Christmas Can Be a Terrifying Experience for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.
A 23-year-old hopes for being with her family during the festive period, but admits a primary method she'll manage to get through it is by using her noise-cancelling devices - notably for the main festive feast.
For the 23-year-old, the holidays often feels like a notably tough season as the noises of people eating, drinking noisily and nose-blowing make her feel profound anxiety.
"There's this feeling of immediate anxiety, my entire being will just tense up and it feels like I'm in danger, and I need to somehow control these triggers."
Lottie has experienced misophonia since she was 16 and for her that makes the holiday period "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is a decreased threshold to specific noises, particularly those produced by individuals.
The condition is widespread across the population. Researchers reported almost one in five people are affected by it.
Typically it's sounds connected to eating or drinking that lead to discomfort, including things like chewing, heavy breathing, and pen clicking.
Triggering Stress
She explains: "You encounter so many various auditory triggers at Christmas and that can be anxiety inducing and make you want to avoid it.
"Those close to me are understanding, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of sacrificing my own sanity to guarantee everyone else is happy."
So it's easy to understand why the supposedly joyous season can rapidly become a stressful ordeal for sufferers.
Noises that may seem harmless, like someone drinking champagne, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can trigger a strong emotional response that can even cause them skipping events entirely.
The student, a young adult, who has experienced misophonia from childhood, states currently her plan is to use headphones to manage the meal. Usually, she would frequently go in a quiet area to minimize distressing triggers.
She explains her misophonia is more pronounced 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 draining.
"The sensation is this uncontrollable anger washes over me, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel panicked and burst into tears and then the stress response will take over.
"It can come across as if I'm being unreasonable and melodramatic, but it's difficult to convey without firsthand experience."
A Few Techniques to Manage
For those affected then there are a few methods you can attempt to manage the situation, based on advice from experts.
- Picture Something Else: Creative thinking is essential. Work on connecting the specific noise bothering you with an unrelated image. So for example, try to imagine someone's slurping is just a gentle stream. By doing this is to teach your brain that the sound affecting you isn't harmful.
- Make it a Game: Introduce playfulness and make the irritating noise into a competition with the person. For example, if someone is crunching loudly have a go at joining in. By joining in, 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.
- Craft a Story: One more method is to try to create a little story about why the person creating the sound is having to make that sound. So if someone was making a nasal sound, perhaps they're not in good health or could be emotional. The idea is changing the meaning of the sound. While the sound stays the same, your understanding of it moves from being annoying, to feeling a little more neutral towards it.
