The Holiday Season Can Be a Terrifying Experience for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.
One young woman hopes for spending time with her family this Christmas, but admits a key strategy she'll cope is by wearing her hearing protection - particularly at the holiday meal.
For the 23-year-old, the holidays can be a notably tough period as the noises of other people chewing, sipping loudly and sniffling trigger extremely uncomfortable.
"I get this sensation of immediate anxiety, my entire being will just freeze and it as though I'm in danger, and I need to manage these triggers."
The individual has lived with this condition for several years and for her that causes the Christmas time "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to certain sounds, notably sounds produced by other people.
It is prevalent amongst adults. Researchers discovered almost one in five people suffer from it.
Often it's noises connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that cause distress, as well as examples such as chewing, breathing, and repetitive finger tapping.
'Anxiety Inducing'
She explains: "I face so many different triggering sounds at Christmas and that can be daunting and make you fear it.
"My relatives are aware, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of sacrificing my own sanity to guarantee others enjoy themselves."
So it's easy to understand why the most wonderful period can rapidly become a living nightmare for affected individuals.
Sounds that may appear innocuous, like someone sipping a beverage, opening presents, or enjoying festive food can trigger a strong emotional response that can even lead to 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 listen to music to get through dinner. Typically, she would usually isolate herself in a quiet area to avoid problematic noises.
She says her misophonia is more intense around people she's closest to, so the holidays is always "challenging".
"There is pressure to be around family, and I desire to, but it's draining.
"I feel as if this uncontrollable anger washes over me, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel anxious and begin to weep and then panic will kick in.
"To others it appears as if I'm being unreasonable and overreacting, but it's difficult to convey without firsthand experience."
Several Strategies to Manage
If you suffer then there are various strategies you can attempt to manage the situation, according to experts.
- Imagine a Different Scenario: Creative thinking is crucial. Work on connecting the particular sound bothering you with an unrelated image. So for example, try to picture someone's slurping is just a waterfall. This technique is to retrain your mind that the sound affecting you poses no threat.
- Make it a Game: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a game involving the source. For example, if someone is eating noisily have a go at joining in. Through participation, rather than feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an engaged person. And the game aspect should help distract your brain and make you somewhat less sensitive.
- Craft a Story: Another technique is to try to create a little story about the reason someone creating the sound is behaving that way. Imagine if someone was sniffing, maybe they are not at their best or are troubled. By doing this is changing the meaning of the sound. Although the sound remains identical, your reaction of it changes from being irritating, to feeling a little more neutral towards it.
