Christmas Often Proves to Be a Living Hell for Those with Misophonia.
A 23-year-old hopes for spending time with her loved ones this Christmas, but says a primary method she'll manage to get through it is by using her noise-cancelling devices - particularly at the holiday meal.
In her case, the holidays is a especially challenging season as the auditory triggers of family members munching, sipping loudly and breathing heavily cause her extremely uncomfortable.
"I get this sensation of sudden panic, my whole body will just tighten and it feels like I'm in danger, and I need to manage these sounds."
The individual has suffered from misophonia from a young age and for her that causes the Christmas time "deeply taxing".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to particular auditory triggers, notably sounds coming from other people.
It is prevalent amongst adults. Researchers discovered almost one in five people suffer from it.
Often it's noises linked to eating or drinking that trigger a reaction, along with things like crunching, breathing, and foot tapping.
A Source of Dread
Lottie says: "There are so many assorted problematic noises at the holidays and that can be daunting and make you dread it.
"My family are understanding, but I'm very aware that I don't want to spoil the mood. It's like a really big battle of enduring my distress to guarantee others enjoy themselves."
So it's easy to understand why the traditionally happy season can quickly turn into a stressful ordeal for those with the condition.
Sounds that may appear innocuous, like someone sipping a beverage, unwrapping gifts, or enjoying festive food can provoke a strong emotional response that can even cause them skipping events entirely.
She, a 21-year-old student, who has dealt with sound sensitivity since aged 10, says the approach she intends to use is to listen to music to cope. Typically, she would usually isolate herself in a quiet area to minimize distressing triggers.
She explains her condition is worse around people she's most familiar with, so the holidays is always "hard".
"There is pressure to spend time with loved ones, and I wish to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.
"The sensation is this sudden rage washes over me, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel anxious and burst into tears and then fight-or-flight will kick in.
"It may seem as if I'm being oversensitive and dramatic, but it's tough to describe if you haven't felt it."
Several Strategies to Cope
If you suffer then there are various strategies you can use to handle the situation, as suggested by experts.
- Imagine an Alternative: Creative thinking is key. Attempt to link the particular sound causing distress with an unrelated image. As an illustration, try to envision someone's noisy drinking is just a gentle stream. The goal is to retrain your mind that the sound affecting you poses no threat.
- Use Humor: Introduce playfulness and turn the annoying sound into a game with the person. For example, if someone is crunching loudly attempt copying the noise. Through participation, rather than feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an active participant. And the game aspect should help shift your attention and make you a little less affected.
- Develop a Narrative: One more method is to try to invent a reason about why the person creating the sound is doing it. Imagine if someone was sniffing, maybe they are not in good health or are troubled. By doing this is changing the meaning of the sound. While the sound stays the same, your understanding of it shifts from being aggravating, to feeling a bit more accepting towards it.
