Yuletide Often Proves to Be a Nightmare for Those with Misophonia.
One young woman hopes for being with her relatives over the holidays, but says one of the only ways she'll manage to get through it is by wearing her hearing protection - especially during Christmas dinner.
For her, this time of year often feels like a particularly difficult period as the sounds of family members munching, slurping and breathing heavily cause her extremely uncomfortable.
"There's this feeling of sudden panic, my every muscle will just tighten and it feels like I'm in peril, and I need to stop these sounds."
The individual has experienced sound sensitivity from a young age and for her that renders the festive season "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is a decreased threshold to certain sounds, notably sounds made by individuals.
It's surprisingly common in the UK. A study discovered a significant portion of people experience it.
Typically it's noises connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that lead to discomfort, including things like chewing, heavy breathing, and repetitive finger tapping.
'Anxiety Inducing'
Lottie says: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises at Christmas and that can be daunting and make you want to avoid it.
"My family are understanding, but I'm very aware that I don't want to upset others. It's like a really big battle of sacrificing my own sanity to make sure everyone else is happy."
So it's easy to understand why the supposedly joyous season can rapidly become a living nightmare for sufferers.
Triggers that may appear innocuous, like someone sipping a beverage, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or eating the holiday meal can cause a visceral feeling that can even result in them withdrawing from gatherings.
The student, a university student, who has struggled with misophonia from childhood, says currently her plan is to use headphones to cope. Usually, she would often retreat in a different room to escape triggering sounds.
She explains her misophonia is more pronounced around people she's most comfortable with, so Christmas is always "hard".
"There's an expectation to socialize with family, and I desire to, but it's exhausting on all levels.
"It's like this sudden rage comes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel stressed and immediately start crying and then fight-or-flight will activate.
"It can come across as if I'm being difficult and overreacting, but it's hard to explain unless you've experienced it."
Three Ways to Handle It
If it's an issue then there are a few methods you can use to handle the situation, according to specialists.
- Visualise a Different Scenario: Creative thinking is key. Try to associate the triggering sound bothering you with something completely different. As an illustration, try to envision someone's slurping is just a gentle stream. The goal is to retrain your mind that the sound affecting you poses no threat.
- Try a Competition: Use lightheartedness and turn the annoying sound into a challenge with the culprit. For instance, if someone is crunching loudly have a go at mimicking the sound. By joining in, 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 a little less affected.
- Craft a Story: Another technique is to try to invent a reason about why the person making the noise is doing it. For example if someone was sniffing, perhaps they're not in good health or maybe they're upset. The idea is re-framing the context of the sound. Even though the sound doesn't change, your interpretation of it moves from being aggravating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate about it.
