The Holiday Season Often Proves to Be a Living Hell for Misophonia Sufferers.
One young woman hopes for seeing her relatives during the festive period, but says a primary method she'll manage to get through it is by relying on her earplugs - notably for Christmas dinner.
In her case, this time of year often feels like a notably tough time as the auditory triggers of family members munching, drinking noisily and nose-blowing make her feel profound anxiety.
"I get this feeling of immediate anxiety, my whole body will just freeze and it feels like I'm in peril, and I need to manage these noises."
She has experienced misophonia from a young age and for her that causes the holiday period "deeply taxing".
Misophonia is a decreased threshold to particular auditory triggers, notably sounds made by other people.
It is prevalent across the population. A study reported almost one in five people experience it.
Typically it's noises linked to eating or drinking that lead to discomfort, including things like crunching, heavy breathing, and pen clicking.
'Anxiety Inducing'
She explains: "There are so many various auditory triggers at Christmas and that can be anxiety inducing and make you fear it.
"My family are understanding, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to spoil the mood. It's like a constant struggle of managing my symptoms to make sure the event goes smoothly."
So it's easy to understand why the most wonderful season can rapidly become a stressful ordeal for sufferers.
Triggers that may seem harmless, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, unwrapping gifts, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can provoke a visceral feeling that can even result in them withdrawing from gatherings.
Jenna, a 21-year-old student, who has struggled with sound sensitivity since aged 10, states her strategy is to listen to music to get through dinner. On any other day, she would usually isolate herself in a different room to escape triggering sounds.
She notes her condition is more intense around people she's closest to, so Christmas is always "hard".
"There is pressure to be around family, and I wish to, but it's draining.
"I feel as if this sudden rage comes over me, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel anxious and immediately start crying and then fight-or-flight will kick in.
"It may seem as if I'm being unreasonable and melodramatic, but it's difficult to convey unless you've experienced it."
Several Strategies to Handle It
If you suffer then there are a few methods you can use to handle the situation, based on advice from experts.
- Picture an Alternative: Mental imagery is essential. Attempt to link the particular sound affecting you with an unrelated image. So for example, try to envision someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. By doing this is to help your brain learn that the sound triggering you is neutral.
- Try a Competition: Introduce playfulness and make the irritating noise into a challenge involving the source. For instance, if someone is crunching loudly attempt copying the noise. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an active participant. And the challenge should help redirect your focus and make you a little less affected.
- Create a Scenario: One more method is to try to create a little story about why the person creating the sound is behaving that way. So if someone was sniffing, maybe they are not feeling well or are troubled. The idea is changing the meaning of the sound. Although the sound doesn't change, your reaction of it moves from being irritating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate towards it.
