The Holiday Season Often Proves to Be a Living Hell for Those with Misophonia.
Lottie is looking forward to being with her relatives during the festive period, but admits a key strategy she'll endure is by wearing her earplugs - notably for Christmas dinner.
For her, Christmas is a especially challenging season as the noises of family members munching, sipping loudly and nose-blowing trigger intense distress.
"I experience this wave of instant dread, my whole body will just freeze and it seems as if I'm in danger, and I need to stop these triggers."
The individual has experienced sound sensitivity from a young age and for her that renders the Christmas time "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is a decreased threshold to certain sounds, notably sounds coming from those around you.
It's surprisingly common in the UK. A study reported a significant portion of people suffer from it.
Frequently it's noises connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that cause distress, along with things like chewing, breathing, and repetitive finger tapping.
'Anxiety Inducing'
Lottie says: "There are so many various auditory triggers at Christmas and that can be daunting and make you fear it.
"My relatives are aware, 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 make sure the event goes smoothly."
So it's obvious why the most wonderful period can transform into a source of agony for affected individuals.
Sounds that may seem harmless, like someone sipping a beverage, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or enjoying festive food can cause a powerful reaction that can even lead to them avoiding social settings altogether.
She, a 21-year-old student, who has dealt with sound sensitivity from childhood, explains her strategy is to listen to music to cope. Typically, she would often retreat in a separate space to minimize triggering sounds.
She says her sensitivity is more intense around people she's most familiar with, so the holidays is always "challenging".
"There's an expectation to socialize with family, and I wish to, but it's draining.
"It's like this sudden rage washes over me, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel anxious and immediately start crying and then the stress response will kick in.
"It can come across as if I'm being difficult and melodramatic, but it's tough to describe if you haven't felt it."
Three Ways to Manage
If you suffer then there are some different techniques you can use to handle the situation, based on advice from clinical psychologists.
- Imagine Something Else: Creative thinking is key. Work on connecting the specific noise affecting you with a neutral concept. So for example, try to picture someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. This technique is to teach your brain that the sound affecting you isn't harmful.
- Use Humor: Have a bit of fun and turn the annoying sound into a game involving the source. As an example, if someone is crunching loudly try mimicking the sound. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an willing part. And the challenge should help redirect your focus and make you a little less affected.
- Craft a Story: A further strategy is to try to create a little story about the reason someone making the noise is behaving that way. For example if someone was sniffing, maybe they are not feeling well or could be emotional. The idea is re-framing the context of the sound. Although the noise stays the same, your interpretation of it moves from being irritating, to feeling a little more neutral about it.