The Holiday Season Often Proves to Be a Nightmare for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.
Lottie is looking forward to seeing her loved ones during the festive period, but admits a primary method she'll endure is by relying on her earplugs - especially during the holiday meal.
For the 23-year-old, this time of year often feels like a notably tough time as the auditory triggers of family members munching, drinking noisily and breathing heavily trigger extremely uncomfortable.
"I get this sensation of instant dread, my entire being will just freeze and it as though I'm in peril, and I need to somehow control these noises."
She has lived with this condition since she was 16 and for her that causes the holiday period "exceptionally stressful".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to certain sounds, particularly those made by those around you.
It is prevalent in the UK. Experts reported almost one in five people experience it.
Often it's noises associated with bodily functions that trigger a reaction, along with examples such as chewing, breathing, and repetitive finger tapping.
'Anxiety Inducing'
She explains: "You encounter so many various auditory triggers at Christmas and that can be anxiety inducing and make you dread it.
"My relatives are understanding, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a constant struggle of managing my symptoms to make sure the event goes smoothly."
So it's easy to understand why the most wonderful time of the year can transform into a source of agony for those with the condition.
Noises that may appear innocuous, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, opening presents, or eating the holiday meal can trigger a strong emotional response that can even cause them avoiding social settings altogether.
She, a 21-year-old student, who has dealt with misophonia since aged 10, says her strategy is to use headphones to cope. On any other day, she would usually isolate herself in a separate space to escape distressing triggers.
She says her misophonia is more pronounced around people she's most familiar with, so the holidays is always "hard".
"People assume you to spend time with loved ones, and I wish to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.
"The sensation is this uncontrollable anger comes over me, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel panicked and begin to weep and then fight-or-flight will kick in.
"It may seem as if I'm being difficult and overreacting, but it's tough to describe without firsthand experience."
Several Strategies to Manage
If you suffer then there are a few methods you can try to cope the situation, as suggested by clinical psychologists.
- Visualise a Different Scenario: Creative thinking is crucial. Try to associate the triggering sound causing distress with something completely different. As an illustration, try to envision someone's slurping is just a gentle stream. By doing this is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you is neutral.
- Try a Competition: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a competition involving the source. For instance, if someone is eating noisily have a go at mimicking the sound. Through participation, rather than feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an engaged person. And the competition element should help distract your brain and make you somewhat less sensitive.
- Develop a Narrative: A further strategy is to try to invent a reason about the reason someone creating the sound is behaving that way. So if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not feeling well or maybe they're upset. The idea is altering the perception of the sound. Although the sound remains identical, your interpretation of it moves from being annoying, to feeling a bit more accepting about it.
