The Holiday Season Often Proves to Be a Nightmare for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.
One young woman is looking forward to being with her loved ones this Christmas, but admits a key strategy she'll manage to get through it is by relying on her noise-cancelling devices - particularly at the holiday meal.
For her, this time of year is a notably tough period as the auditory triggers of people eating, sipping loudly and breathing heavily cause her extremely uncomfortable.
"There's this wave of instant dread, my every muscle will just tighten and it seems as if I'm in peril, and I need to somehow control these sounds."
The individual has experienced sound sensitivity since she was 16 and for her that renders the holiday period "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is a decreased threshold to specific noises, especially noises made by other people.
It is prevalent amongst adults. A study discovered nearly 20% people suffer from it.
Typically it's noises associated with eating or drinking that cause distress, including examples such as crunching, heavy breathing, and repetitive finger tapping.
'Anxiety Inducing'
She explains: "I face so many various auditory triggers at the holidays and that can be daunting and make you dread it.
"Those close to me are understanding, but I'm very aware that I don't want to spoil the mood. It's like a really big battle of managing my symptoms to guarantee the event goes smoothly."
So it's obvious why the most wonderful period can rapidly become a source of agony for sufferers.
Noises that may be considered normal, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, opening presents, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can cause a visceral feeling that can even result in them avoiding social settings altogether.
The student, a 21-year-old student, who has struggled with sound sensitivity from childhood, explains the approach she intends to use is to use headphones to cope. On any other day, she would often retreat in a different room to avoid distressing triggers.
She notes her misophonia is worse around people she's closest to, so Christmas is always "challenging".
"There is pressure to spend time with loved ones, and I desire to, but it's exhausting on all levels.
"The sensation is this intense irritation washes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel anxious and begin to weep and then the stress response will activate.
"It can come across as if I'm being unreasonable and melodramatic, but it's tough to describe if you haven't felt it."
A Few Techniques to Handle It
If you suffer then there are various strategies you can use to handle the situation, according to specialists.
- Picture Something Else: Mental imagery is essential. Work on connecting the triggering sound affecting you with a neutral concept. For instance, try to picture someone's slurping is just a gentle stream. This technique is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you is neutral.
- Try a Competition: Introduce playfulness and turn the annoying sound into a challenge with the person. As an example, if someone is eating noisily attempt mimicking the sound. By mimicking, instead of feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an active participant. And the game aspect should help shift your attention and make you slightly more tolerant.
- Develop a Narrative: One more method is to try to fabricate an explanation about why the person making the noise is doing it. So if someone was making a nasal sound, perhaps they're not at their best or could be emotional. By doing this is re-framing the context of the sound. Although the noise doesn't change, your understanding of it moves from being aggravating, to feeling a little more neutral towards it.
