🔗 Share this article Yuletide Transforms Into a Living Hell for Those with Misophonia. Through experience, individuals discover strategies to cope with their condition. Lottie is looking forward to seeing her relatives over the holidays, but admits one of the only ways she'll endure is by wearing her hearing protection - especially during the main festive feast. For her, Christmas can be a especially challenging season as the auditory triggers of other people chewing, sipping loudly and nose-blowing trigger profound anxiety. "I get this sensation of sudden panic, my entire being will just tense up and it seems as if I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to manage these triggers." The individual has experienced sound sensitivity from a young age and for her that causes the holiday period "exceptionally stressful". Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to specific noises, notably sounds made by other people. It is prevalent across the population. Researchers found a significant portion of people suffer from it. Often it's sounds linked to mouth, throat or facial movements that trigger a reaction, along with things like chewing, heavy breathing, and foot tapping. A Source of Dread She explains: "You encounter so many different triggering sounds at the holidays and that can be anxiety inducing and make you want to avoid it. "My relatives are understanding, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a really big battle of managing my symptoms to make sure everyone else is happy." So it's obvious why the most wonderful time of the year can quickly turn into a living nightmare for affected individuals. Triggers that may seem harmless, like someone drinking champagne, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or enjoying festive food can provoke a powerful reaction that can even lead to them skipping events entirely. Jenna is considering coping mechanisms to help her during the holiday dinner. Jenna, a young adult, who has struggled with sound sensitivity from childhood, says the approach she intends to use is to listen to music to manage the meal. Usually, she would usually isolate herself in a different room to avoid problematic noises. She notes her sensitivity is more pronounced around people she's most comfortable with, so the holidays is always "challenging". "There is pressure to be around loved ones, and I want to, but it's exhausting on all levels. "The sensation is this sudden rage comes over me, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel anxious and burst into tears and then the stress response will take over. "To others it appears as if I'm being unreasonable and dramatic, but it's hard to explain without firsthand experience." Three Ways to Handle It If it's an issue then there are various strategies you can attempt to manage the situation, based on advice from experts. Imagine Something Else: Creative thinking is crucial. Try to associate the particular sound bothering you with a neutral concept. For instance, try to picture someone's noisy drinking is just a gentle stream. The goal is to retrain your mind that the sound affecting you isn't harmful. Make it a Game: Introduce playfulness and turn the annoying sound into a challenge with the person. For instance, if someone is eating noisily try mimicking the sound. By mimicking, instead of feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an engaged person. And the competition element should help redirect your focus and make you a little less affected. Craft a Story: One more method is to try to invent a reason about why the person making the noise is doing it. Imagine if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not in good health or maybe they're upset. By doing this is changing the meaning of the sound. Even though the noise stays the same, your reaction of it shifts from being irritating, to feeling a little more neutral towards it.
Through experience, individuals discover strategies to cope with their condition. Lottie is looking forward to seeing her relatives over the holidays, but admits one of the only ways she'll endure is by wearing her hearing protection - especially during the main festive feast. For her, Christmas can be a especially challenging season as the auditory triggers of other people chewing, sipping loudly and nose-blowing trigger profound anxiety. "I get this sensation of sudden panic, my entire being will just tense up and it seems as if I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to manage these triggers." The individual has experienced sound sensitivity from a young age and for her that causes the holiday period "exceptionally stressful". Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to specific noises, notably sounds made by other people. It is prevalent across the population. Researchers found a significant portion of people suffer from it. Often it's sounds linked to mouth, throat or facial movements that trigger a reaction, along with things like chewing, heavy breathing, and foot tapping. A Source of Dread She explains: "You encounter so many different triggering sounds at the holidays and that can be anxiety inducing and make you want to avoid it. "My relatives are understanding, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a really big battle of managing my symptoms to make sure everyone else is happy." So it's obvious why the most wonderful time of the year can quickly turn into a living nightmare for affected individuals. Triggers that may seem harmless, like someone drinking champagne, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or enjoying festive food can provoke a powerful reaction that can even lead to them skipping events entirely. Jenna is considering coping mechanisms to help her during the holiday dinner. Jenna, a young adult, who has struggled with sound sensitivity from childhood, says the approach she intends to use is to listen to music to manage the meal. Usually, she would usually isolate herself in a different room to avoid problematic noises. She notes her sensitivity is more pronounced around people she's most comfortable with, so the holidays is always "challenging". "There is pressure to be around loved ones, and I want to, but it's exhausting on all levels. "The sensation is this sudden rage comes over me, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel anxious and burst into tears and then the stress response will take over. "To others it appears as if I'm being unreasonable and dramatic, but it's hard to explain without firsthand experience." Three Ways to Handle It If it's an issue then there are various strategies you can attempt to manage the situation, based on advice from experts. Imagine Something Else: Creative thinking is crucial. Try to associate the particular sound bothering you with a neutral concept. For instance, try to picture someone's noisy drinking is just a gentle stream. The goal is to retrain your mind that the sound affecting you isn't harmful. Make it a Game: Introduce playfulness and turn the annoying sound into a challenge with the person. For instance, if someone is eating noisily try mimicking the sound. By mimicking, instead of feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an engaged person. And the competition element should help redirect your focus and make you a little less affected. Craft a Story: One more method is to try to invent a reason about why the person making the noise is doing it. Imagine if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not in good health or maybe they're upset. By doing this is changing the meaning of the sound. Even though the noise stays the same, your reaction of it shifts from being irritating, to feeling a little more neutral towards it.