Christmas Often Proves to Be a Living Hell for Misophonia Sufferers.
A 23-year-old anticipates seeing her relatives this Christmas, but says a key strategy she'll cope is by wearing her noise-cancelling devices - notably for Christmas dinner.
In her case, Christmas is a notably tough time as the noises of people eating, sipping loudly and sniffling cause her profound anxiety.
"There's this feeling of immediate anxiety, my entire being will just tighten and it as though I'm in danger, and I need to stop these triggers."
The individual has experienced misophonia from a young age and for her that renders the holiday period "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to particular auditory triggers, notably sounds produced by other people.
The condition is widespread across the population. Experts discovered nearly 20% people suffer from it.
Often it's sounds connected to eating or drinking that lead to discomfort, including things like chewing, heavy breathing, and pen clicking.
'Anxiety Inducing'
She explains: "I face so many different triggering sounds at Christmas and that can be anxiety inducing and make you fear it.
"Those close to me are understanding, but I'm very aware that I don't want to spoil the mood. It's like a constant struggle of sacrificing my own sanity to make sure everyone else is happy."
So it's clear why the traditionally happy time of the year can quickly turn into a stressful ordeal for affected individuals.
Noises that may seem harmless, like someone drinking champagne, opening presents, or eating the holiday meal can provoke a visceral feeling that can even result in them skipping events entirely.
She, a young adult, who has dealt with misophonia since aged 10, says the approach she intends to use is to listen to music to manage the meal. On any other day, she would often retreat in a different room to avoid distressing triggers.
She notes her condition is more intense around people she's most familiar with, so Christmas is always "hard".
"People assume you to spend time with family, and I want to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.
"I feel as if this intense irritation comes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel anxious and begin to weep and then fight-or-flight will take over.
"To others it appears as if I'm being unreasonable and overreacting, but it's hard to explain unless you've experienced it."
Three Ways to Manage
If you suffer then there are a few methods you can use to handle the situation, as suggested by clinical psychologists.
- Picture a Different Scenario: Mental imagery is essential. Work on connecting the triggering sound affecting you with a neutral concept. So for example, try to picture someone's slurping is just a waterfall. This technique is to help your brain learn that the sound affecting you isn't harmful.
- Try a Competition: Have a bit of fun and make the irritating noise into a competition with the culprit. For instance, if someone is crunching loudly try mimicking the sound. By joining in, instead of feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an willing part. And the game aspect should help redirect your focus and make you a little less affected.
- Create a Scenario: One more method is to try to invent a reason about why the person making the noise is behaving that way. For example if someone was sniffing, maybe they are not in good health or maybe they're upset. By doing this is changing the meaning of the sound. Even though the noise doesn't change, your interpretation of it shifts from being aggravating, to feeling a bit more accepting about it.
