π Share this article The Holiday Season Often Proves to Be a Nightmare for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity. Through experience, sufferers discover strategies to try to better manage their misophonia. A 23-year-old is looking forward to spending time with her loved ones during the festive period, but notes a primary method she'll manage to get through it is by relying on her noise-cancelling devices - especially during Christmas dinner. For her, the holidays often feels like a particularly difficult season as the noises of other people chewing, slurping and sniffling make her feel intense distress. "There's this wave of sudden panic, my every muscle will just tighten and it seems as if I'm in peril, and I need to somehow control these triggers." She has lived with sound sensitivity for several years and for her that causes the holiday period "incredibly overwhelming". Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to particular auditory triggers, especially noises made by individuals. It's surprisingly common amongst adults. A study reported a significant portion of people suffer from it. Frequently it's noises connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that trigger a reaction, including things like chewing, heavy breathing, and pen clicking. A Source of Dread The sufferer notes: "I face so many various auditory triggers at Christmas and that can be daunting and make you dread 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 enduring my distress to guarantee everyone else is happy." So it's clear why the traditionally happy time of the year can transform into a living nightmare for affected individuals. Noises that may be considered normal, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, opening presents, or enjoying festive food can cause a visceral feeling that can even cause them skipping events entirely. A 21-year-old student is considering ways to help her during the family meal. The student, a young adult, who has dealt with sound sensitivity since aged 10, explains currently her plan is to put her earphones in to manage the meal. Typically, she would usually isolate herself in a separate space to avoid problematic noises. She explains her sensitivity is worse around people she's most comfortable with, so Christmas is always "hard". "There is pressure to be around family, and I want to, but it's draining. "The sensation is this intense irritation comes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel anxious and burst into tears and then panic will take over. "It can come across as if I'm being oversensitive and dramatic, but it's tough to describe without firsthand experience." Three Ways to Manage If you suffer then there are a few methods you can use to handle the situation, as suggested by specialists. Visualise a Different Scenario: Creative thinking is essential. Work on connecting the particular sound bothering you with a neutral concept. So for example, try to envision someone's noisy drinking is just a waterfall. By doing this is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you poses no threat. Make it a Game: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a game involving the source. For instance, if someone is crunching loudly try joining in. Through participation, instead of feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an engaged person. And the challenge should help distract your brain and make you a little less affected. Craft a Story: A further strategy is to try to fabricate an explanation about why the person creating the sound is behaving that way. So if someone was sniffing, perhaps they're not feeling well or maybe they're upset. By doing this is changing the meaning of the sound. Even though the noise stays the same, your understanding of it shifts from being aggravating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate about it.
Through experience, sufferers discover strategies to try to better manage their misophonia. A 23-year-old is looking forward to spending time with her loved ones during the festive period, but notes a primary method she'll manage to get through it is by relying on her noise-cancelling devices - especially during Christmas dinner. For her, the holidays often feels like a particularly difficult season as the noises of other people chewing, slurping and sniffling make her feel intense distress. "There's this wave of sudden panic, my every muscle will just tighten and it seems as if I'm in peril, and I need to somehow control these triggers." She has lived with sound sensitivity for several years and for her that causes the holiday period "incredibly overwhelming". Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to particular auditory triggers, especially noises made by individuals. It's surprisingly common amongst adults. A study reported a significant portion of people suffer from it. Frequently it's noises connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that trigger a reaction, including things like chewing, heavy breathing, and pen clicking. A Source of Dread The sufferer notes: "I face so many various auditory triggers at Christmas and that can be daunting and make you dread 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 enduring my distress to guarantee everyone else is happy." So it's clear why the traditionally happy time of the year can transform into a living nightmare for affected individuals. Noises that may be considered normal, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, opening presents, or enjoying festive food can cause a visceral feeling that can even cause them skipping events entirely. A 21-year-old student is considering ways to help her during the family meal. The student, a young adult, who has dealt with sound sensitivity since aged 10, explains currently her plan is to put her earphones in to manage the meal. Typically, she would usually isolate herself in a separate space to avoid problematic noises. She explains her sensitivity is worse around people she's most comfortable with, so Christmas is always "hard". "There is pressure to be around family, and I want to, but it's draining. "The sensation is this intense irritation comes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel anxious and burst into tears and then panic will take over. "It can come across as if I'm being oversensitive and dramatic, but it's tough to describe without firsthand experience." Three Ways to Manage If you suffer then there are a few methods you can use to handle the situation, as suggested by specialists. Visualise a Different Scenario: Creative thinking is essential. Work on connecting the particular sound bothering you with a neutral concept. So for example, try to envision someone's noisy drinking is just a waterfall. By doing this is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you poses no threat. Make it a Game: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a game involving the source. For instance, if someone is crunching loudly try joining in. Through participation, instead of feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an engaged person. And the challenge should help distract your brain and make you a little less affected. Craft a Story: A further strategy is to try to fabricate an explanation about why the person creating the sound is behaving that way. So if someone was sniffing, perhaps they're not feeling well or maybe they're upset. By doing this is changing the meaning of the sound. Even though the noise stays the same, your understanding of it shifts from being aggravating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate about it.