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Comment by h1d | Hacker News Reader

I see your point but I have a hyper sensitivity to EMF (among other things) and I turn off any wireless technology wherever I can (like Bluetooth, when I don't have any paring devices at home) and many devices aren't comfortable for me to keep, despite me working in an IT industry.

The symptom isn't classified as a disease at where I live, so it's hard to get any decent medial treatments and I'm afraid 5G might harm me even harder when higher frequency typically makes me feel worse without a way to get away from it.

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Have you ever tried a double blind test of your symptoms? I'm not going to be judgmental at all, but my friend's father had this ~10 years ago, and (being a scientist) decided to participate in a double-blind study. Turned out he scored no better than chance on any of the tests. That was a big enough eye opener for him that he was pretty much "cured" of EHS.

That's interesting. I could try it but I have plenty of cases where I see clear causes that make me unnecessarily tired and this is going on with me for 2 decades now.

- Turn off wireless signals like Bluetooth (I keep WiFi with low emission setting which isn't as bad as BT but 5Ghz is worse than 2.4Ghz, so I only use 2.4Ghz frequency.)

- Many of recent phones. (Bought iPhone X, Pixel 3a and those I can't keep close to me no matter how I tweak their settings, so they're away from me kept in boxes but I still need them for testing for my work.)

- LED displays keep me uneasy. I use fluorescent ones.

- IC chips used for credit cards and passports. I keep them minimum in my wallet.

These are from what I've bought and sold just to find what might feel better for me. I wish I could just keep what I want.

(Also not EM but chemical substances, just to say I've been living with hypersensitivity.

- Keeping clothes on after coming back home from outside. So I quickly wash and take shower.

- Need to clean wall every few weeks before I feel kind of choked, maybe due to glue used for the wallpapers.

- Very small amount of mold. I have to clean my air conditioner from a professional service every season.)

I can keep going but those are some.

That sounds horrible. May I ask, what symptoms do you suffer from? Is the condition recognized anywhere? Has anyone explored treatments?

Sadly the only other mention I've ever seen is the fictional series "Better Call Saul". And the character's suffering was depicted as entirely mental.

> And the character's suffering was depicted as entirely mental.

That's because it is entirely mental.

Blind tests were done on people, and their ability to recognise a radiation source was the same as random picking.

Anybody claiming to be able to sense radiation can be tested simply by taking two mobile phones, turning one off (leaving one connected to the internet and doing something online), putting both in a bag/under a bucket/..., having someone else randomly swap their position and trying to guess which is the one that is radiating at the moment. I can guarantee you're guesses will be around 50% in the long run, so basically random guesses.

I haven't taken any blind tests but if the testing environment isn't causing me problems to begin with (chemically or EM), like at home where I control the environment, I can tell what's good and bad. That's how I decide what to keep and what to sell when I buy something.

My quality of sleep is much better with cell and wifi off. I live rural so there's less external sources too. It's significant enough that I turn it off every night as a habit. My issues with insomnia started back in 2000 when I first brought work into my small apartment.

Correlation is not causation. It could also be as simple as the light or vibrations from your phone at night disrupting your sleep. I've found blinking lights can make my sleep worse.

It's wifi too. I sleep with a mask and ear plugs. The very best sleep I get is with complete emf shielded and grounded clothing. The nights I don't do this are significantly worse. I'm tempted to get a sleep tracker but most are bluetooth. I've even tuned my router so it does less frequent heartbeats. If I ever build a house again I'd spend the money on shielding it entirely.

It's not wifi. There's literally no way for you to detect it and there are other, stronger radio signals constantly bombarding you.

I feel better if I completely turn off WiFi or Bluetooth. I can see I'm exposed to plenty of other signals by living in a city but it doesn't mean they're nothing. It just removes the added damage being done and it makes quite a difference to quality of life which would be hard to imagine for you.

My ammature theory (5Ghz wifi feels worse than 2.4Ghz wifi) also says higher frequency for short range signals does more harm, thus it's more sensitive to turn those off than being exposed to other lower frequency used outside.

That doesn't sound like a great test since I don't think the apparatus is there to detect where signals are coming from, just (in theory) whether there are any.

I hate to admit it, but I seem to notice effects when I add wireless networks to my home. I think it's probably psychosomatic, but would like to do a blind test. I would situate myself between wireless devices, with all devices within 10 meters either being on or off, the test being to determine if any devices are on. I would feel weird asking anyone to help in this, so perhaps I'll rig something up with smart plugs or a programmable router.

It just takes away my concentration and makes me look tired (which is almost the norm now) and my thinking gets clouded. Without controlling the environment to the point I remove any devices that cause me certain uncomfort, I can't have much time productively. This also goes for chemical matters, as if I don't clean the floor, wall and clothes often, same happens.

I think northern Europe has recognized EM hypersensitivity as a symptom but last time I checked, it's not widely recognized worldwide.

I can completely say this is not mental. Like, say I get a new phone which I wanted to buy and then if it damages me, I regretfully have to sell it. Also I can feel better by turning off Bluetooth, so there are clear physical causes for me.

Thanks for the down votes.

While I understand that you might want to silence vocal minorities for business reasons, I've only stated facts from my past 20 years of life.

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