Yuletide Often Proves to Be a Terrifying Experience for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.
One young woman anticipates seeing her family over the holidays, but notes a primary method she'll endure is by relying on her hearing protection - notably for the main festive feast.
For her, Christmas is a particularly difficult time as the sounds of family members munching, slurping and nose-blowing trigger profound anxiety.
"I experience this sensation of sudden panic, my whole body will just tense up and it as though I'm in peril, and I need to stop these triggers."
The individual has experienced sound sensitivity for several years and for her that makes the holiday period "exceptionally stressful".
Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to specific noises, especially noises made by individuals.
It is prevalent across the population. Researchers discovered nearly 20% people experience it.
Typically it's noises linked to mouth, throat or facial movements that lead to discomfort, as well as examples such as crunching, heavy breathing, and foot tapping.
'Anxiety Inducing'
The sufferer notes: "I face so many different triggering sounds at the holidays and that can be stressful and make you want to avoid it.
"My family are supportive, 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 ensure others enjoy themselves."
So it's easy to understand why the supposedly joyous period can rapidly become a source of agony for those with the condition.
Triggers that may appear innocuous, like someone sipping a beverage, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or enjoying festive food can provoke a powerful reaction that can even result in them skipping events entirely.
The student, a young adult, who has struggled with sound sensitivity from childhood, states her strategy is to use headphones to get through dinner. Typically, she would usually isolate herself in a different room to minimize triggering sounds.
She says her sensitivity is more intense around people she's most comfortable with, so Christmas is always "difficult".
"There is pressure to be around loved ones, and I desire to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.
"It's like this uncontrollable anger takes hold, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel anxious and immediately start crying and then the stress response will take over.
"It can come across as if I'm being oversensitive and melodramatic, but it's hard to explain if you haven't felt it."
A Few Techniques to Cope
If you suffer then there are a few methods you can try to cope the situation, based on advice from experts.
- Picture Something Else: Imagination is crucial. Work on connecting the triggering sound causing distress with an unrelated image. So for example, try to envision someone's slurping is just a waterfall. By doing this is to teach your brain that the sound triggering you isn't harmful.
- Try a Competition: Have a bit of fun and turn the annoying sound into a competition with the culprit. As an example, if someone is crunching loudly try mimicking the sound. By joining in, instead of feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an active participant. And the competition element should help distract your brain and make you slightly more tolerant.
- Develop a Narrative: One more method is to try to create a little story about why the person making the noise is behaving that way. Imagine if someone was making a nasal sound, perhaps they're not at their best or maybe they're upset. This approach is altering the perception of the sound. While the sound stays the same, your interpretation of it changes from being irritating, to feeling a bit more accepting about it.
