Yuletide Often Proves to Be a Terrifying Experience for Those with Misophonia.
Lottie is looking forward to seeing her relatives during the festive period, but admits one of the only ways she'll endure is by relying on her hearing protection - especially during the main festive feast.
For the 23-year-old, this time of year is a especially challenging season as the sounds of family members munching, sipping loudly and breathing heavily make her feel profound anxiety.
"I experience this sensation of instant dread, my entire being will just freeze and it feels like I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to manage these noises."
She has lived with misophonia for several years and for her that renders the Christmas time "incredibly overwhelming".
Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to specific noises, notably sounds coming from other people.
The condition is widespread in the UK. Researchers discovered almost one in five people are affected by it.
Frequently it's noises linked to eating or drinking that lead to discomfort, along with examples such as crunching, heavy breathing, and pen clicking.
Triggering Stress
She explains: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises at the holidays and that can be stressful and make you fear it.
"My family are understanding, but I'm very aware that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a constant struggle of managing my symptoms to guarantee everyone else is happy."
So it's obvious why the traditionally happy period can rapidly become a living nightmare for those with the condition.
Triggers that may be considered normal, like someone drinking champagne, opening presents, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can cause a visceral feeling that can even cause them withdrawing from gatherings.
The student, a university student, who has dealt with misophonia for over a decade, explains currently her plan is to listen to music to manage the meal. Usually, she would usually isolate herself in a different room to escape triggering sounds.
She says her misophonia is more pronounced around people she's closest to, so Christmas is always "hard".
"People assume you to socialize with family, and I desire to, but it's exhausting on all levels.
"It's like this sudden rage comes over me, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel stressed and begin to weep and then panic will take over.
"It can come across as if I'm being difficult and overreacting, but it's difficult to convey unless you've experienced it."
A Few Techniques to Manage
For those affected then there are a few methods you can try to cope the situation, according to clinical psychologists.
- Visualise Something Else: Creative thinking is crucial. Attempt to link the particular sound affecting you with a neutral concept. As an illustration, try to imagine someone's noisy drinking is just a sink draining water. The goal is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you poses no threat.
- Use Humor: Have a bit of fun and make the irritating noise into a competition with the person. For instance, if someone is eating noisily attempt copying the noise. Through participation, rather than feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an engaged person. And the challenge should help shift your attention and make you somewhat less sensitive.
- Create a Scenario: Another technique is to try to create a little story about the reason someone creating the sound is behaving that way. For example if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not at their best or maybe they're upset. This approach is altering the perception of the sound. While the noise doesn't change, your understanding of it changes from being aggravating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate about it.
