Christmas Can Be a Living Hell for Misophonia Sufferers.
A 23-year-old anticipates seeing her relatives over the holidays, but says a key strategy she'll cope is by using her earplugs - notably for the holiday meal.
In her case, the holidays often feels like a especially challenging period as the auditory triggers of other people chewing, slurping and sniffling cause her profound anxiety.
"I get this feeling of immediate anxiety, my whole body will just freeze and it as though I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to somehow control these triggers."
Lottie has lived with misophonia since she was 16 and for her that causes the Christmas time "deeply taxing".
Misophonia is a decreased threshold to particular auditory triggers, particularly those coming from those around you.
It is prevalent amongst adults. A study found a significant portion of people are affected by it.
Frequently it's noises associated with eating or drinking that cause distress, along with things like chewing, breathing, and foot tapping.
Triggering Stress
The sufferer notes: "You encounter so many various auditory triggers at Christmas and that can be daunting and make you want to avoid it.
"My relatives are supportive, but I'm very aware that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of enduring my distress to guarantee the event goes smoothly."
So it's obvious why the traditionally happy season can quickly turn into a stressful ordeal 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 powerful reaction that can even lead to them avoiding social settings altogether.
The student, a 21-year-old student, who has dealt with misophonia since aged 10, says her strategy is to use headphones to manage the meal. On any other day, she would often retreat in a quiet area to avoid distressing triggers.
She explains her misophonia is more pronounced around people she's closest to, so Christmas is always "difficult".
"People assume you to socialize with loved ones, and I wish to, but it's draining.
"The sensation is this sudden rage washes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel panicked and immediately start crying and then fight-or-flight will take over.
"To others it appears as if I'm being oversensitive and dramatic, but it's hard to explain without firsthand experience."
Several Strategies to Manage
If you suffer then there are various strategies you can try to cope the situation, based on advice from clinical psychologists.
- Picture an Alternative: Imagination is key. Attempt to link the specific noise causing distress with an unrelated image. As an illustration, try to picture someone's noisy drinking is just a sink draining water. This technique is to help your brain learn that the sound affecting you poses no threat.
- Make it a Game: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a competition with the culprit. For instance, if someone is crunching loudly attempt mimicking the sound. Through participation, instead of feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an engaged person. And the challenge should help redirect your focus and make you somewhat less sensitive.
- Develop a Narrative: A further strategy is to try to create a little story about the reason someone making the noise is having to make that sound. So if someone was sniffing, maybe they are not in good health or maybe they're upset. This approach is altering the perception of the sound. Although the sound doesn't change, your understanding of it shifts from being aggravating, to feeling a little more neutral about it.
