The Holiday Season Transforms Into a Terrifying Experience for Misophonia Sufferers.
Lottie is looking forward to seeing her relatives over the holidays, but notes a primary method she'll cope is by relying on her hearing protection - particularly at the main festive feast.
In her case, this time of year is a particularly difficult season as the auditory triggers of people eating, sipping loudly and nose-blowing trigger profound anxiety.
"I experience this feeling of instant dread, my whole body will just tense up and it as though I'm in peril, and I need to somehow control these triggers."
The individual has lived with misophonia for several years and for her that renders the holiday period "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to certain sounds, notably sounds coming from individuals.
The condition is widespread in the UK. Experts reported almost one in five people suffer from it.
Frequently it's sounds connected to eating or drinking that trigger a reaction, as well as examples such as crunching, heavy breathing, and pen clicking.
A Source of Dread
She explains: "There are so many different triggering sounds at the holidays and that can be stressful and make you dread it.
"My relatives are understanding, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to upset others. It's like a really big battle of sacrificing my own sanity to ensure everyone else is happy."
So it's easy to understand why the traditionally happy time of the year can rapidly become a source of agony for sufferers.
Sounds that may seem harmless, like someone drinking champagne, opening presents, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can trigger a powerful reaction that can even result in them withdrawing from gatherings.
She, a 21-year-old student, who has experienced misophonia since aged 10, says her strategy is to use headphones to cope. On any other day, she would usually isolate herself in a different room to escape distressing triggers.
She notes her condition is more pronounced around people she's most familiar with, so Christmas is always "hard".
"People assume you to socialize with family, and I desire to, but it's exhausting on all levels.
"I feel as if this uncontrollable anger takes hold, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel stressed and burst into tears and then panic will take over.
"To others it appears as if I'm being oversensitive and dramatic, but it's tough to describe if you haven't felt it."
Three Ways to Handle It
For those affected then there are some different techniques you can use to handle the situation, as suggested by experts.
- Imagine a Different Scenario: Mental imagery is crucial. Work on connecting the specific noise bothering you with a neutral concept. As an illustration, try to imagine someone's noisy drinking is just a gentle stream. By doing this is to retrain your mind that the sound affecting you poses no threat.
- Make it a Game: Use lightheartedness and turn the annoying sound into a challenge involving the source. For example, if someone is eating noisily have a go at copying the noise. By mimicking, rather than feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an active participant. And the challenge should help distract your brain and make you somewhat less sensitive.
- Create a Scenario: A further strategy is to try to invent a reason about why the person making the noise is behaving that way. Imagine if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not at their best or maybe they're upset. This approach is re-framing the context of the sound. Even though the sound remains identical, your interpretation of it changes from being annoying, to feeling a slightly more compassionate towards it.