Yuletide Often Proves to Be a Living Hell for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.
A 23-year-old anticipates spending time with her family over the holidays, but says a key strategy she'll endure is by using her noise-cancelling devices - particularly at the main festive feast.
In her case, this time of year can be a especially challenging time as the sounds of people eating, drinking noisily and sniffling cause her profound anxiety.
"There's this feeling of immediate anxiety, my entire being will just freeze and it as though I'm in danger, and I need to stop these triggers."
The individual has lived with misophonia from a young age and for her that makes the Christmas time "exceptionally stressful".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to certain sounds, especially noises produced by those around you.
It is prevalent amongst adults. A study found a significant portion of people suffer from it.
Typically it's noises associated with bodily functions that trigger a reaction, along with examples such as crunching, breathing, and repetitive finger tapping.
A Source of Dread
The sufferer notes: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises at the holidays and that can be daunting and make you want to avoid it.
"My family are supportive, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to spoil the mood. It's like a really big battle of enduring my distress to ensure the event goes smoothly."
So it's easy to understand why the supposedly joyous season can quickly turn into a stressful ordeal for those with the condition.
Sounds that may appear innocuous, like someone sipping a beverage, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or eating the holiday meal can provoke a powerful reaction that can even cause them avoiding social settings altogether.
The student, a young adult, who has experienced misophonia from childhood, says the approach she intends to use is to listen to music to manage the meal. On any other day, she would frequently go in a separate space to avoid distressing triggers.
She says her condition is worse around people she's most comfortable with, so the holidays is always "difficult".
"There's an expectation 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 embarrassing, or I'll feel stressed and burst into tears and then the stress response will take over.
"It can come across as if I'm being difficult and dramatic, but it's tough to describe if you haven't felt it."
Three Ways to Handle It
If you suffer then there are some different techniques you can try to cope the situation, according to specialists.
- Visualise a Different Scenario: Mental imagery is crucial. Attempt to link the particular sound causing distress with a neutral concept. As an illustration, try to envision someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. The goal is to teach your brain that the sound affecting you isn't harmful.
- Try a Competition: Use lightheartedness and turn the annoying sound into a game with the culprit. As an example, if someone is eating noisily try mimicking the sound. By mimicking, instead of feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an willing part. And the challenge should help distract your brain and make you somewhat less sensitive.
- Create a Scenario: Another technique is to try to create a little story about why the person creating the sound is having to make that sound. So if someone was making a nasal sound, maybe they are not at their best or could be emotional. By doing this is altering the perception of the sound. While the noise doesn't change, your understanding of it moves from being irritating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate towards it.
