The Holiday Season Transforms Into a Living Hell for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.
A 23-year-old anticipates spending time with her family during the festive period, but admits one of the only ways she'll cope is by wearing her earplugs - particularly at the holiday meal.
In her case, the holidays often feels like a notably tough season as the sounds of family members munching, drinking noisily and breathing heavily trigger intense distress.
"I experience this wave of immediate anxiety, my every muscle will just freeze and it seems as if I'm in danger, and I need to somehow control these noises."
The individual has suffered from sound sensitivity from a young age and for her that renders the holiday period "exceptionally stressful".
Misophonia is a decreased threshold to particular auditory triggers, especially noises produced by individuals.
It is prevalent amongst adults. A study discovered almost one in five people are affected by it.
Frequently it's noises connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that cause distress, along with examples such as crunching, breathing, and foot tapping.
Triggering Stress
Lottie says: "There are so many assorted problematic noises at the holidays and that can be stressful and make you want to avoid it.
"My relatives are understanding, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of enduring my distress to guarantee everyone else is happy."
So it's clear why the traditionally happy season can rapidly become a stressful ordeal for affected individuals.
Sounds that may appear innocuous, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, unwrapping gifts, or enjoying festive food can provoke a visceral feeling that can even result in them skipping events entirely.
She, a young adult, who has struggled with misophonia since aged 10, explains the approach she intends to use is to use headphones to cope. Usually, she would usually isolate herself in a quiet area to avoid distressing triggers.
She explains her sensitivity is more intense around people she's most comfortable with, so Christmas is always "difficult".
"There's an expectation to spend time with family, and I desire to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.
"It's like this sudden rage takes hold, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel stressed and burst into tears and then fight-or-flight will activate.
"It can come across as if I'm being oversensitive and overreacting, but it's tough to describe unless you've experienced it."
Three Ways to Cope
If you suffer then there are various strategies you can use to handle the situation, based on advice from experts.
- Visualise an Alternative: Imagination is key. Try to associate the specific noise affecting you with an unrelated image. For instance, try to envision someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. This technique is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you is neutral.
- Make it a Game: Use lightheartedness and turn the annoying sound into a game with the culprit. As an example, if someone is eating noisily attempt joining in. By mimicking, instead of feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an active participant. And the game aspect should help redirect your focus and make you a little less affected.
- Develop a Narrative: Another technique is to try to invent a reason about why the person creating the sound is having to make that sound. Imagine if someone was sniffing, perhaps they're not at their best or could be emotional. By doing this is changing the meaning of the sound. Even though the sound doesn't change, your reaction of it moves from being annoying, to feeling a little more neutral about it.
