Yuletide Transforms Into a Terrifying Experience for Those with Misophonia.
Lottie hopes for spending time with her family this Christmas, but says one of the only ways she'll cope is by relying on her earplugs - particularly at Christmas dinner.
In her case, this time of year is a particularly difficult period as the noises of people eating, slurping and sniffling trigger intense distress.
"I get this wave of sudden panic, my every muscle will just tense up and it seems as if I'm in peril, and I need to manage these triggers."
Lottie has suffered from this condition from a young age and for her that renders the festive season "exceptionally stressful".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to certain sounds, especially noises coming from individuals.
It's surprisingly common amongst adults. Experts found nearly 20% people suffer from it.
Often it's sounds associated with bodily functions that trigger a reaction, along with examples such as crunching, heavy breathing, and pen clicking.
Triggering Stress
Lottie says: "I face so many assorted problematic noises at the holidays and that can be anxiety inducing and make you fear it.
"Those close to me are supportive, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to upset others. It's like a constant struggle of enduring my distress to ensure everyone else is happy."
So it's easy to understand why the traditionally happy time of the year can transform into a source of agony for sufferers.
Noises that may be considered normal, like someone drinking champagne, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or eating the holiday meal can cause a strong emotional response that can even lead to them skipping events entirely.
The student, a young adult, who has dealt with sound sensitivity since aged 10, explains her strategy is to use headphones to cope. On any other day, she would often retreat in a quiet area to escape distressing triggers.
She explains her sensitivity is more intense around people she's most familiar with, so the holidays is always "challenging".
"There's an expectation to be around family, and I desire to, but it's exhausting on all levels.
"The sensation is this uncontrollable anger comes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel stressed and begin to weep and then panic will activate.
"It can come across as if I'm being oversensitive and overreacting, but it's hard to explain unless you've experienced it."
A Few Techniques to Handle It
For those affected then there are various strategies you can use to handle the situation, as suggested by clinical psychologists.
- Imagine a Different Scenario: Creative thinking is crucial. Try to associate the triggering sound affecting you with an unrelated image. So for example, try to imagine someone's noisy drinking is just a gentle stream. The goal is to teach your brain that the sound triggering you isn't harmful.
- Use Humor: Use lightheartedness and turn the annoying sound into a challenge with the culprit. For example, if someone is eating noisily try mimicking the sound. By mimicking, rather than feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an active participant. And the game aspect should help distract your brain and make you somewhat less sensitive.
- Develop a Narrative: One more method is to try to fabricate an explanation about why the person creating the sound is behaving that way. Imagine if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not in good health or could be emotional. This approach is re-framing the context of the sound. Although the sound doesn't change, your reaction of it moves from being aggravating, to feeling a bit more accepting towards it.
