Yuletide Often Proves to Be a Terrifying Experience for Misophonia Sufferers.
Lottie anticipates seeing 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 - particularly at the holiday meal.
In her case, the holidays is a particularly difficult time as the sounds of family members munching, drinking noisily and sniffling cause her extremely uncomfortable.
"I experience this wave of instant dread, my whole body will just tighten and it feels like I'm in danger, and I need to manage these triggers."
Lottie has suffered from misophonia from a young age and for her that renders the Christmas time "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to certain sounds, particularly those produced by individuals.
It is prevalent amongst adults. A study discovered almost one in five people are affected by it.
Often it's noises linked to mouth, throat or facial movements that cause distress, as well as examples such as crunching, breathing, and pen clicking.
A Source of Dread
She explains: "I face so many different triggering sounds at the holidays and that can be anxiety inducing and make you dread it.
"My relatives are aware, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to spoil the mood. It's like a internal conflict of enduring my distress to guarantee the event goes smoothly."
So it's clear why the most wonderful period can transform into a stressful ordeal for sufferers.
Noises that may appear innocuous, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, unwrapping gifts, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can cause a powerful reaction that can even result in them avoiding social settings altogether.
The student, a young adult, who has dealt with misophonia since aged 10, explains her strategy is to listen to music to manage the meal. Usually, she would often retreat in a different room to avoid problematic noises.
She notes her condition is more pronounced around people she's most comfortable with, so the holidays is always "difficult".
"People assume you to be around loved ones, and I desire to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.
"I feel as if this sudden rage washes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel panicked and immediately start crying and then panic will take over.
"To others it appears as if I'm being unreasonable and overreacting, but it's tough to describe unless you've experienced it."
A Few Techniques to Handle It
If it's an issue then there are a few methods you can try to cope the situation, based on advice from experts.
- Imagine Something Else: Mental imagery is essential. Work on connecting the particular sound causing distress with a neutral concept. For instance, try to envision someone's slurping is just a gentle stream. By doing this is to help your brain learn that the sound triggering you is neutral.
- Make it a Game: Use lightheartedness and turn the annoying sound into a competition with the culprit. As an example, if someone is eating noisily attempt mimicking the sound. By joining in, instead of feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an engaged person. And the challenge should help shift your attention and make you slightly more tolerant.
- Craft a Story: One more method is to try to invent a reason about the reason someone making the noise is behaving that way. For example if someone was making a nasal sound, it could be that they're not feeling well or could be emotional. The idea is changing the meaning of the sound. While the noise stays the same, your interpretation of it moves from being aggravating, to feeling a little more neutral about it.
