🔗 Share this article Yuletide Often Proves to Be a Terrifying Experience for Misophonia Sufferers. Over the years, individuals develop methods to cope with their condition. One young woman is looking forward to seeing her family during the festive period, but admits a primary method she'll endure is by relying on her noise-cancelling devices - particularly at the holiday meal. For her, Christmas is a especially challenging period as the sounds of people eating, slurping and sniffling trigger extremely uncomfortable. "I get this feeling of instant dread, my every muscle will just tense up and it as though I'm in peril, and I need to somehow control these sounds." Lottie has experienced this condition for several years and for her that makes the festive season "incredibly overwhelming". Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to specific noises, especially noises produced by other people. It's surprisingly common across the population. A study reported almost one in five people are affected by it. Often it's noises associated with mouth, throat or facial movements that cause distress, including things like crunching, breathing, and repetitive finger tapping. 'Anxiety Inducing' Lottie says: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises at Christmas and that can be daunting and make you want to avoid it. "Those close to me are supportive, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a really big battle of managing my symptoms to guarantee the event goes smoothly." So it's obvious why the traditionally happy season can rapidly become a stressful ordeal for those with the condition. Noises that may seem harmless, like someone drinking champagne, unwrapping gifts, or eating the holiday meal can trigger a visceral feeling that can even lead to them withdrawing from gatherings. Another individual is already thinking about strategies to manage the holiday dinner. The student, a 21-year-old student, who has dealt with sound sensitivity for over a decade, says her strategy is to listen to music to cope. On any other day, she would often retreat in a different room to minimize triggering sounds. She notes her misophonia is more pronounced around people she's closest to, so Christmas is always "hard". "People assume you to socialize with family, and I wish to, but it's exhausting on all levels. "The sensation is this uncontrollable anger takes hold, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel panicked and immediately start crying and then fight-or-flight will activate. "It can come across as if I'm being difficult and melodramatic, but it's tough to describe unless you've experienced it." A Few Techniques to Manage For those affected then there are some different techniques you can attempt to manage the situation, based on advice from clinical psychologists. Imagine Something Else: Creative thinking is essential. Work on connecting the specific noise bothering you with an unrelated image. For instance, try to picture someone's noisy drinking is just a sink draining water. By doing this is to help your brain learn that the sound affecting you isn't harmful. Use Humor: Have a bit of fun and turn the annoying sound into a competition involving the source. For example, if someone is eating noisily try joining in. By mimicking, instead of feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an willing part. And the game aspect should help distract your brain and make you somewhat less sensitive. Develop a Narrative: A further strategy is to try to invent a reason about why the person making the noise is having to make that sound. Imagine if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not in good health or maybe they're upset. The idea is re-framing the context of the sound. While the sound stays the same, your understanding of it changes from being annoying, to feeling a bit more accepting about it.
Over the years, individuals develop methods to cope with their condition. One young woman is looking forward to seeing her family during the festive period, but admits a primary method she'll endure is by relying on her noise-cancelling devices - particularly at the holiday meal. For her, Christmas is a especially challenging period as the sounds of people eating, slurping and sniffling trigger extremely uncomfortable. "I get this feeling of instant dread, my every muscle will just tense up and it as though I'm in peril, and I need to somehow control these sounds." Lottie has experienced this condition for several years and for her that makes the festive season "incredibly overwhelming". Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to specific noises, especially noises produced by other people. It's surprisingly common across the population. A study reported almost one in five people are affected by it. Often it's noises associated with mouth, throat or facial movements that cause distress, including things like crunching, breathing, and repetitive finger tapping. 'Anxiety Inducing' Lottie says: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises at Christmas and that can be daunting and make you want to avoid it. "Those close to me are supportive, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a really big battle of managing my symptoms to guarantee the event goes smoothly." So it's obvious why the traditionally happy season can rapidly become a stressful ordeal for those with the condition. Noises that may seem harmless, like someone drinking champagne, unwrapping gifts, or eating the holiday meal can trigger a visceral feeling that can even lead to them withdrawing from gatherings. Another individual is already thinking about strategies to manage the holiday dinner. The student, a 21-year-old student, who has dealt with sound sensitivity for over a decade, says her strategy is to listen to music to cope. On any other day, she would often retreat in a different room to minimize triggering sounds. She notes her misophonia is more pronounced around people she's closest to, so Christmas is always "hard". "People assume you to socialize with family, and I wish to, but it's exhausting on all levels. "The sensation is this uncontrollable anger takes hold, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel panicked and immediately start crying and then fight-or-flight will activate. "It can come across as if I'm being difficult and melodramatic, but it's tough to describe unless you've experienced it." A Few Techniques to Manage For those affected then there are some different techniques you can attempt to manage the situation, based on advice from clinical psychologists. Imagine Something Else: Creative thinking is essential. Work on connecting the specific noise bothering you with an unrelated image. For instance, try to picture someone's noisy drinking is just a sink draining water. By doing this is to help your brain learn that the sound affecting you isn't harmful. Use Humor: Have a bit of fun and turn the annoying sound into a competition involving the source. For example, if someone is eating noisily try joining in. By mimicking, instead of feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an willing part. And the game aspect should help distract your brain and make you somewhat less sensitive. Develop a Narrative: A further strategy is to try to invent a reason about why the person making the noise is having to make that sound. Imagine if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not in good health or maybe they're upset. The idea is re-framing the context of the sound. While the sound stays the same, your understanding of it changes from being annoying, to feeling a bit more accepting about it.