đŸ”— Share this article The Holiday Season Transforms Into a Living Hell for Misophonia Sufferers. With time, sufferers discover strategies to handle their sound sensitivity. Lottie hopes for seeing her relatives this Christmas, but says a key strategy she'll manage to get through it is by relying on her hearing protection - especially during Christmas dinner. In her case, the holidays can be a notably tough period as the sounds of people eating, drinking noisily and breathing heavily make her feel intense distress. "There's this wave of sudden panic, my whole body will just tighten and it seems as if I'm in danger, and I need to somehow control these noises." Lottie has lived with misophonia since she was 16 and for her that makes the Christmas time "incredibly overwhelming". Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to specific noises, notably sounds made by other people. The condition is widespread amongst adults. Researchers found a significant portion of people are affected by it. Typically it's noises connected to eating or drinking that cause distress, as well as examples such as chewing, breathing, and foot tapping. Triggering Stress She explains: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises at the holidays and that can be stressful and make you dread it. "My relatives are aware, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to spoil the mood. It's like a constant struggle of enduring my distress to ensure others enjoy themselves." So it's clear why the supposedly joyous time of the year can transform into a source of agony for affected individuals. Noises that may seem harmless, like someone sipping a beverage, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can trigger a strong emotional response that can even cause them withdrawing from gatherings. A 21-year-old student is already thinking about strategies to manage the holiday dinner. Jenna, a 21-year-old student, who has dealt with sound sensitivity since aged 10, says currently her plan is to listen to music to manage the meal. Typically, she would usually isolate herself in a separate space to minimize distressing triggers. She notes her misophonia is more intense around people she's most familiar with, so the holidays is always "hard". "There's an expectation to be around family, and I wish to, but it's physically and mentally challenging. "I feel as if this sudden rage takes hold, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel anxious and burst into tears and then panic will activate. "It may seem as if I'm being unreasonable and overreacting, but it's hard to explain if you haven't felt it." Three Ways to Manage If it's an issue then there are some different techniques you can try to cope the situation, according to experts. Picture Something Else: Imagination is crucial. Work on connecting the specific noise bothering you with something completely different. For instance, try to picture someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. The goal is to help your brain learn that the sound affecting you isn't harmful. Use Humor: Have a bit of fun and make the irritating noise into a game with the person. For example, if someone is eating noisily attempt copying the noise. By mimicking, rather than feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an willing part. And the challenge should help shift your attention and make you somewhat less sensitive. Develop a Narrative: One more method is to try to create a little story about the reason someone creating the sound is having to make that sound. Imagine if someone was making a nasal sound, maybe they are not at their best or are troubled. The idea is re-framing the context of the sound. Even though the sound stays the same, your reaction of it changes from being aggravating, to feeling a little more neutral towards it.
With time, sufferers discover strategies to handle their sound sensitivity. Lottie hopes for seeing her relatives this Christmas, but says a key strategy she'll manage to get through it is by relying on her hearing protection - especially during Christmas dinner. In her case, the holidays can be a notably tough period as the sounds of people eating, drinking noisily and breathing heavily make her feel intense distress. "There's this wave of sudden panic, my whole body will just tighten and it seems as if I'm in danger, and I need to somehow control these noises." Lottie has lived with misophonia since she was 16 and for her that makes the Christmas time "incredibly overwhelming". Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to specific noises, notably sounds made by other people. The condition is widespread amongst adults. Researchers found a significant portion of people are affected by it. Typically it's noises connected to eating or drinking that cause distress, as well as examples such as chewing, breathing, and foot tapping. Triggering Stress She explains: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises at the holidays and that can be stressful and make you dread it. "My relatives are aware, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to spoil the mood. It's like a constant struggle of enduring my distress to ensure others enjoy themselves." So it's clear why the supposedly joyous time of the year can transform into a source of agony for affected individuals. Noises that may seem harmless, like someone sipping a beverage, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can trigger a strong emotional response that can even cause them withdrawing from gatherings. A 21-year-old student is already thinking about strategies to manage the holiday dinner. Jenna, a 21-year-old student, who has dealt with sound sensitivity since aged 10, says currently her plan is to listen to music to manage the meal. Typically, she would usually isolate herself in a separate space to minimize distressing triggers. She notes her misophonia is more intense around people she's most familiar with, so the holidays is always "hard". "There's an expectation to be around family, and I wish to, but it's physically and mentally challenging. "I feel as if this sudden rage takes hold, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel anxious and burst into tears and then panic will activate. "It may seem as if I'm being unreasonable and overreacting, but it's hard to explain if you haven't felt it." Three Ways to Manage If it's an issue then there are some different techniques you can try to cope the situation, according to experts. Picture Something Else: Imagination is crucial. Work on connecting the specific noise bothering you with something completely different. For instance, try to picture someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. The goal is to help your brain learn that the sound affecting you isn't harmful. Use Humor: Have a bit of fun and make the irritating noise into a game with the person. For example, if someone is eating noisily attempt copying the noise. By mimicking, rather than feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an willing part. And the challenge should help shift your attention and make you somewhat less sensitive. Develop a Narrative: One more method is to try to create a little story about the reason someone creating the sound is having to make that sound. Imagine if someone was making a nasal sound, maybe they are not at their best or are troubled. The idea is re-framing the context of the sound. Even though the sound stays the same, your reaction of it changes from being aggravating, to feeling a little more neutral towards it.