Yuletide Can Be a Nightmare for Those with Misophonia.
Lottie hopes for being with her family over the holidays, but admits a key strategy she'll cope is by wearing her noise-cancelling devices - notably for the main festive feast.
For her, this time of year is a especially challenging time as the auditory triggers of family members munching, slurping and breathing heavily make her feel profound anxiety.
"I experience this feeling of instant dread, my whole body will just freeze and it feels like I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to stop these noises."
Lottie has lived with misophonia since she was 16 and for her that renders the holiday period "exceptionally stressful".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to specific noises, especially noises made by other people.
The condition is widespread amongst adults. A study reported nearly 20% people suffer from it.
Often it's noises connected to bodily functions that cause distress, as well as things like crunching, breathing, and foot tapping.
Triggering Stress
Lottie says: "I face so many assorted problematic noises at the holidays and that can be anxiety inducing and make you dread it.
"My relatives are supportive, but I'm very aware that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a internal conflict of enduring my distress to ensure everyone else is happy."
So it's obvious why the most wonderful time of the year can quickly turn into a stressful ordeal for affected individuals.
Triggers that may be considered normal, like someone drinking champagne, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or enjoying festive food can trigger a visceral feeling that can even cause them skipping events entirely.
She, a university student, who has struggled with sound sensitivity from childhood, says the approach she intends to use is to put her earphones in to manage the meal. Typically, she would frequently go in a quiet area to avoid distressing triggers.
She explains her misophonia is more pronounced around people she's closest to, so the holidays is always "challenging".
"There is pressure to socialize with family, and I desire to, but it's exhausting on all levels.
"I feel as if this intense irritation comes over me, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel panicked and begin to weep and then fight-or-flight will take over.
"It can come across as if I'm being unreasonable and melodramatic, but it's tough to describe unless you've experienced it."
A Few Techniques to Handle It
For those affected then there are various strategies you can use to handle the situation, based on advice from clinical psychologists.
- Imagine a Different Scenario: Mental imagery is key. Work on connecting the triggering sound bothering you with an unrelated image. For instance, try to imagine someone's slurping is just a waterfall. The goal is to teach your brain that the sound affecting you is neutral.
- Use Humor: Introduce playfulness and turn the annoying sound into a competition with the person. As an example, if someone is eating noisily attempt mimicking the sound. Through participation, rather than feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an willing part. And the challenge should help redirect your focus and make you somewhat less sensitive.
- Create a Scenario: Another technique is to try to fabricate an explanation about the reason someone creating the sound is doing it. Imagine if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not at their best or could be emotional. By doing this is altering the perception of the sound. While the sound stays the same, your interpretation of it changes from being irritating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate towards it.
