The Holiday Season Transforms Into a Living Hell for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.
A 23-year-old is looking forward to spending time with her relatives over the holidays, but says a primary method she'll endure is by using her earplugs - notably for the holiday meal.
For the 23-year-old, Christmas is a particularly difficult period as the noises of family members munching, sipping loudly and breathing heavily cause her profound anxiety.
"I get this feeling of sudden panic, my entire being will just tense up and it feels like I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to manage these noises."
She has suffered from sound sensitivity since she was 16 and for her that makes the festive season "deeply taxing".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to certain sounds, notably sounds coming from those around you.
The condition is widespread amongst adults. Experts found a significant portion of people suffer from it.
Frequently it's sounds connected to bodily functions that trigger a reaction, including things like crunching, breathing, and foot tapping.
'Anxiety Inducing'
The sufferer notes: "You encounter so many different triggering sounds at Christmas and that can be stressful and make you want to avoid it.
"My family are supportive, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to upset others. It's like a constant struggle of enduring my distress to guarantee everyone else is happy."
So it's clear why the supposedly joyous period can quickly turn into a living nightmare for those with the condition.
Noises that may appear innocuous, like someone sipping a beverage, opening presents, or eating the holiday meal can trigger a strong emotional response that can even lead to them withdrawing from gatherings.
The student, a university student, who has experienced sound sensitivity from childhood, says the approach she intends to use is to put her earphones in to manage the meal. Usually, she would frequently go in a separate space to minimize distressing triggers.
She notes her misophonia is more pronounced around people she's most familiar with, so the holidays is always "challenging".
"There's an expectation to socialize with loved ones, and I wish to, but it's exhausting on all levels.
"It's like this sudden rage washes over me, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel anxious and begin to weep and then the stress response will kick in.
"It can come across as if I'm being unreasonable and melodramatic, but it's tough to describe without firsthand experience."
Three Ways to Cope
If you suffer then there are a few methods you can use to handle the situation, as suggested by clinical psychologists.
- Visualise a Different Scenario: Creative thinking is crucial. Work on connecting the particular sound affecting you with something completely different. So for example, try to imagine someone's noisy drinking is just a gentle stream. By doing this is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you poses no threat.
- Try a Competition: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a competition with the culprit. For example, if someone is eating noisily have a go at copying the noise. By joining in, instead of feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an engaged person. And the game aspect should help shift your attention and make you a little less affected.
- Create a Scenario: One more method is to try to invent a reason about why the person making the noise is doing it. Imagine if someone was making a nasal sound, it could be that they're not at their best or maybe they're upset. This approach is re-framing the context of the sound. Even though the sound remains identical, your interpretation of it changes from being irritating, to feeling a bit more accepting towards it.
