Christmas Often Proves to Be a Nightmare for Misophonia Sufferers.
Lottie is looking forward to spending time with her family over the holidays, but admits a key strategy she'll cope is by wearing her hearing protection - particularly at the main festive feast.
In her case, the holidays often feels like a particularly difficult season as the sounds of family members munching, slurping and nose-blowing cause her extremely uncomfortable.
"There's this feeling of sudden panic, my every muscle will just tighten and it feels like I'm in peril, and I need to stop these sounds."
Lottie has lived with sound sensitivity for several years and for her that makes the holiday period "deeply taxing".
Misophonia is a decreased threshold to certain sounds, especially noises coming from other people.
The condition is widespread amongst adults. Researchers discovered nearly 20% people suffer from it.
Often it's sounds connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that trigger a reaction, including things like chewing, heavy breathing, and repetitive finger tapping.
A Source of Dread
She explains: "I face so many different triggering sounds at Christmas and that can be stressful and make you dread it.
"My family are aware, but I'm very aware that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of managing my symptoms to make sure others enjoy themselves."
So it's clear why the traditionally happy period can quickly turn into a living nightmare for affected individuals.
Triggers that may be considered normal, like someone drinking champagne, unwrapping gifts, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can provoke a visceral feeling that can even result in them withdrawing from gatherings.
Jenna, a young adult, who has experienced misophonia since aged 10, explains currently her plan is to put her earphones in to manage the meal. Usually, she would usually isolate herself in a different room to avoid distressing triggers.
She notes her condition is worse around people she's most comfortable with, so Christmas is always "challenging".
"There is pressure to be around family, and I wish to, but it's draining.
"I feel as if this intense irritation takes hold, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel panicked and begin to weep and then panic will activate.
"It may seem as if I'm being unreasonable and dramatic, but it's tough to describe without firsthand experience."
Several Strategies to Manage
If you suffer then there are some different techniques you can attempt to manage the situation, according to clinical psychologists.
- Imagine Something Else: Imagination is crucial. Try to associate the particular sound bothering you with an unrelated image. For instance, try to picture someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. This technique is to teach your brain that the sound triggering you isn't harmful.
- Use Humor: Introduce playfulness and make the irritating noise into a competition with the culprit. For example, if someone is crunching loudly attempt copying the noise. By mimicking, 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.
- Create a Scenario: One more method is to try to invent a reason about the reason someone making the noise is behaving that way. So if someone was making a nasal sound, perhaps they're not feeling well or maybe they're upset. This approach is changing the meaning of the sound. Even though the noise remains identical, your understanding of it shifts from being annoying, to feeling a bit more accepting towards it.
