Yuletide Transforms Into a Nightmare for Those with Misophonia.
One young woman hopes for seeing her family this Christmas, but says a primary method she'll endure is by using her hearing protection - especially during Christmas dinner.
For her, the holidays can be a especially challenging season as the sounds of family members munching, slurping and breathing heavily make her feel intense distress.
"There's this feeling of immediate anxiety, my every muscle will just freeze and it as though I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to manage these triggers."
She has lived with sound sensitivity for several years and for her that makes the Christmas time "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is a decreased threshold to particular auditory triggers, particularly those made by individuals.
The condition is widespread amongst adults. Researchers reported nearly 20% people experience it.
Often it's noises connected to bodily functions that cause distress, including things like chewing, heavy breathing, and pen clicking.
Triggering Stress
The sufferer notes: "You encounter so many various auditory triggers at the holidays and that can be stressful and make you fear it.
"Those close to me are understanding, but I'm very aware that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of sacrificing my own sanity to make sure the event goes smoothly."
So it's obvious why the supposedly joyous time of the year can rapidly become a source of agony for affected individuals.
Sounds that may seem harmless, like someone sipping a beverage, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or eating the holiday meal can provoke a powerful reaction that can even lead to them avoiding social settings altogether.
Jenna, a 21-year-old student, who has dealt with sound sensitivity for over a decade, says currently her plan is to use headphones to cope. Usually, she would usually isolate herself in a separate space to escape triggering sounds.
She says her misophonia is more pronounced around people she's closest to, so Christmas is always "hard".
"There is pressure to be around loved ones, and I wish to, but it's exhausting on all levels.
"I feel as if this intense irritation takes hold, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel panicked and begin to weep and then fight-or-flight will kick in.
"It may seem as if I'm being oversensitive and dramatic, but it's difficult to convey without firsthand experience."
A Few Techniques to Cope
For those affected then there are a few methods you can try to cope the situation, according to clinical psychologists.
- Imagine Something Else: Creative thinking is key. Work on connecting the particular sound affecting you with a neutral concept. So for example, 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.
- Use Humor: Have a bit of fun and make the irritating noise into a competition with the person. As an example, if someone is crunching loudly have a go at copying the noise. Through participation, rather than feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an willing part. And the game aspect should help redirect your focus and make you a little less affected.
- Craft a Story: A further strategy is to try to create a little story about the reason someone creating the sound is doing it. So if someone was making a nasal sound, it could be that they're not in good health or maybe they're upset. By doing this is re-framing the context of the sound. While the noise remains identical, your understanding of it shifts from being aggravating, to feeling a bit more accepting towards it.
