The Holiday Season Transforms Into a Terrifying Experience for Those with Misophonia.
Lottie is looking forward to spending time with her loved ones over the holidays, but admits a primary method she'll manage to get through it is by wearing her hearing protection - notably for the holiday meal.
For the 23-year-old, Christmas often feels like a especially challenging time as the sounds of other people chewing, slurping and breathing heavily make her feel extremely uncomfortable.
"I get this wave of sudden panic, my whole body will just tense up and it as though I'm in danger, and I need to manage these sounds."
Lottie has suffered from misophonia from a young age and for her that causes the festive season "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to certain sounds, especially noises produced by those around you.
It's surprisingly common amongst adults. Experts discovered nearly 20% people experience it.
Often it's noises associated with bodily functions that trigger a reaction, along with things like chewing, heavy breathing, and foot tapping.
Triggering Stress
Lottie says: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises at Christmas and that can be anxiety inducing and make you want to avoid it.
"My relatives are supportive, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to upset others. It's like a constant struggle of managing my symptoms to ensure everyone else is happy."
So it's obvious why the traditionally happy season can rapidly become a stressful ordeal for sufferers.
Sounds that may be considered normal, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, unwrapping gifts, or eating the holiday meal can provoke a powerful reaction that can even result in them withdrawing from gatherings.
The student, a young adult, who has struggled with misophonia since aged 10, states the approach she intends to use is to use headphones to manage the meal. Typically, she would usually isolate herself in a separate space to escape distressing triggers.
She notes her sensitivity is more pronounced around people she's closest to, so the holidays is always "difficult".
"There is pressure to be around loved ones, and I want to, but it's draining.
"It's like this uncontrollable anger comes over me, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel panicked and immediately start crying and then the stress response will kick in.
"To others it appears as if I'm being unreasonable and melodramatic, but it's hard to explain unless you've experienced it."
Several Strategies to Cope
If you suffer then there are various strategies you can use to handle the situation, as suggested by experts.
- Visualise a Different Scenario: Imagination is essential. Attempt to link the specific noise bothering you with something completely different. So for example, try to envision someone's noisy drinking is just a waterfall. This technique is to retrain your mind that the sound affecting you is neutral.
- Use Humor: Introduce playfulness and turn the annoying sound into a competition with the culprit. For example, if someone is crunching loudly attempt mimicking the sound. By mimicking, rather than feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an willing part. And the game aspect should help distract your brain and make you a little less affected.
- Craft a Story: One more method is to try to fabricate an explanation about the reason someone making the noise is having to make that sound. Imagine if someone was making a nasal sound, perhaps they're not in good health or maybe they're upset. This approach is altering the perception of the sound. While the sound doesn't change, your reaction of it changes from being aggravating, to feeling a little more neutral about it.
