Christmas Often Proves to Be a Terrifying Experience for Misophonia Sufferers.
A 23-year-old hopes for spending time with her loved ones this Christmas, but notes one of the only ways she'll cope is by wearing her earplugs - especially during Christmas dinner.
For the 23-year-old, the holidays often feels like a especially challenging season as the auditory triggers of other people chewing, slurping and nose-blowing make her feel extremely uncomfortable.
"There's this sensation of instant dread, my entire being will just tighten and it seems as if I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to stop these noises."
The individual has suffered from this condition for several years and for her that renders the Christmas time "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to particular auditory triggers, especially noises coming from individuals.
It's surprisingly common amongst adults. Researchers found a significant portion of people are affected by it.
Often it's sounds associated with bodily functions that trigger a reaction, as well as things like chewing, heavy breathing, and pen clicking.
A Source of Dread
Lottie says: "There are so many different triggering sounds at the holidays and that can be stressful and make you fear it.
"My family are supportive, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a really big battle of enduring my distress to make sure others enjoy themselves."
So it's easy to understand why the supposedly joyous time of the year can transform into a stressful ordeal for affected individuals.
Triggers that may be considered normal, 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.
Jenna, a university student, who has dealt with misophonia from childhood, says the approach she intends to use is to use headphones to manage the meal. On any other day, she would usually isolate herself in a different room to minimize triggering sounds.
She notes her misophonia is more intense around people she's most familiar with, so Christmas is always "challenging".
"There's an expectation to socialize with loved ones, and I desire to, but it's draining.
"It's like this intense irritation takes hold, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel anxious and burst into tears and then panic will activate.
"To others it appears as if I'm being difficult and melodramatic, but it's tough to describe if you haven't felt it."
Three Ways to Cope
If it's an issue then there are various strategies you can attempt to manage the situation, based on advice from specialists.
- Visualise Something Else: Imagination is crucial. Work on connecting the particular sound bothering you with an unrelated image. As an illustration, try to picture someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. The goal is to help your brain learn that the sound triggering you poses no threat.
- Use Humor: Introduce playfulness and make the irritating noise into a challenge involving the source. For example, if someone is eating noisily attempt joining in. By joining in, instead of feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an willing part. And the competition element should help redirect your focus and make you somewhat less sensitive.
- Create a Scenario: Another technique is to try to fabricate an explanation about why the person creating the sound is doing it. So if someone was sniffing, perhaps they're not feeling well or could be emotional. This approach is changing the meaning of the sound. Although the sound doesn't change, your reaction of it moves from being aggravating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate towards it.
