Yuletide Can Be a Terrifying Experience for Those with Misophonia.
Lottie is looking forward to being with her loved ones this Christmas, but admits a primary method she'll manage to get through it is by wearing her noise-cancelling devices - especially during the main festive feast.
For her, the holidays can be a notably tough period as the auditory triggers of family members munching, sipping loudly and sniffling cause her intense distress.
"I experience this wave of immediate anxiety, my every muscle will just tense up and it feels like I'm in danger, and I need to manage these triggers."
The individual has lived with this condition since she was 16 and for her that makes the Christmas time "deeply taxing".
Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to certain sounds, particularly those produced by individuals.
It is prevalent amongst adults. A study reported nearly 20% people are affected by it.
Often it's noises linked to bodily functions that trigger a reaction, as well as examples such as crunching, breathing, and pen clicking.
Triggering Stress
She explains: "I face so many various auditory triggers at Christmas and that can be stressful and make you want to avoid it.
"Those close to me are understanding, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a really big battle of sacrificing my own sanity to guarantee everyone else is happy."
So it's obvious why the most wonderful season can rapidly become a stressful ordeal for those with the condition.
Triggers that may be considered normal, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, opening presents, or eating the holiday meal can trigger a strong emotional response that can even cause them avoiding social settings altogether.
The student, a university student, who has experienced misophonia from childhood, says her strategy is to listen to music to cope. Typically, she would usually isolate herself in a separate space to avoid problematic noises.
She notes her sensitivity is more pronounced around people she's most comfortable with, so Christmas is always "hard".
"There's an expectation to be around loved ones, and I want to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.
"I feel as if this intense irritation washes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel panicked and begin to weep and then fight-or-flight will kick in.
"To others it appears as if I'm being unreasonable and overreacting, but it's difficult to convey if you haven't felt it."
Three Ways to Handle It
If you suffer then there are some different techniques you can attempt to manage the situation, based on advice from experts.
- Picture a Different Scenario: Imagination is essential. Attempt to link the particular sound bothering you with an unrelated image. As an illustration, try to imagine someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. This technique is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you isn't harmful.
- Use Humor: Introduce playfulness and make the irritating noise into a challenge with the person. As an example, if someone is crunching loudly attempt copying the noise. By joining in, instead of feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an active participant. And the challenge should help shift your attention and make you a little less affected.
- Create a Scenario: Another technique is to try to create a little story about why the person creating the sound is behaving that way. For example if someone was sniffing, maybe they are not at their best or could be emotional. By doing this is re-framing the context of the sound. Although the noise remains identical, your understanding of it moves from being annoying, to feeling a little more neutral towards it.
