Christmas Can Be a Living Hell for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.
A 23-year-old anticipates spending time with her loved ones this Christmas, but notes one of the only ways she'll manage to get through it is by wearing her hearing protection - especially during Christmas dinner.
For the 23-year-old, Christmas can be a particularly difficult season as the sounds of family members munching, slurping and sniffling cause her extremely uncomfortable.
"I experience this feeling of instant dread, my entire being will just tighten and it feels like I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to stop these triggers."
She has lived with misophonia since she was 16 and for her that makes the Christmas time "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to specific noises, notably sounds produced by those around you.
It's surprisingly common across the population. Researchers found nearly 20% people suffer from it.
Often it's noises connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that trigger a reaction, along with things like crunching, heavy breathing, and repetitive finger tapping.
Triggering Stress
She explains: "There are so many different triggering sounds at the holidays and that can be stressful and make you want to avoid it.
"My relatives are understanding, but I'm very aware that I don't want to upset others. It's like a really big battle of managing my symptoms to make sure others enjoy themselves."
So it's clear why the traditionally happy season can transform into a stressful ordeal for sufferers.
Noises that may seem harmless, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, unwrapping gifts, or enjoying festive food can trigger a strong emotional response that can even lead to them skipping events entirely.
Jenna, a 21-year-old student, who has struggled with sound sensitivity from childhood, says her strategy is to listen to music to get through dinner. Typically, she would usually isolate herself in a quiet area to avoid distressing triggers.
She explains her condition is worse around people she's closest to, so the holidays is always "difficult".
"There is pressure to be around family, and I want to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.
"The sensation is this intense irritation washes over me, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel anxious and immediately start crying and then panic will take over.
"To others it appears as if I'm being difficult and dramatic, but it's hard to explain without firsthand experience."
Several Strategies to Handle It
If you suffer then there are various strategies you can try to cope the situation, according to experts.
- Visualise a Different Scenario: Mental imagery is essential. Attempt to link the particular sound causing distress with something completely different. So for example, try to envision someone's noisy drinking is just a sink draining water. By doing this is to teach your brain that the sound triggering you isn't harmful.
- Try a Competition: Introduce playfulness and turn the annoying sound into a game involving the source. As an example, if someone is eating noisily have a go at copying the noise. Through participation, instead of feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an engaged person. And the competition element should help redirect your focus and make you a little less affected.
- Craft a Story: One more method is to try to invent a reason about why the person making the noise is doing it. So if someone was making a nasal sound, it could be that they're not in good health or are troubled. The idea is re-framing the context of the sound. Even though the noise stays the same, your reaction of it changes from being annoying, to feeling a bit more accepting towards it.
