Christmas Can Be a Terrifying Experience for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.
One young woman anticipates seeing her loved ones this Christmas, but says one of the only ways she'll manage to get through it is by relying on her noise-cancelling devices - notably for Christmas dinner.
In her case, the holidays is a notably tough season as the auditory triggers of people eating, drinking noisily and breathing heavily cause her profound anxiety.
"I experience this feeling of instant dread, my entire being will just tense up and it feels like I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to manage these sounds."
She has suffered from sound sensitivity since she was 16 and for her that renders the Christmas time "deeply taxing".
Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to specific noises, particularly those coming from other people.
The condition is widespread amongst adults. Experts found almost one in five people are affected by it.
Frequently it's noises associated with mouth, throat or facial movements that lead to discomfort, along with examples such as crunching, heavy breathing, and repetitive finger tapping.
Triggering Stress
The sufferer notes: "I face so many different triggering sounds at Christmas and that can be stressful and make you dread it.
"Those close to me are understanding, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to spoil the mood. It's like a constant struggle of managing my symptoms to ensure others enjoy themselves."
So it's easy to understand why the supposedly joyous season can rapidly become a source of agony for sufferers.
Sounds that may be considered normal, like someone drinking champagne, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can cause a visceral feeling that can even result in them skipping events entirely.
The student, a 21-year-old student, who has struggled with misophonia for over a decade, explains her strategy is to put her earphones in to cope. Usually, she would often retreat in a different room to avoid distressing triggers.
She notes her condition is worse around people she's most familiar with, so the holidays is always "difficult".
"There's an expectation to spend time with loved ones, and I desire to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.
"I feel as if this sudden rage comes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel stressed and begin to weep and then fight-or-flight will kick in.
"It can come across as if I'm being unreasonable and dramatic, but it's hard to explain if you haven't felt it."
Three Ways to Handle It
If it's an issue then there are some different techniques you can try to cope the situation, as suggested by clinical psychologists.
- Visualise Something Else: Imagination is crucial. Try to associate the particular sound causing distress with something completely different. For instance, try to picture someone's noisy drinking 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 challenge with the person. For instance, if someone is crunching loudly try joining in. Through participation, rather than feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an active participant. And the competition element should help redirect your focus and make you a little less affected.
- Create a Scenario: A further strategy is to try to invent a reason about why the person creating the sound is having to make that sound. For example if someone was making a nasal sound, it could be that they're not in good health or are troubled. By doing this is re-framing the context of the sound. Even though the sound doesn't change, your understanding of it changes from being irritating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate about it.
