Christmas Can Be a Terrifying Experience for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.
Lottie anticipates spending time with her family during the festive period, but says a key strategy she'll manage to get through it is by using her hearing protection - notably for the holiday meal.
For her, this time of year often feels like a especially challenging season as the noises of other people chewing, sipping loudly and nose-blowing make her feel profound anxiety.
"There's this wave of sudden panic, my every muscle will just tighten and it seems as if I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to manage these triggers."
She has experienced sound sensitivity from a young age and for her that renders the holiday period "exceptionally stressful".
Misophonia is a decreased threshold to specific noises, notably sounds coming from individuals.
It's surprisingly common in the UK. A study reported a significant portion of people are affected by it.
Frequently it's noises linked to mouth, throat or facial movements that lead to discomfort, including examples such as crunching, heavy breathing, and pen clicking.
A Source of Dread
Lottie says: "I face so many assorted problematic noises at the holidays and that can be anxiety inducing and make you fear it.
"My family are aware, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a internal conflict of managing my symptoms to make sure others enjoy themselves."
So it's clear why the supposedly joyous period can rapidly become a living nightmare for affected individuals.
Noises that may be considered normal, like someone sipping a beverage, opening presents, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can provoke a strong emotional response that can even result in them avoiding social settings altogether.
She, a university student, who has dealt with misophonia for over a decade, states the approach she intends to use is to put her earphones in to manage the meal. Typically, she would frequently go in a separate space to minimize triggering sounds.
She notes her sensitivity is worse around people she's most familiar with, so Christmas is always "challenging".
"There is pressure to spend time with family, and I want to, but it's exhausting on all levels.
"I feel as if this uncontrollable anger comes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel stressed and burst into tears and then the stress response will activate.
"It can come across as if I'm being unreasonable and melodramatic, but it's difficult to convey unless you've experienced it."
A Few Techniques to Handle It
If you suffer then there are some different techniques you can use to handle the situation, based on advice from specialists.
- Imagine a Different Scenario: Mental imagery is crucial. Attempt to link the specific noise bothering you with a neutral concept. As an illustration, try to envision someone's noisy drinking is just a waterfall. The goal is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you is neutral.
- Try a Competition: Use lightheartedness and turn the annoying sound into a game with the culprit. For example, if someone is crunching loudly have a go at copying the noise. Through participation, instead of feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an willing part. And the game aspect should help shift your attention and make you a little less affected.
- Create a Scenario: Another technique is to try to fabricate an explanation about why the person making the noise is doing it. For example if someone was making a nasal sound, maybe they are not feeling well or could be emotional. The idea is altering the perception of the sound. Although the sound stays the same, your reaction of it shifts from being irritating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate about it.