The Holiday Season Can Be a Terrifying Experience for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.
A 23-year-old hopes for being with her family this Christmas, but says a key strategy she'll manage to get through it is by using her noise-cancelling devices - especially during Christmas dinner.
In her case, the holidays often feels like a especially challenging time as the sounds of other people chewing, drinking noisily and sniffling trigger profound anxiety.
"I get this sensation of sudden panic, my entire being will just freeze and it feels like I'm in danger, and I need to manage these triggers."
Lottie has experienced this condition since she was 16 and for her that causes the Christmas time "exceptionally stressful".
Misophonia is a decreased threshold to certain sounds, particularly those coming from other people.
It is prevalent amongst adults. Researchers discovered a significant portion of people are affected by it.
Frequently it's noises linked to mouth, throat or facial movements that cause distress, along with things like crunching, breathing, and foot tapping.
Triggering Stress
The sufferer notes: "You encounter so many different triggering sounds at the holidays and that can be anxiety inducing and make you fear it.
"My relatives are supportive, but I'm very aware that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a constant struggle of managing my symptoms to ensure others enjoy themselves."
So it's easy to understand why the supposedly joyous period can rapidly become a stressful ordeal for sufferers.
Sounds that may appear innocuous, like someone sipping a beverage, opening presents, or enjoying festive food can provoke a visceral feeling that can even lead to them avoiding social settings altogether.
The student, a young adult, who has experienced misophonia for over a decade, explains the approach she intends to use is to listen to music to manage the meal. Usually, she would usually isolate herself in a different room to avoid triggering sounds.
She says her condition is more intense around people she's most familiar with, so Christmas is always "difficult".
"There's an expectation to be around loved ones, and I wish to, but it's exhausting on all levels.
"I feel as if this sudden rage takes hold, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel panicked and begin to weep and then panic will kick in.
"It may seem as if I'm being oversensitive and overreacting, but it's difficult to convey if you haven't felt it."
A Few Techniques to Cope
If it's an issue then there are some different techniques you can try to cope the situation, based on advice from clinical psychologists.
- Visualise Something Else: Imagination is essential. Work on connecting the particular sound affecting you with an unrelated image. For instance, try to imagine someone's noisy drinking is just a waterfall. The goal is to help your brain learn that the sound triggering you is neutral.
- Use Humor: Have a bit of fun and turn the annoying sound into a challenge with the person. For instance, if someone is eating noisily have a go at mimicking the sound. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an willing part. And the competition element should help redirect your focus and make you slightly more tolerant.
- Develop a Narrative: A further strategy is to try to invent a reason about the reason someone creating the sound is having to make that sound. Imagine if someone was sniffing, perhaps they're not in good health or could be emotional. By doing this is re-framing the context of the sound. Although the sound remains identical, your interpretation of it moves from being aggravating, to feeling a bit more accepting about it.
