Christmas Transforms Into a Nightmare for Misophonia Sufferers.
A 23-year-old hopes for seeing her loved ones this Christmas, but notes one of the only ways she'll endure is by relying on her noise-cancelling devices - especially during the holiday meal.
In her case, Christmas is a especially challenging time as the auditory triggers of family members munching, slurping and nose-blowing cause her intense distress.
"There's this sensation 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 somehow control these triggers."
The individual has lived with sound sensitivity since she was 16 and for her that causes the festive season "deeply taxing".
Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to particular auditory triggers, especially noises coming from individuals.
The condition is widespread amongst adults. A study reported nearly 20% people suffer from it.
Typically it's noises connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that lead to discomfort, including examples such as chewing, breathing, and repetitive finger tapping.
A Source of Dread
She explains: "There are so many various auditory triggers at the holidays and that can be stressful and make you want to avoid it.
"My family are supportive, 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 the event goes smoothly."
So it's clear why the traditionally happy season can quickly turn into a living nightmare for affected individuals.
Noises that may seem harmless, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can cause a powerful reaction that can even lead to them avoiding social settings altogether.
She, a 21-year-old student, who has experienced misophonia since aged 10, states the approach she intends to use is to listen to music to manage the meal. Typically, she would frequently go in a different room to escape distressing triggers.
She notes her sensitivity is more intense around people she's closest to, so Christmas is always "hard".
"There's an expectation to socialize with family, and I desire to, but it's draining.
"The sensation is this uncontrollable anger comes over me, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel stressed and burst into tears and then the stress response will activate.
"It may seem as if I'm being unreasonable and overreacting, but it's difficult to convey if you haven't felt it."
A Few Techniques to Handle It
If you suffer then there are a few methods you can try to cope the situation, based on advice from experts.
- Picture an Alternative: Mental imagery is key. Work on connecting the particular sound causing distress with an unrelated image. For instance, try to imagine someone's slurping is just a gentle stream. By doing this is to help your brain learn that the sound triggering you isn't harmful.
- Make it a Game: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a competition with the culprit. For instance, if someone is eating noisily have a go at joining in. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an willing part. And the game aspect should help distract your brain and make you slightly more tolerant.
- Craft a Story: A further strategy is to try to invent a reason about why the person creating the sound is having to make that sound. So if someone was sniffing, maybe they are not in good health or could be emotional. This approach is re-framing the context of the sound. Even though the noise stays the same, your interpretation of it moves from being irritating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate about it.
