Yuletide Often Proves to Be a Nightmare for Misophonia Sufferers.
One young woman anticipates spending time with her loved ones during the festive period, but says a key strategy she'll endure is by relying on her hearing protection - especially during the holiday meal.
For her, the holidays often feels like a particularly difficult time as the auditory triggers of other people chewing, drinking noisily and nose-blowing trigger profound anxiety.
"There's this sensation of instant dread, my every muscle will just tighten and it feels like I'm in peril, and I need to manage these sounds."
The individual has experienced this condition from a young age and for her that renders the Christmas time "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to certain sounds, particularly those coming from other people.
It is prevalent across the population. A study found a significant portion of people suffer from it.
Frequently it's noises associated with eating or drinking that cause distress, along with things like crunching, heavy breathing, and pen clicking.
Triggering Stress
She explains: "There are so many assorted problematic noises at the holidays and that can be anxiety inducing and make you dread it.
"My relatives are understanding, but I'm very aware that I don't want to upset others. It's like a constant struggle of enduring my distress to guarantee others enjoy themselves."
So it's obvious why the supposedly joyous period can transform into a stressful ordeal for affected individuals.
Sounds that may be considered normal, like someone sipping a beverage, opening presents, or enjoying festive food can provoke a powerful reaction that can even cause them avoiding social settings altogether.
Jenna, a university student, who has dealt with sound sensitivity for over a decade, states her strategy is to use headphones to cope. On any other day, she would usually isolate herself in a separate space to escape problematic noises.
She says her misophonia is more pronounced around people she's most comfortable with, so the holidays is always "hard".
"There is pressure to be around loved ones, and I desire to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.
"The sensation is this intense irritation comes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel stressed and begin to weep and then fight-or-flight will activate.
"It may seem as if I'm being unreasonable and melodramatic, but it's difficult to convey unless you've experienced it."
Three Ways to Manage
For those affected then there are a few methods you can use to handle the situation, according to clinical psychologists.
- Visualise a Different Scenario: Imagination is crucial. Work on connecting the particular sound affecting you with a neutral concept. For instance, try to picture someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. The goal is to help your brain learn that the sound affecting you isn't harmful.
- Try a Competition: Introduce playfulness and turn the annoying sound into a challenge involving the source. As an example, if someone is eating noisily attempt mimicking the sound. Through participation, rather than feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an willing part. And the challenge should help distract your brain and make you somewhat less sensitive.
- Create a Scenario: One more method is to try to fabricate an explanation about why the person making the noise is having to make that sound. Imagine if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not feeling well or maybe they're upset. By doing this is changing the meaning of the sound. While the noise remains identical, your interpretation of it moves from being annoying, to feeling a slightly more compassionate towards it.
