The Holiday Season Often Proves to Be a Terrifying Experience for Those with Misophonia.
One young woman anticipates seeing her family this Christmas, but says a key strategy she'll cope is by using her earplugs - especially during the main festive feast.
In her case, the holidays can be a particularly difficult time as the noises of people eating, sipping loudly and nose-blowing make her feel extremely uncomfortable.
"There's this wave of sudden panic, my entire being will just freeze and it seems as if I'm in danger, and I need to stop these noises."
She has experienced sound sensitivity for several years and for her that makes the holiday period "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to particular auditory triggers, especially noises coming from individuals.
The condition is widespread amongst adults. Researchers found almost one in five people suffer from it.
Often it's noises linked to bodily functions that lead to discomfort, as well as examples such as chewing, breathing, and foot tapping.
'Anxiety Inducing'
Lottie says: "I face so many various auditory triggers at Christmas and that can be anxiety inducing and make you fear it.
"My relatives are supportive, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of enduring my distress to guarantee the event goes smoothly."
So it's easy to understand why the traditionally happy time of the year can rapidly become a stressful ordeal for those with the condition.
Sounds that may appear innocuous, like someone sipping a beverage, opening presents, or eating the holiday meal can provoke a visceral feeling that can even cause them skipping events entirely.
Jenna, a 21-year-old student, who has dealt with misophonia since aged 10, explains her strategy is to put her earphones in to get through dinner. Usually, she would frequently go in a quiet area to avoid distressing triggers.
She notes her misophonia is more intense around people she's most comfortable with, so the holidays is always "hard".
"People assume you to spend time with family, and I desire to, but it's draining.
"It's like this uncontrollable anger comes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel stressed and immediately start crying and then the stress response will kick in.
"It can come across as if I'm being difficult and melodramatic, but it's tough to describe unless you've experienced it."
Several Strategies to Manage
If it's an issue then there are some different techniques you can attempt to manage the situation, based on advice from clinical psychologists.
- Imagine a Different Scenario: Mental imagery is essential. Attempt to link the particular sound causing distress with an unrelated image. For instance, try to imagine someone's noisy drinking is just a sink draining water. By doing this is to help your brain learn 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. For instance, if someone is crunching loudly try copying the noise. By joining in, instead of feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an active participant. And the game aspect should help shift your attention and make you slightly more tolerant.
- Create a Scenario: A further strategy is to try to invent a reason about why the person 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 maybe they're upset. This approach is re-framing the context of the sound. While the sound stays the same, your understanding of it changes from being aggravating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate about it.
