The Holiday Season Often Proves to Be a Living Hell for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.
One young woman anticipates seeing her family during the festive period, but notes a primary method she'll endure is by relying on her earplugs - particularly at the holiday meal.
For the 23-year-old, Christmas can be a particularly difficult season as the sounds of family members munching, slurping and sniffling cause her extremely uncomfortable.
"I experience this wave of instant dread, my every muscle will just tighten and it seems as if I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to stop these triggers."
The individual has experienced this condition for several years and for her that makes the holiday period "exceptionally stressful".
Misophonia is a decreased threshold to particular auditory triggers, particularly those coming from individuals.
It is prevalent amongst adults. A study found nearly 20% people are affected by it.
Frequently it's noises linked to eating or drinking that cause distress, as well as things like crunching, heavy breathing, and foot tapping.
'Anxiety Inducing'
Lottie says: "There are so many various auditory triggers at the holidays and that can be anxiety inducing and make you dread it.
"My relatives 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 managing my symptoms to guarantee others enjoy themselves."
So it's clear why the traditionally happy time of the year can quickly turn into a living nightmare for sufferers.
Noises that may seem harmless, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can cause a strong emotional response that can even lead to them withdrawing from gatherings.
The student, a university student, who has struggled with misophonia since aged 10, explains her strategy is to use headphones to manage the meal. On any other day, she would frequently go in a different room to escape problematic noises.
She notes her misophonia is more intense around people she's most comfortable with, so the holidays is always "hard".
"People assume you to socialize with loved ones, and I want to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.
"It's like this sudden rage washes over me, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel stressed and immediately start crying and then fight-or-flight will kick in.
"To others it appears as if I'm being oversensitive and melodramatic, but it's tough to describe if you haven't felt it."
A Few Techniques to Handle It
If it's an issue then there are some different techniques you can try to cope the situation, according to clinical psychologists.
- Picture Something Else: Mental imagery is crucial. Try to associate the specific noise affecting you with a neutral concept. As an illustration, try to imagine someone's slurping is just a waterfall. This technique is to teach your brain that the sound triggering you isn't harmful.
- Try a Competition: Have a bit of fun and turn the annoying sound into a game involving the source. As an example, if someone is eating noisily attempt mimicking the sound. Through participation, instead of feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an active participant. And the challenge should help distract your brain and make you somewhat less sensitive.
- Craft a Story: Another technique is to try to fabricate an explanation about why the person making the noise is behaving that way. Imagine if someone was sniffing, perhaps they're not feeling well or maybe they're upset. By doing this is re-framing the context of the sound. While the sound stays the same, your understanding of it shifts from being annoying, to feeling a little more neutral towards it.