Christmas Often Proves to Be a Living Hell for Misophonia Sufferers.
A 23-year-old hopes for seeing her family this Christmas, but says a primary method she'll endure is by using her earplugs - particularly at Christmas dinner.
For the 23-year-old, Christmas can be a particularly difficult season as the sounds of people eating, drinking noisily and sniffling cause her intense distress.
"I get this wave of instant dread, my whole body will just tense up and it feels like I'm in peril, and I need to somehow control these triggers."
She has lived with misophonia from a young age and for her that causes the festive season "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is a decreased threshold to particular auditory triggers, especially noises made by individuals.
It's surprisingly common amongst adults. Researchers reported a significant portion of people suffer from it.
Often it's sounds linked to bodily functions that trigger a reaction, as well as examples such as crunching, breathing, and foot tapping.
Triggering Stress
The sufferer notes: "You encounter so many different triggering sounds at Christmas and that can be stressful and make you dread 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 constant struggle of sacrificing my own sanity to guarantee the event goes smoothly."
So it's easy to understand why the traditionally happy period can rapidly become a source of agony for those with the condition.
Noises that may appear innocuous, like someone drinking champagne, unwrapping gifts, or enjoying festive food can provoke a visceral feeling that can even cause them avoiding social settings altogether.
The student, a young adult, who has struggled with misophonia from childhood, states currently her plan is to listen to music to cope. On any other day, she would often retreat in a different room to avoid problematic noises.
She says her misophonia is more intense around people she's most familiar with, so the holidays is always "challenging".
"There's an expectation to be around loved ones, and I want to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.
"I feel as if this intense irritation takes hold, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel stressed and burst into tears and then the stress response will take over.
"It may seem as if I'm being difficult and overreacting, but it's tough to describe without firsthand experience."
Three Ways to Handle It
If you suffer then there are a few methods you can use to handle the situation, according to clinical psychologists.
- Picture a Different Scenario: Mental imagery is essential. Try to associate the specific noise affecting you with an unrelated image. As an illustration, try to picture someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. The goal is to teach your brain that the sound affecting you isn't harmful.
- Use Humor: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a challenge with the culprit. As an example, if someone is eating noisily have a go at joining in. Through participation, instead of feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an engaged person. And the challenge should help shift your attention and make you a little less affected.
- Craft a Story: 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. This approach is changing the meaning of the sound. While the sound stays the same, your reaction of it shifts from being aggravating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate towards it.
