The Holiday Season Often Proves to Be a Terrifying Experience for Misophonia Sufferers.
One young woman hopes for spending time with her loved ones during the festive period, but says a key strategy she'll endure is by relying on her noise-cancelling devices - particularly at the holiday meal.
For the 23-year-old, Christmas is a particularly difficult season as the noises of people eating, slurping and breathing heavily trigger intense distress.
"I get this wave of immediate anxiety, my whole body will just tense up and it feels like I'm in danger, and I need to somehow control these noises."
Lottie has lived with sound sensitivity since she was 16 and for her that renders the holiday period "deeply taxing".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to particular auditory triggers, especially noises made by those around you.
It's surprisingly common in the UK. Researchers found almost one in five people suffer from it.
Often it's sounds connected to bodily functions that trigger a reaction, along with things like crunching, breathing, and repetitive finger tapping.
Triggering Stress
The sufferer notes: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises at Christmas and that can be stressful and make you dread it.
"My family are supportive, but I'm very aware that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a really big battle of managing my symptoms to ensure others enjoy themselves."
So it's obvious why the supposedly joyous period can rapidly become a stressful ordeal for those with the condition.
Sounds that may appear innocuous, like someone sipping a beverage, opening presents, or enjoying festive food can provoke a visceral feeling that can even cause them avoiding social settings altogether.
Jenna, a university student, who has struggled with sound sensitivity from childhood, explains currently her plan is to put her earphones in to get through dinner. Typically, she would usually isolate herself in a separate space to minimize triggering sounds.
She notes her sensitivity is worse around people she's most familiar with, so the holidays is always "hard".
"There's an expectation to be around family, and I desire to, but it's exhausting on all levels.
"The sensation is this intense irritation comes over me, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel anxious and burst into tears and then the stress response will kick in.
"It may seem as if I'm being difficult and overreacting, but it's difficult to convey unless you've experienced it."
Several Strategies to Manage
For those affected then there are some different techniques you can try to cope the situation, based on advice from specialists.
- Imagine a Different Scenario: Creative thinking is crucial. Try to associate the particular sound bothering you with a neutral concept. As an illustration, try to picture someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. The goal is to help your brain learn that the sound triggering you isn't harmful.
- Make it a Game: Introduce playfulness and make the irritating noise into a challenge with the culprit. For instance, if someone is crunching loudly attempt joining in. By joining in, instead of feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an willing part. And the challenge should help shift your attention and make you somewhat less sensitive.
- Craft a Story: One more method is to try to invent a reason about the reason someone making the noise is having to make that sound. Imagine if someone was sniffing, perhaps they're not at their best or are troubled. By doing this is altering the perception of the sound. While the noise remains identical, your understanding of it changes from being irritating, to feeling a bit more accepting towards it.
