🔗 Share this article Christmas Often Proves to Be a Nightmare for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity. Through experience, people have found ways to try to better manage their misophonia. One young woman anticipates seeing her family over the holidays, but notes a key strategy she'll endure is by using her hearing protection - notably for Christmas dinner. In her case, Christmas can be a notably tough period as the sounds of family members munching, slurping and breathing heavily cause her profound anxiety. "I experience this feeling of sudden panic, my whole body will just tense up and it as though I'm in peril, and I need to stop these sounds." Lottie has suffered from misophonia for several years and for her that causes the Christmas time "deeply taxing". Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to specific noises, particularly those made by those around you. It's surprisingly common amongst adults. Researchers found nearly 20% people are affected by it. Often it's noises connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that cause distress, including things like crunching, breathing, and pen clicking. Triggering Stress She explains: "There are so many different triggering sounds at Christmas and that can be stressful and make you dread it. "Those close to me are aware, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of managing my symptoms to ensure the event goes smoothly." So it's obvious why the most wonderful period can quickly turn into a living nightmare for sufferers. Triggers that may be considered normal, like someone drinking champagne, unwrapping gifts, or enjoying festive food can provoke a visceral feeling that can even result in them withdrawing from gatherings. Another individual is considering ways to help her during the family meal. The student, a young adult, who has experienced sound sensitivity for over a decade, explains currently her plan is to put her earphones in to cope. Usually, she would frequently go in a quiet area to minimize triggering sounds. She notes her condition is more intense around people she's closest to, so Christmas is always "hard". "There's an expectation to spend time with loved ones, and I want to, but it's physically and mentally challenging. "I feel as if this uncontrollable anger comes over me, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel anxious and immediately start crying and then fight-or-flight will take over. "To others it appears as if I'm being unreasonable and melodramatic, but it's difficult to convey if you haven't felt it." A Few Techniques to Handle It For those affected then there are various strategies you can attempt to manage the situation, based on advice from specialists. Imagine a Different Scenario: Creative thinking is crucial. Try to associate the triggering sound bothering you with something completely different. For instance, try to picture someone's noisy drinking is just a sink draining water. The goal is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you is neutral. Use Humor: Have a bit of fun and turn the annoying sound into a game with the culprit. For example, if someone is crunching loudly have a go at mimicking the sound. Through participation, rather than 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. Craft a Story: A further strategy is to try to invent a reason about why the person creating the sound is having to make that sound. So if someone was making a nasal sound, maybe they are not feeling well or could be emotional. This approach is altering the perception of the sound. While the noise remains identical, your reaction of it changes from being annoying, to feeling a little more neutral about it.
Through experience, people have found ways to try to better manage their misophonia. One young woman anticipates seeing her family over the holidays, but notes a key strategy she'll endure is by using her hearing protection - notably for Christmas dinner. In her case, Christmas can be a notably tough period as the sounds of family members munching, slurping and breathing heavily cause her profound anxiety. "I experience this feeling of sudden panic, my whole body will just tense up and it as though I'm in peril, and I need to stop these sounds." Lottie has suffered from misophonia for several years and for her that causes the Christmas time "deeply taxing". Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to specific noises, particularly those made by those around you. It's surprisingly common amongst adults. Researchers found nearly 20% people are affected by it. Often it's noises connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that cause distress, including things like crunching, breathing, and pen clicking. Triggering Stress She explains: "There are so many different triggering sounds at Christmas and that can be stressful and make you dread it. "Those close to me are aware, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of managing my symptoms to ensure the event goes smoothly." So it's obvious why the most wonderful period can quickly turn into a living nightmare for sufferers. Triggers that may be considered normal, like someone drinking champagne, unwrapping gifts, or enjoying festive food can provoke a visceral feeling that can even result in them withdrawing from gatherings. Another individual is considering ways to help her during the family meal. The student, a young adult, who has experienced sound sensitivity for over a decade, explains currently her plan is to put her earphones in to cope. Usually, she would frequently go in a quiet area to minimize triggering sounds. She notes her condition is more intense around people she's closest to, so Christmas is always "hard". "There's an expectation to spend time with loved ones, and I want to, but it's physically and mentally challenging. "I feel as if this uncontrollable anger comes over me, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel anxious and immediately start crying and then fight-or-flight will take over. "To others it appears as if I'm being unreasonable and melodramatic, but it's difficult to convey if you haven't felt it." A Few Techniques to Handle It For those affected then there are various strategies you can attempt to manage the situation, based on advice from specialists. Imagine a Different Scenario: Creative thinking is crucial. Try to associate the triggering sound bothering you with something completely different. For instance, try to picture someone's noisy drinking is just a sink draining water. The goal is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you is neutral. Use Humor: Have a bit of fun and turn the annoying sound into a game with the culprit. For example, if someone is crunching loudly have a go at mimicking the sound. Through participation, rather than 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. Craft a Story: A further strategy is to try to invent a reason about why the person creating the sound is having to make that sound. So if someone was making a nasal sound, maybe they are not feeling well or could be emotional. This approach is altering the perception of the sound. While the noise remains identical, your reaction of it changes from being annoying, to feeling a little more neutral about it.