The Holiday Season Often Proves to Be a Nightmare for Misophonia Sufferers.
One young woman hopes for seeing her loved ones during the festive period, but notes a key strategy she'll cope is by wearing her noise-cancelling devices - especially during the main festive feast.
In her case, this time of year often feels like a particularly difficult period as the auditory triggers of other people chewing, drinking noisily and sniffling cause her intense distress.
"There's this wave of sudden panic, my whole body will just freeze and it seems as if I'm in danger, and I need to stop these sounds."
Lottie has lived with misophonia for several years and for her that makes the Christmas time "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is a decreased threshold to certain sounds, notably sounds made by individuals.
It is prevalent in the UK. Experts discovered almost one in five people are affected by it.
Typically it's noises connected to bodily functions that trigger a reaction, as well as examples such as chewing, breathing, and pen clicking.
Triggering Stress
She explains: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises at Christmas and that can be stressful and make you want to avoid it.
"My family are understanding, but I'm very aware that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a constant struggle of enduring my distress to make sure everyone else is happy."
So it's clear why the most wonderful time of the year can quickly turn into a living nightmare for those with the condition.
Sounds that may seem harmless, like someone drinking champagne, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can cause a visceral feeling that can even cause them skipping events entirely.
Jenna, a university student, who has experienced sound sensitivity for over a decade, explains her strategy is to use headphones to cope. On any other day, she would usually isolate herself in a quiet area to escape problematic noises.
She notes her condition is more pronounced around people she's closest to, so Christmas is always "challenging".
"People assume you to spend time with family, and I wish to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.
"I feel as if this uncontrollable anger comes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel panicked and immediately start crying and then fight-or-flight will kick in.
"It can come across as if I'm being oversensitive and dramatic, but it's difficult to convey without firsthand experience."
A Few Techniques to Handle It
For those affected then there are a few methods you can try to cope the situation, as suggested by specialists.
- Visualise Something Else: Imagination is essential. Attempt to link the triggering sound causing distress with something completely different. As an illustration, try to picture someone's noisy drinking is just a waterfall. By doing this is to help your brain learn that the sound affecting you isn't harmful.
- Use Humor: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a game with the person. For instance, if someone is crunching loudly have a go at copying the noise. By joining in, instead of feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an engaged person. And the challenge should help distract your brain and make you slightly more tolerant.
- Develop a Narrative: A further strategy is to try to invent a reason about the reason someone creating the sound is doing it. So if someone was making a nasal sound, it could be that they're not in good health or could be emotional. This approach is altering the perception of the sound. Even though the sound remains identical, your understanding of it moves from being irritating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate about it.
