The Holiday Season Often Proves to Be a Living Hell for Those with Misophonia.
Lottie hopes for seeing her family this Christmas, but says a key strategy she'll endure is by using her earplugs - particularly at the main festive feast.
For her, the holidays is a notably tough time as the noises of family members munching, sipping loudly and sniffling cause her profound anxiety.
"I get this sensation of sudden panic, my entire being will just freeze and it seems as if 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 makes the Christmas time "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to specific noises, especially noises made by those around you.
The condition is widespread across the population. Experts found almost one in five people are affected by it.
Often it's noises associated with mouth, throat or facial movements that cause distress, along with things like chewing, heavy breathing, and foot tapping.
A Source of Dread
The sufferer notes: "I face so many various auditory triggers at the holidays and that can be stressful and make you fear it.
"Those close to me are supportive, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to spoil the mood. It's like a really big battle of enduring my distress to make sure others enjoy themselves."
So it's obvious why the traditionally happy season can quickly turn into a living nightmare for sufferers.
Triggers that may be considered normal, like someone drinking champagne, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can provoke a strong emotional response that can even lead to them withdrawing from gatherings.
The student, a university student, who has experienced misophonia from childhood, states currently her plan is to use headphones to get through dinner. Usually, she would usually isolate herself in a quiet area to avoid triggering sounds.
She says her sensitivity is more pronounced around people she's closest to, so Christmas is always "hard".
"There's an expectation to be around family, and I want to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.
"It's like this intense irritation comes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel panicked and immediately start crying and then panic will kick in.
"To others it appears as if I'm being difficult and melodramatic, but it's tough to describe if you haven't felt it."
Several Strategies to Cope
If it's an issue then there are a few methods you can try to cope the situation, based on advice from clinical psychologists.
- Imagine a Different Scenario: Creative thinking is crucial. Attempt to link the particular sound affecting you with a neutral concept. As an illustration, try to imagine someone's noisy drinking is just a waterfall. This technique is to teach your brain that the sound triggering you is neutral.
- Make it a Game: Introduce playfulness and make the irritating noise into a game involving the source. For instance, if someone is crunching loudly try copying the noise. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an active participant. And the game aspect should help shift your attention and make you somewhat less sensitive.
- Develop a Narrative: One more method is to try to invent a reason about why the person making the noise is doing it. Imagine if someone was making a nasal sound, it could be that they're not at their best or maybe they're upset. This approach is altering the perception of the sound. Although the noise remains identical, your reaction of it changes from being aggravating, to feeling a little more neutral about it.
