The Holiday Season Often Proves to Be a Nightmare for Those with Misophonia.
Lottie hopes for seeing her relatives this Christmas, but says a key strategy she'll cope is by relying on her noise-cancelling devices - notably for the main festive feast.
In her case, Christmas can be a especially challenging period as the noises of people eating, sipping loudly and breathing heavily make her feel extremely uncomfortable.
"I experience this feeling of sudden panic, my whole body will just tense up and it feels like I'm in danger, and I need to somehow control these sounds."
She has experienced sound sensitivity since she was 16 and for her that causes the festive season "deeply taxing".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to certain sounds, notably sounds coming from individuals.
It is prevalent in the UK. Experts reported a significant portion of people experience it.
Frequently it's noises associated with bodily functions that cause distress, including things like chewing, breathing, and pen clicking.
Triggering Stress
The sufferer notes: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises at the holidays and that can be anxiety inducing and make you want to avoid it.
"My relatives are supportive, but I'm very aware that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of enduring my distress to ensure others enjoy themselves."
So it's clear why the traditionally happy period can rapidly become a source of agony for affected individuals.
Triggers that may seem harmless, like someone sipping a beverage, opening presents, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can trigger a powerful reaction that can even cause them skipping events entirely.
She, a young adult, who has dealt with misophonia from childhood, says currently her plan is to listen to music to get through dinner. Typically, she would often retreat in a different room to escape triggering sounds.
She notes her sensitivity is more pronounced around people she's most comfortable with, so the holidays is always "difficult".
"There is pressure to spend time with loved ones, and I desire to, but it's exhausting on all levels.
"It's like this intense irritation washes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel anxious and burst into tears and then panic will take over.
"To others it appears as if I'm being unreasonable and overreacting, but it's hard to explain unless you've experienced it."
A Few Techniques to Handle It
For those affected then there are a few methods you can try to cope the situation, based on advice from experts.
- Picture Something Else: Mental imagery is key. Try to associate the particular sound causing distress with something completely different. As an illustration, try to envision someone's noisy drinking is just a sink draining water. By doing this is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you is neutral.
- Use Humor: Use lightheartedness and turn the annoying sound into a competition involving the source. As an example, if someone is crunching loudly attempt copying the noise. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an engaged person. And the competition element should help shift your attention and make you somewhat less sensitive.
- Craft a Story: A further strategy is to try to invent a reason about the reason someone creating the sound is behaving that way. So if someone was sniffing, maybe they are not in good health or could be emotional. The idea is altering the perception of the sound. Even though the noise remains identical, your understanding of it shifts from being annoying, to feeling a bit more accepting towards it.
