The Holiday Season Can Be a Nightmare for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.
One young woman anticipates spending time with her relatives this Christmas, but admits a key strategy she'll manage to get through it is by using her hearing protection - notably for the main festive feast.
For her, this time of year is a especially challenging season as the sounds of family members munching, slurping and sniffling make her feel intense distress.
"I get this sensation of instant dread, my whole body will just tense up and it as though I'm in peril, and I need to stop these sounds."
She has experienced misophonia since she was 16 and for her that makes the Christmas time "deeply taxing".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to particular auditory triggers, notably sounds coming from those around you.
It's surprisingly common in the UK. Experts reported almost one in five people suffer from it.
Typically it's noises connected to eating or drinking that trigger a reaction, as well as things like crunching, breathing, and pen clicking.
Triggering Stress
She explains: "There are so many assorted problematic noises at the holidays and that can be daunting and make you want to avoid it.
"Those close to me are aware, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a really big battle of enduring my distress to make sure others enjoy themselves."
So it's obvious why the supposedly joyous season can rapidly become a stressful ordeal for sufferers.
Triggers that may appear innocuous, like someone drinking champagne, opening presents, or eating the holiday meal can cause a strong emotional response that can even cause them withdrawing from gatherings.
She, a 21-year-old student, who has dealt with misophonia from childhood, states her strategy is to listen to music to cope. Usually, she would frequently go in a separate space to avoid problematic noises.
She explains her sensitivity is worse around people she's closest to, so the holidays is always "challenging".
"There's an expectation to spend time with family, and I want to, but it's exhausting on all levels.
"I feel as if this uncontrollable anger washes over me, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel panicked and begin to weep and then the stress response will activate.
"It may seem as if I'm being oversensitive and melodramatic, but it's tough to describe if you haven't felt it."
A Few Techniques to Manage
If you suffer then there are a few methods you can attempt to manage the situation, based on advice from specialists.
- Visualise Something Else: Creative thinking is essential. Attempt to link the particular sound bothering you with an unrelated image. For instance, try to envision someone's noisy drinking is just a gentle stream. The goal is to teach your brain that the sound triggering you poses no threat.
- Use Humor: Have a bit of fun and make the irritating noise into a game with the culprit. For example, if someone is crunching loudly have a go at copying the noise. Through participation, rather than feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an active participant. And the competition element should help distract your brain and make you slightly more tolerant.
- Develop a Narrative: One more method is to try to fabricate an explanation about why the person making the noise is behaving that way. So if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not at their best or are troubled. The idea is altering the perception of the sound. Although the sound remains identical, your reaction of it moves from being aggravating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate about it.
