The Holiday Season Transforms Into a Nightmare for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.
One young woman hopes for seeing her relatives during the festive period, but notes a key strategy she'll cope is by relying on her hearing protection - especially during the holiday meal.
For the 23-year-old, this time of year often feels like a especially challenging season as the sounds of family members munching, sipping loudly and sniffling cause her extremely uncomfortable.
"There's this wave of sudden panic, my every muscle will just tighten and it feels like I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to stop these sounds."
She has suffered from misophonia for several years and for her that makes the holiday period "exceptionally stressful".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to specific noises, particularly those produced by other people.
The condition is widespread across the population. Experts reported nearly 20% people suffer from it.
Typically it's noises associated with bodily functions that trigger a reaction, including things like chewing, heavy breathing, and pen clicking.
'Anxiety Inducing'
The sufferer notes: "There are so many assorted problematic noises at the holidays and that can be anxiety inducing and make you want to avoid it.
"Those close to me are aware, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to spoil the mood. It's like a constant struggle of sacrificing my own sanity to guarantee the event goes smoothly."
So it's obvious why the traditionally happy time of the year can quickly turn into a stressful ordeal for sufferers.
Noises that may be considered normal, like someone drinking champagne, opening presents, or enjoying festive food can provoke a strong emotional response that can even cause them withdrawing from gatherings.
Jenna, a young adult, who has dealt with misophonia since aged 10, states the approach she intends to use is to use headphones to cope. Usually, she would often retreat in a separate space to escape triggering sounds.
She says her condition is more intense around people she's closest to, so the holidays is always "difficult".
"There's an expectation to socialize with family, and I desire to, but it's exhausting on all levels.
"It's like this sudden rage takes hold, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel stressed and immediately start crying and then panic will kick in.
"To others it appears as if I'm being difficult and dramatic, but it's hard to explain if you haven't felt it."
Three Ways to Cope
For those affected then there are some different techniques you can try to cope the situation, as suggested by experts.
- Picture an Alternative: Creative thinking is essential. Try to associate the specific noise bothering you with an unrelated image. So for example, try to picture someone's noisy drinking is just a waterfall. The goal is to retrain your mind that the sound affecting you isn't harmful.
- Make it a Game: Introduce playfulness and make the irritating noise into a competition with the person. As an example, if someone is eating noisily have a go at joining in. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an active participant. And the competition element should help shift your attention and make you slightly more tolerant.
- Craft a Story: One more method is to try to fabricate an explanation about why the person making the noise is doing it. So if someone was sniffing, perhaps they're not at their best or could be emotional. The idea is altering the perception of the sound. Although the noise stays the same, your understanding of it changes from being irritating, to feeling a little more neutral about it.
