The Holiday Season Transforms Into a Nightmare for Those with Misophonia.
Lottie hopes for seeing her relatives over the holidays, but admits a primary method she'll cope is by wearing her noise-cancelling devices - notably for the main festive feast.
In her case, this time of year can be a particularly difficult season as the auditory triggers of other people chewing, sipping loudly and nose-blowing make her feel extremely uncomfortable.
"I experience this feeling of instant dread, my every muscle will just tense up and it seems as if I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to manage these triggers."
Lottie has suffered from this condition from a young age and for her that makes the Christmas time "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to particular auditory triggers, particularly those produced by other people.
It's surprisingly common in the UK. A study reported a significant portion of people suffer from it.
Often it's sounds associated with eating or drinking that lead to discomfort, including things like crunching, heavy breathing, and pen clicking.
A Source of Dread
The sufferer notes: "There are so many different triggering sounds at the holidays and that can be stressful and make you fear it.
"My relatives are aware, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a really big battle of sacrificing my own sanity to make sure others enjoy themselves."
So it's clear why the most wonderful season can quickly turn into a stressful ordeal for affected individuals.
Sounds that may be considered normal, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or enjoying festive food can provoke a visceral feeling that can even lead to them skipping events entirely.
She, a 21-year-old student, who has struggled with sound sensitivity from childhood, states the approach she intends to use is to put her earphones in to manage the meal. Usually, she would usually isolate herself in a separate space to avoid distressing triggers.
She notes her misophonia is more intense around people she's most familiar with, so Christmas is always "hard".
"People assume you to socialize with family, and I want to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.
"The sensation is this sudden rage takes hold, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel panicked and burst into tears and then fight-or-flight will activate.
"To others it appears as if I'm being oversensitive and dramatic, but it's hard to explain without firsthand experience."
Several Strategies to Manage
If you suffer then there are a few methods you can attempt to manage the situation, based on advice from specialists.
- Visualise a Different Scenario: Creative thinking is key. Work on connecting the specific noise bothering you with a neutral concept. As an illustration, try to imagine someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. This technique is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you poses no threat.
- Make it a Game: Introduce playfulness and turn the annoying sound into a competition with the person. As an example, if someone is eating noisily attempt joining in. Through participation, instead of feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an engaged person. And the competition element should help redirect your focus and make you somewhat less sensitive.
- Create a Scenario: One more method is to try to fabricate an explanation about why the person creating the sound is doing it. So if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not in good health or could be emotional. By doing this is re-framing the context of the sound. Even though the noise doesn't change, your understanding of it changes from being irritating, to feeling a little more neutral about it.
