🔗 Share this article The Holiday Season Transforms Into a Terrifying Experience for Misophonia Sufferers. Over the years, individuals have found ways to try to better manage their misophonia. Lottie anticipates spending time with her family this Christmas, but admits a key strategy she'll cope is by wearing her hearing protection - especially during the holiday meal. In her case, the holidays can be a notably tough time as the auditory triggers of other people chewing, drinking noisily and breathing heavily cause her profound anxiety. "I get this sensation of sudden panic, my whole body will just tense up and it as though I'm in peril, and I need to stop these noises." The individual has experienced sound sensitivity since she was 16 and for her that makes the holiday period "deeply taxing". Misophonia is a decreased threshold to specific noises, especially noises coming from other people. It's surprisingly common across the population. Experts discovered nearly 20% people suffer from it. Frequently it's noises associated with bodily functions that trigger a reaction, along with things like chewing, breathing, and repetitive finger tapping. 'Anxiety Inducing' She explains: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises at the holidays and that can be anxiety inducing and make you dread it. "My family are aware, but I'm very aware that I don't want to upset others. It's like a constant struggle of sacrificing my own sanity to guarantee everyone else is happy." So it's easy to understand why the most wonderful season can rapidly become a living nightmare for those with the condition. 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 avoiding social settings altogether. Jenna is planning strategies to manage Christmas lunch. Jenna, a young adult, who has struggled with misophonia from childhood, explains her strategy is to put her earphones in to get through dinner. Usually, she would often retreat in a different room to avoid distressing triggers. She explains her misophonia is worse around people she's closest to, so Christmas is always "difficult". "There's an expectation to socialize with family, and I wish to, but it's exhausting on all levels. "I feel as if 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. "It can come across as if I'm being difficult and melodramatic, but it's difficult to convey if you haven't felt it." Several Strategies to Manage If you suffer then there are some different techniques you can try to cope the situation, based on advice from clinical psychologists. Picture an Alternative: Mental imagery is essential. Try to associate the particular sound affecting you with something completely different. So for example, try to imagine someone's slurping is just a waterfall. By doing this is to retrain your mind that the sound affecting you poses no threat. Make it a Game: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a challenge with the person. For example, if someone is crunching loudly try copying the noise. By mimicking, instead of feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an willing part. And the challenge should help redirect your focus and make you slightly more tolerant. Develop a Narrative: One more method is to try to invent a reason about why the person creating the sound is doing it. Imagine if someone was making a nasal sound, it could be that they're not at their best or could be emotional. By doing this is changing the meaning of the sound. While the noise doesn't change, your understanding of it shifts from being annoying, to feeling a slightly more compassionate about it.
Over the years, individuals have found ways to try to better manage their misophonia. Lottie anticipates spending time with her family this Christmas, but admits a key strategy she'll cope is by wearing her hearing protection - especially during the holiday meal. In her case, the holidays can be a notably tough time as the auditory triggers of other people chewing, drinking noisily and breathing heavily cause her profound anxiety. "I get this sensation of sudden panic, my whole body will just tense up and it as though I'm in peril, and I need to stop these noises." The individual has experienced sound sensitivity since she was 16 and for her that makes the holiday period "deeply taxing". Misophonia is a decreased threshold to specific noises, especially noises coming from other people. It's surprisingly common across the population. Experts discovered nearly 20% people suffer from it. Frequently it's noises associated with bodily functions that trigger a reaction, along with things like chewing, breathing, and repetitive finger tapping. 'Anxiety Inducing' She explains: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises at the holidays and that can be anxiety inducing and make you dread it. "My family are aware, but I'm very aware that I don't want to upset others. It's like a constant struggle of sacrificing my own sanity to guarantee everyone else is happy." So it's easy to understand why the most wonderful season can rapidly become a living nightmare for those with the condition. 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 avoiding social settings altogether. Jenna is planning strategies to manage Christmas lunch. Jenna, a young adult, who has struggled with misophonia from childhood, explains her strategy is to put her earphones in to get through dinner. Usually, she would often retreat in a different room to avoid distressing triggers. She explains her misophonia is worse around people she's closest to, so Christmas is always "difficult". "There's an expectation to socialize with family, and I wish to, but it's exhausting on all levels. "I feel as if 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. "It can come across as if I'm being difficult and melodramatic, but it's difficult to convey if you haven't felt it." Several Strategies to Manage If you suffer then there are some different techniques you can try to cope the situation, based on advice from clinical psychologists. Picture an Alternative: Mental imagery is essential. Try to associate the particular sound affecting you with something completely different. So for example, try to imagine someone's slurping is just a waterfall. By doing this is to retrain your mind that the sound affecting you poses no threat. Make it a Game: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a challenge with the person. For example, if someone is crunching loudly try copying the noise. By mimicking, instead of feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an willing part. And the challenge should help redirect your focus and make you slightly more tolerant. Develop a Narrative: One more method is to try to invent a reason about why the person creating the sound is doing it. Imagine if someone was making a nasal sound, it could be that they're not at their best or could be emotional. By doing this is changing the meaning of the sound. While the noise doesn't change, your understanding of it shifts from being annoying, to feeling a slightly more compassionate about it.