The Holiday Season Transforms Into a Living Hell for Misophonia Sufferers.
Lottie anticipates being with her family over the holidays, but admits one of the only ways she'll manage to get through it is by relying on her noise-cancelling devices - notably for Christmas dinner.
In her case, Christmas often feels like a notably tough period as the auditory triggers of other people chewing, drinking noisily and sniffling cause her intense distress.
"I get this wave of sudden panic, my every muscle will just tense up and it as though I'm in danger, and I need to manage these noises."
She has lived with this condition for several years and for her that makes the holiday period "deeply taxing".
Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to particular auditory triggers, notably sounds coming from those around you.
The condition is widespread across the population. Experts discovered a significant portion of people are affected by it.
Frequently it's sounds connected to bodily functions that trigger a reaction, including things like crunching, breathing, and repetitive finger tapping.
Triggering Stress
Lottie says: "There are so many various auditory triggers at the holidays and that can be anxiety inducing and make you want to avoid it.
"My relatives are understanding, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a constant struggle of sacrificing my own sanity to make sure others enjoy themselves."
So it's easy to understand why the traditionally happy season can quickly turn into a living nightmare for sufferers.
Noises that may appear innocuous, like someone sipping a beverage, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can trigger a strong emotional response that can even result in them skipping events entirely.
She, a young adult, who has struggled with sound sensitivity for over a decade, says her strategy is to put her earphones in to cope. Usually, she would often retreat in a separate space to minimize problematic noises.
She notes her sensitivity is worse around people she's most comfortable with, so the holidays is always "hard".
"There is pressure to spend time with family, and I want to, but it's draining.
"The sensation is this uncontrollable anger washes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel stressed and immediately start crying and then fight-or-flight will activate.
"It can come across as if I'm being oversensitive and overreacting, but it's difficult to convey if you haven't felt it."
Several Strategies to Manage
If you suffer then there are various strategies you can attempt to manage the situation, according to clinical psychologists.
- Imagine an Alternative: Mental imagery is essential. Work on connecting the specific noise causing distress with a neutral concept. So for example, try to picture someone's noisy drinking is just a gentle stream. By doing this is to retrain your mind that the sound affecting you isn't harmful.
- Use Humor: Introduce playfulness and make the irritating noise into a competition with the person. For instance, if someone is eating noisily attempt mimicking the sound. By mimicking, rather than feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an engaged person. And the game aspect should help redirect your focus and make you a little less affected.
- Craft a Story: One more method is to try to fabricate an explanation about the reason someone making the noise is having to make that sound. So if someone was making a nasal sound, it could be that they're not at their best or are troubled. This approach is changing the meaning of the sound. Even though the sound doesn't change, your interpretation of it moves from being aggravating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate about it.
