Yuletide Often Proves to Be a Terrifying Experience for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.
One young woman anticipates spending time with her loved ones this Christmas, but admits a key strategy she'll manage to get through it is by relying on her hearing protection - especially during the main festive feast.
For the 23-year-old, the holidays often feels like a particularly difficult time as the sounds of people eating, sipping loudly and nose-blowing cause her intense distress.
"I experience this sensation of immediate anxiety, my every muscle will just freeze and it as though I'm in danger, and I need to stop these triggers."
Lottie has suffered from sound sensitivity from a young age and for her that renders the holiday period "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to particular auditory triggers, especially noises produced by other people.
The condition is widespread amongst adults. A study discovered a significant portion of people experience it.
Typically it's noises connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that trigger a reaction, as well as examples such as crunching, breathing, and foot tapping.
Triggering Stress
The sufferer notes: "I face so many assorted problematic noises at the holidays and that can be stressful and make you fear it.
"My family are supportive, but I'm very aware that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a constant struggle of managing my symptoms to make sure everyone else is happy."
So it's clear why the most wonderful period can transform into a living nightmare for affected individuals.
Noises that may be considered normal, like someone drinking champagne, opening presents, or eating the holiday meal can provoke a strong emotional response that can even result in them withdrawing from gatherings.
The student, a young adult, who has struggled with sound sensitivity from childhood, explains the approach she intends to use is to listen to music to cope. Usually, she would usually isolate herself in a different room to avoid problematic noises.
She says her misophonia is more intense around people she's closest to, so Christmas is always "difficult".
"There is pressure to be around loved ones, and I wish to, but it's exhausting on all levels.
"I feel as if this intense irritation takes hold, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel panicked and immediately start crying and then panic will take over.
"It may seem as if I'm being difficult and overreacting, but it's hard to explain without firsthand experience."
Three Ways to Manage
If you suffer then there are various strategies you can attempt to manage the situation, based on advice from experts.
- Visualise Something Else: Creative thinking is crucial. Work on connecting the specific noise causing distress with something completely different. As an illustration, try to envision someone's slurping is just a gentle stream. The goal is to retrain your mind that the sound affecting you poses no threat.
- Try a Competition: Have a bit of fun and make the irritating noise into a competition with the person. For example, if someone is crunching loudly have a go at copying the noise. Through participation, instead of feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an willing part. And the challenge should help distract your brain and make you a little less affected.
- Craft a Story: Another technique is to try to create a little story about why the person creating the sound is having to make that sound. For example if someone was making a nasal sound, perhaps they're not in good health or could be emotional. This approach is re-framing the context of the sound. Although the noise remains identical, your interpretation of it moves from being irritating, to feeling a little more neutral towards it.
