Christmas Can Be a Nightmare for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.
A 23-year-old is looking forward to seeing her relatives over the holidays, but says a primary method she'll cope is by relying on her hearing protection - particularly at the holiday meal.
In her case, Christmas often feels like a notably tough season as the auditory triggers of people eating, slurping and nose-blowing trigger profound anxiety.
"There's this feeling of instant dread, my every muscle will just tighten and it seems as if I'm in danger, and I need to somehow control these noises."
The individual has lived with misophonia from a young age and for her that renders the holiday period "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is a decreased threshold to specific noises, particularly those produced by individuals.
It's surprisingly common across the population. Researchers discovered nearly 20% people experience it.
Typically it's noises connected to eating or drinking that trigger a reaction, including examples such as crunching, heavy breathing, and foot tapping.
A Source of Dread
Lottie says: "You encounter so many different triggering sounds at the holidays and that can be stressful and make you dread it.
"My relatives are aware, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a internal conflict of sacrificing my own sanity to guarantee everyone else is happy."
So it's obvious why the most wonderful season can transform into a living nightmare for sufferers.
Sounds that may be considered normal, like someone drinking champagne, unwrapping gifts, or enjoying festive food can trigger a strong emotional response that can even cause them withdrawing from gatherings.
She, a university student, who has struggled with misophonia from childhood, states the approach she intends to use is to put her earphones in to manage the meal. Usually, she would usually isolate herself in a separate space to minimize distressing triggers.
She says her misophonia is more pronounced around people she's most comfortable with, so the holidays is always "difficult".
"People assume you to spend time with family, and I desire to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.
"It's like this intense irritation takes hold, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel stressed and begin to weep and then fight-or-flight will take over.
"To others it appears as if I'm being unreasonable and overreacting, but it's tough to describe if you haven't felt it."
Three Ways to Manage
For those affected then there are various strategies you can try to cope the situation, as suggested by specialists.
- Visualise Something Else: Creative thinking is crucial. Attempt to link the specific noise causing distress with a neutral concept. As an illustration, try to imagine someone's slurping is just a waterfall. The goal is to teach your brain that the sound triggering you is neutral.
- Use Humor: Introduce playfulness and make the irritating noise into a game involving the source. For example, if someone is eating noisily have a go at copying the noise. By mimicking, instead of feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an engaged person. And the competition element should help redirect your focus and make you somewhat less sensitive.
- Craft a Story: Another technique is to try to invent a reason about why the person making the noise is having to make that sound. So if someone was making a nasal sound, maybe they are not at their best or maybe they're upset. The idea is re-framing the context of the sound. Although the noise remains identical, your reaction of it changes from being annoying, to feeling a little more neutral about it.
