The Holiday Season Can Be a Nightmare for Misophonia Sufferers.
Lottie hopes for seeing her family during the festive period, but notes a primary method she'll manage to get through it is by using her earplugs - notably for the holiday meal.
For the 23-year-old, the holidays often feels like a particularly difficult time as the auditory triggers of other people chewing, slurping and sniffling cause her profound anxiety.
"I experience this sensation of sudden panic, my entire being will just tense up and it seems as if I'm in peril, and I need to manage these triggers."
Lottie has suffered from sound sensitivity for several years and for her that causes the Christmas time "exceptionally stressful".
Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to certain sounds, notably sounds made by individuals.
The condition is widespread amongst adults. Researchers reported a significant portion of people are affected by it.
Typically it's noises connected to bodily functions that trigger a reaction, including examples such as crunching, heavy breathing, and pen clicking.
Triggering Stress
The sufferer notes: "I face so many different triggering sounds at Christmas and that can be daunting and make you dread it.
"My relatives are understanding, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of managing my symptoms to guarantee the event goes smoothly."
So it's clear why the most wonderful time of the year can transform into a stressful ordeal for those with the condition.
Triggers that may appear innocuous, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, unwrapping gifts, or enjoying festive food can cause a powerful reaction that can even cause them avoiding social settings altogether.
She, a university student, who has struggled with misophonia from childhood, says the approach she intends to use is to listen to music to cope. Usually, she would frequently go in a different room to escape triggering sounds.
She explains her misophonia is more intense around people she's closest to, so the holidays is always "hard".
"People assume you to spend time with family, and I wish to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.
"It's like this sudden rage washes over me, which can feel embarrassing, 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 unreasonable and melodramatic, but it's difficult to convey if you haven't felt it."
A Few Techniques to Cope
If you suffer then there are various strategies you can try to cope the situation, as suggested by clinical psychologists.
- Picture an Alternative: Creative thinking is key. Work on connecting the specific noise bothering you with a neutral concept. For instance, try to picture someone's slurping is just a gentle stream. This technique is to retrain your mind that the sound affecting you poses no threat.
- Try a Competition: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a competition with the person. For example, if someone is eating noisily try mimicking the sound. By mimicking, rather than feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an willing part. And the competition element 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 the reason someone making the noise is having to make that sound. Imagine if someone was sniffing, perhaps they're not in good health or are troubled. By doing this is changing the meaning of the sound. Although the noise stays the same, your understanding of it moves from being irritating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate towards it.
