The Holiday Season Often Proves to Be a Terrifying Experience for Those with Misophonia.
One young woman anticipates seeing her relatives over the holidays, but says one of the only ways she'll manage to get through it is by using her hearing protection - notably for Christmas dinner.
In her case, the holidays often feels like a notably tough time as the auditory triggers of people eating, drinking noisily and nose-blowing make her feel extremely uncomfortable.
"There's this feeling of immediate anxiety, my every muscle will just tense up and it as though I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to stop these noises."
Lottie has lived with sound sensitivity since she was 16 and for her that makes the holiday period "exceptionally stressful".
Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to certain sounds, especially noises made by individuals.
It is prevalent across the population. A study reported almost one in five people suffer from it.
Often it's noises linked to bodily functions that cause distress, including things like crunching, heavy breathing, and repetitive finger tapping.
A Source of Dread
Lottie says: "You encounter so many different triggering sounds at the holidays and that can be anxiety inducing and make you want to avoid it.
"My family are aware, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of enduring my distress to make sure everyone else is happy."
So it's easy to understand why the traditionally happy period can rapidly become a living nightmare for sufferers.
Noises that may appear innocuous, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, opening presents, or enjoying festive food can provoke a powerful reaction that can even cause them avoiding social settings altogether.
The student, a university student, who has experienced misophonia since aged 10, states the approach she intends to use is to listen to music to manage the meal. Usually, she would usually isolate herself in a quiet area to minimize problematic noises.
She explains her condition is more pronounced around people she's closest to, so Christmas is always "hard".
"People assume you to socialize with loved ones, and I wish to, but it's exhausting on all levels.
"It's like this uncontrollable anger takes hold, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel anxious and burst into tears and then fight-or-flight will kick in.
"To others it appears as if I'm being unreasonable and overreacting, but it's tough to describe unless you've experienced it."
A Few Techniques to Cope
If you suffer then there are a few methods you can attempt to manage the situation, according to specialists.
- Imagine a Different Scenario: Imagination is key. Work on connecting the triggering sound causing distress with an unrelated image. As an illustration, try to imagine someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. By doing this is to retrain your mind that the sound affecting you is neutral.
- Try a Competition: Introduce playfulness and turn the annoying sound into a challenge involving the source. For example, if someone is crunching loudly have a go at copying the noise. By joining in, instead of feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an engaged person. And the competition element should help redirect your focus and make you somewhat less sensitive.
- Craft a Story: A further strategy is to try to fabricate an explanation about the reason someone making the noise is having to make that sound. Imagine if someone was making a nasal sound, it could be that they're not feeling well or are troubled. By doing this is re-framing the context of the sound. Even though the noise stays the same, your understanding of it shifts from being irritating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate towards it.
