The Holiday Season Can Be a Terrifying Experience for Misophonia Sufferers.
Lottie hopes for seeing her relatives over the holidays, but admits a key strategy she'll manage to get through it is by using her noise-cancelling devices - particularly at Christmas dinner.
For her, Christmas often feels like a particularly difficult period as the sounds of family members munching, drinking noisily and sniffling trigger profound anxiety.
"I get this sensation of immediate anxiety, my every muscle will just tighten and it seems as if I'm in peril, and I need to somehow control these sounds."
Lottie has suffered from misophonia for several years and for her that makes the Christmas time "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to particular auditory triggers, particularly those made by individuals.
It is prevalent in the UK. Researchers found almost one in five people suffer from it.
Frequently it's sounds associated with mouth, throat or facial movements that trigger a reaction, along with things like crunching, heavy breathing, and pen clicking.
'Anxiety Inducing'
The sufferer notes: "There are so many different triggering sounds at Christmas and that can be stressful and make you want to avoid it.
"My family are understanding, but I'm very aware that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a constant struggle of enduring my distress to make sure the event goes smoothly."
So it's easy to understand why the traditionally happy period can rapidly become a living nightmare for those with the condition.
Sounds that may seem harmless, like someone drinking champagne, unwrapping gifts, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can provoke a visceral feeling that can even cause them skipping events entirely.
Jenna, a young adult, who has dealt with misophonia since aged 10, says her strategy is to use headphones to cope. Typically, she would frequently go in a quiet area to avoid triggering sounds.
She explains her misophonia is more pronounced around people she's most comfortable with, so Christmas is always "hard".
"People assume you to be around family, and I desire to, but it's draining.
"The sensation is this uncontrollable anger takes hold, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel panicked and burst into tears and then fight-or-flight will take over.
"It can come across as if I'm being oversensitive and dramatic, but it's tough to describe unless you've experienced it."
Several Strategies to Handle It
If it's an issue then there are a few methods you can attempt to manage the situation, based on advice from experts.
- Visualise an Alternative: Imagination is crucial. Work on connecting the triggering sound bothering you with something completely different. As an illustration, try to envision someone's slurping is just a gentle stream. This technique is to help your brain learn that the sound affecting you poses no threat.
- Try a Competition: Use lightheartedness and turn the annoying sound into a game with the person. For example, if someone is eating noisily have a go at joining in. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an willing part. And the competition element should help redirect your focus and make you a little less affected.
- Develop a Narrative: A further strategy is to try to fabricate an explanation about why the person making the noise is having to make that sound. Imagine if someone was sniffing, perhaps they're not at their best or maybe they're upset. The idea is re-framing the context of the sound. Even though the noise doesn't change, your interpretation of it moves from being irritating, to feeling a bit more accepting about it.
