🔗 Share this article The Holiday Season Often Proves to Be a Living Hell for Misophonia Sufferers. Through experience, individuals discover methods to try to better manage their sound sensitivity. One young woman anticipates being with her loved ones this Christmas, but admits a key strategy she'll manage to get through it is by using her hearing protection - notably for the holiday meal. In her case, the holidays is a especially challenging season as the sounds of people eating, drinking noisily and sniffling make her feel extremely uncomfortable. "I experience this feeling of sudden panic, my entire being will just tighten and it feels like I'm in peril, and I need to somehow control these triggers." She has experienced this condition from a young age and for her that causes the festive season "incredibly overwhelming". Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to specific noises, especially noises made by individuals. The condition is widespread amongst adults. Experts found almost one in five people experience it. Frequently it's noises associated with eating or drinking that trigger a reaction, along with examples such as crunching, heavy breathing, and foot tapping. A Source of Dread She explains: "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 understanding, but I'm very aware that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a internal conflict of enduring my distress to guarantee everyone else is happy." So it's clear why the supposedly joyous period can rapidly become a stressful ordeal for affected individuals. Sounds that may be considered normal, like someone sipping a beverage, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or eating the holiday meal can cause a visceral feeling that can even cause them withdrawing from gatherings. Another individual is planning coping mechanisms to manage the holiday dinner. The student, a university student, who has experienced sound sensitivity for over a decade, explains the approach she intends to use is to put her earphones in to manage the meal. On any other day, she would frequently go in a separate space to escape problematic noises. She says her misophonia is worse around people she's most comfortable with, so Christmas is always "difficult". "There's an expectation to spend time with family, and I wish to, but it's exhausting on all levels. "It's like this intense irritation takes hold, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel anxious and immediately start crying and then the stress response will activate. "It can come across as if I'm being oversensitive and melodramatic, but it's difficult to convey if you haven't felt it." Several Strategies to Manage If you suffer then there are a few methods you can use to handle the situation, as suggested by clinical psychologists. Visualise a Different Scenario: Creative thinking is crucial. Try to associate the particular sound bothering you with something completely different. For instance, try to envision someone's noisy drinking is just a waterfall. The goal is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you poses no threat. Use Humor: Use lightheartedness and turn the annoying sound into a competition with the person. For instance, if someone is crunching loudly try mimicking the sound. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an willing part. And the game aspect should help redirect your focus and make you a little less affected. Develop a Narrative: A further strategy is to try to invent a reason about the reason someone making the noise is having to make that sound. For example if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not feeling well or are troubled. This approach is changing the meaning of the sound. Even though the sound remains identical, your reaction of it moves from being irritating, to feeling a little more neutral towards it.
Through experience, individuals discover methods to try to better manage their sound sensitivity. One young woman anticipates being with her loved ones this Christmas, but admits a key strategy she'll manage to get through it is by using her hearing protection - notably for the holiday meal. In her case, the holidays is a especially challenging season as the sounds of people eating, drinking noisily and sniffling make her feel extremely uncomfortable. "I experience this feeling of sudden panic, my entire being will just tighten and it feels like I'm in peril, and I need to somehow control these triggers." She has experienced this condition from a young age and for her that causes the festive season "incredibly overwhelming". Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to specific noises, especially noises made by individuals. The condition is widespread amongst adults. Experts found almost one in five people experience it. Frequently it's noises associated with eating or drinking that trigger a reaction, along with examples such as crunching, heavy breathing, and foot tapping. A Source of Dread She explains: "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 understanding, but I'm very aware that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a internal conflict of enduring my distress to guarantee everyone else is happy." So it's clear why the supposedly joyous period can rapidly become a stressful ordeal for affected individuals. Sounds that may be considered normal, like someone sipping a beverage, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or eating the holiday meal can cause a visceral feeling that can even cause them withdrawing from gatherings. Another individual is planning coping mechanisms to manage the holiday dinner. The student, a university student, who has experienced sound sensitivity for over a decade, explains the approach she intends to use is to put her earphones in to manage the meal. On any other day, she would frequently go in a separate space to escape problematic noises. She says her misophonia is worse around people she's most comfortable with, so Christmas is always "difficult". "There's an expectation to spend time with family, and I wish to, but it's exhausting on all levels. "It's like this intense irritation takes hold, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel anxious and immediately start crying and then the stress response will activate. "It can come across as if I'm being oversensitive and melodramatic, but it's difficult to convey if you haven't felt it." Several Strategies to Manage If you suffer then there are a few methods you can use to handle the situation, as suggested by clinical psychologists. Visualise a Different Scenario: Creative thinking is crucial. Try to associate the particular sound bothering you with something completely different. For instance, try to envision someone's noisy drinking is just a waterfall. The goal is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you poses no threat. Use Humor: Use lightheartedness and turn the annoying sound into a competition with the person. For instance, if someone is crunching loudly try mimicking the sound. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an willing part. And the game aspect should help redirect your focus and make you a little less affected. Develop a Narrative: A further strategy is to try to invent a reason about the reason someone making the noise is having to make that sound. For example if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not feeling well or are troubled. This approach is changing the meaning of the sound. Even though the sound remains identical, your reaction of it moves from being irritating, to feeling a little more neutral towards it.