Yuletide Often Proves to Be a Living Hell for Misophonia Sufferers.
Lottie hopes for being with her loved ones this Christmas, but notes one of the only ways she'll cope is by relying on her hearing protection - notably for Christmas dinner.
In her case, the holidays can be a especially challenging period as the auditory triggers of people eating, slurping and breathing heavily make her feel intense distress.
"I get this sensation of instant dread, my whole body will just tighten and it as though I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to somehow control these noises."
She has suffered from sound sensitivity for several years and for her that renders the Christmas time "exceptionally stressful".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to particular auditory triggers, particularly those produced by those around you.
It is prevalent amongst adults. Experts reported almost one in five people suffer from it.
Typically it's noises connected to bodily functions that cause distress, as well as things like chewing, breathing, and foot tapping.
Triggering Stress
Lottie says: "You encounter so many different triggering sounds at the holidays and that can be stressful and make you dread it.
"My relatives are supportive, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to spoil the mood. It's like a really big battle of sacrificing my own sanity to guarantee the event goes smoothly."
So it's obvious why the most wonderful season can rapidly become a source of agony for affected individuals.
Noises that may appear innocuous, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, unwrapping gifts, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can provoke a powerful reaction that can even lead to them withdrawing from gatherings.
She, a university student, who has dealt with misophonia from childhood, states the approach she intends to use is to listen to music to manage the meal. Usually, she would frequently go in a quiet area to minimize distressing triggers.
She says her sensitivity is more pronounced around people she's most comfortable with, so the holidays is always "hard".
"People assume you to be around loved ones, and I wish to, but it's draining.
"It's like this uncontrollable anger takes hold, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel panicked and immediately start crying and then the stress response will kick in.
"To others it appears as if I'm being oversensitive and dramatic, but it's tough to describe without firsthand experience."
Several Strategies to Handle It
For those affected then there are some different techniques you can try to cope the situation, based on advice from specialists.
- Imagine Something Else: Imagination is key. Attempt to link the specific noise affecting you with something completely different. As an illustration, try to imagine someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. The goal is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you isn't harmful.
- Use Humor: Introduce playfulness and turn the annoying sound into a challenge with the culprit. As an example, if someone is crunching loudly try joining in. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an willing part. And the competition element should help distract your brain and make you somewhat less sensitive.
- Develop a Narrative: One more method is to try to fabricate an explanation about why the person making the noise is behaving that way. Imagine if someone was sniffing, maybe they are not at their best or are troubled. This approach is re-framing the context of the sound. While the sound remains identical, your interpretation of it moves from being annoying, to feeling a little more neutral towards it.
