Christmas Can Be a Living Hell for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.
One young woman hopes for being with her relatives over the holidays, but notes a primary method she'll manage to get through it is by wearing her earplugs - especially during the holiday meal.
In her case, this time of year is a notably tough time as the sounds of family members munching, slurping and sniffling cause her intense distress.
"I experience this feeling of instant dread, my entire being will just tighten and it seems as if I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to manage these triggers."
Lottie has experienced sound sensitivity for several years and for her that renders the Christmas time "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to particular auditory triggers, notably sounds produced by other people.
The condition is widespread across the population. Experts reported nearly 20% people experience it.
Often it's noises connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that trigger a reaction, including things like crunching, breathing, and foot tapping.
A Source of Dread
Lottie says: "You encounter so many various auditory triggers at the holidays and that can be anxiety inducing and make you want to avoid 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 really big battle of enduring my distress to guarantee the event goes smoothly."
So it's clear why the supposedly joyous time of the year can transform into a stressful ordeal for affected individuals.
Triggers that may seem harmless, like someone sipping a beverage, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can provoke a powerful reaction that can even result in them skipping events entirely.
The student, a young adult, who has experienced sound sensitivity for over a decade, says her strategy is to use headphones to cope. Typically, she would frequently go in a quiet area to avoid triggering sounds.
She says her condition is more pronounced around people she's closest to, so Christmas is always "hard".
"There's an expectation to be around family, and I wish to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.
"The sensation is this sudden rage washes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel stressed and immediately start crying and then panic will activate.
"To others it appears as if I'm being oversensitive and overreacting, but it's difficult to convey if you haven't felt it."
Several Strategies to Cope
If you suffer then there are a few methods you can attempt to manage the situation, as suggested by clinical psychologists.
- Visualise a Different Scenario: Imagination is key. Work on connecting the specific noise causing distress with an unrelated image. For instance, try to imagine someone's noisy drinking is just a sink draining water. By doing this is to help your brain learn that the sound triggering you poses no threat.
- Try a Competition: Use lightheartedness and turn the annoying sound into a challenge with the culprit. For example, if someone is crunching loudly have a go at joining in. Through participation, rather than feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an willing part. And the game aspect should help distract your brain and make you a little less affected.
- Create a Scenario: Another technique is to try to fabricate an explanation about why the person making the noise is having to make that sound. For example if someone was making a nasal sound, maybe they are not in good health or are troubled. The idea is altering the perception of the sound. While the noise stays the same, your understanding of it changes from being annoying, to feeling a slightly more compassionate towards it.
