The Holiday Season Often Proves to Be a Nightmare for Misophonia Sufferers.
One young woman hopes for being with her relatives during the festive period, but notes one of the only ways she'll endure is by relying on her earplugs - especially during Christmas dinner.
In her case, the holidays often feels like a notably tough season as the auditory triggers of people eating, slurping and nose-blowing cause her extremely uncomfortable.
"I experience this wave of immediate anxiety, my whole body will just freeze and it seems as if I'm in peril, and I need to manage these noises."
Lottie has lived with sound sensitivity from a young age and for her that causes the festive season "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to particular auditory triggers, notably sounds produced by individuals.
It's surprisingly common in the UK. A study found nearly 20% people are affected by it.
Typically it's sounds associated with eating or drinking that cause distress, as well as things like chewing, breathing, and foot tapping.
Triggering Stress
Lottie says: "There are so many assorted problematic noises at the holidays and that can be stressful and make you want to avoid it.
"My relatives are aware, but I'm very aware that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a internal conflict of enduring my distress to make sure others enjoy themselves."
So it's clear why the supposedly joyous time of the year can rapidly become a stressful ordeal for affected individuals.
Noises that may be considered normal, like someone sipping a beverage, opening presents, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can provoke a powerful reaction that can even result in them avoiding social settings altogether.
She, a 21-year-old student, who has struggled with misophonia since aged 10, states the approach she intends to use is to put her earphones in to cope. Usually, she would frequently go in a different room to avoid problematic noises.
She explains her sensitivity is more intense around people she's most familiar with, so Christmas is always "difficult".
"People assume you to be around loved ones, and I desire to, but it's draining.
"I feel as if this sudden rage takes hold, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel panicked 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 without firsthand experience."
Three Ways to Cope
For those affected then there are some different techniques you can try to cope the situation, according to specialists.
- Visualise Something Else: Creative thinking is essential. Work on connecting the particular sound causing distress with a neutral concept. As an illustration, try to envision someone's noisy drinking is just a gentle stream. The goal is to teach your brain that the sound affecting you is neutral.
- Try a Competition: Introduce playfulness and make the irritating noise into a competition with the culprit. For example, if someone is eating noisily attempt joining in. Through participation, instead of feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an engaged person. And the challenge should help shift your attention and make you slightly more tolerant.
- Create a Scenario: One more method is to try to create a little story about why the person making the noise is behaving that way. So if someone was sniffing, perhaps they're not at their best or could be emotional. The idea is changing the meaning of the sound. While the sound doesn't change, your interpretation of it changes from being annoying, to feeling a bit more accepting towards it.
