The Holiday Season Transforms Into a Living Hell for Those with Misophonia.
A 23-year-old is looking forward to being with her loved ones during the festive period, but admits one of the only ways she'll manage to get through it is by relying on her hearing protection - particularly at the main festive feast.
For her, the holidays can be a especially challenging season as the noises of family members munching, drinking noisily and breathing heavily cause her intense distress.
"I get this feeling of sudden panic, my whole body will just tense up and it seems as if I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to manage these sounds."
Lottie has lived with misophonia for several years and for her that renders the Christmas time "exceptionally stressful".
Misophonia is a decreased threshold to certain sounds, notably sounds produced by those around you.
It's surprisingly common amongst adults. Experts found a significant portion of people experience it.
Typically it's sounds linked to eating or drinking that trigger a reaction, as well as examples such as chewing, 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 stressful and make you dread it.
"My relatives are understanding, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of managing my symptoms to ensure others enjoy themselves."
So it's clear why the supposedly joyous period can transform into a living nightmare for affected individuals.
Sounds that may seem harmless, like someone sipping a beverage, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can cause a powerful reaction that can even result in them avoiding social settings altogether.
She, a university student, who has experienced sound sensitivity since aged 10, states her strategy is to put her earphones in to cope. Typically, she would frequently go in a separate space to minimize distressing triggers.
She explains her sensitivity is more intense around people she's most comfortable with, so Christmas is always "challenging".
"People assume you to be around family, and I wish to, but it's exhausting on all levels.
"I feel as if this uncontrollable anger comes over me, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel panicked and begin to weep and then the stress response will take over.
"To others it appears as if I'm being unreasonable and overreacting, but it's tough to describe unless you've experienced it."
Several Strategies to Cope
If you suffer then there are some different techniques you can attempt to manage the situation, based on advice from experts.
- Picture a Different Scenario: Imagination is key. Try to associate the triggering sound causing distress with something completely different. As an illustration, try to envision someone's noisy drinking is just a gentle stream. The goal is to help your brain learn that the sound affecting you poses no threat.
- Use Humor: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise 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 distract your brain and make you a little less affected.
- Create a Scenario: One more method is to try to invent a reason about why the person creating the sound is behaving that way. Imagine if someone was sniffing, maybe they are not in good health or could be emotional. The idea is altering the perception of the sound. Although the noise remains identical, your interpretation of it moves from being irritating, to feeling a little more neutral about it.
