rate during that time matches our heart rate when awake.

We checked the notepad by the bed and it was untouched.

We were looking into the stepcount thing, and I think its possible to trick it so it doesn't count steps (or at least so it'd miss some), if you keep your arm very still? Fitbit doesn't say too much about how it works, beyond the basics, but we know it works by measuring arm movement.

Replying to say I'm still following this thread. Considering investing in one and what you're saying is very helpful.

I have parts who will do barely any arm movements. My main concern was internet at night, which did happen years ago as Karen was having chat online which I found out when men started to call during the day asking for Karen. So if it can tell the difference between waking heart rate and sleeping heart rate it's still useful as a tool to monitor if asleep or awake. And from what you're saying if another part is awake it'd tell. Although I just remembered practicing slowing my pulse down as a child - saw it on a film a think - but I'm not worried about that, nobody has practiced doing that for years as far as I know.

It sounds like this is being very useful for you. You at least know you're awake when you think you're asleep which is more than you knew before.

Slightly in denial mode at the moment myself, the "I'm exaggerating things and it's all in my head" type of denial. Which I'm glad to be able to log on here because it does keep me more realistic.

You'd need an ankle one if you're worried about where or if you're going anywhere by the sounds of it though. Ankle one seems easier in a way if you can get one that extends to ankle?

We checked the notepad by the bed and it was untouched.

I wouldn't be too impatient. In our case it took some weeks until we had some sort of reaction of this one hidden nightly part of us and we needed to practice to be very friendly and patient, despite feeling scared and annoyed about the activities.

And they didn't answer directly. As first step they just let their browser window open, with some tabs, like for showing us what they were interested it. It took some more puzzling to figure out what way of communication they preferred (it was a specific online platform)

Sorry, if I'm babbling too much about our own experience. I can understand very well, how unsettling the whole situation feels and I hope you find a good way to get in contact with whoever is secretly awake at night

-Alea