The Holiday Season Transforms Into a Terrifying Experience for Those with Misophonia.
Lottie anticipates spending time with her relatives during the festive period, but says a primary method she'll manage to get through it is by wearing her earplugs - notably for Christmas dinner.
For the 23-year-old, Christmas is a especially challenging period as the noises of other people chewing, slurping and nose-blowing cause her intense distress.
"I experience this sensation of immediate anxiety, my every muscle will just tighten and it feels like I'm in danger, and I need to stop these triggers."
The individual has lived with sound sensitivity for several years and for her that makes the festive season "exceptionally stressful".
Misophonia is a decreased threshold to specific noises, especially noises produced by individuals.
The condition is widespread amongst adults. Experts found nearly 20% people experience it.
Typically it's noises connected to eating or drinking that cause distress, as well as things like crunching, 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 aware that I don't want to spoil the mood. It's like a constant struggle of sacrificing my own sanity to make sure everyone else is happy."
So it's easy to understand why the traditionally happy season can rapidly become a source of agony for those with the condition.
Triggers that may seem harmless, like someone drinking champagne, opening presents, or enjoying festive food can trigger a powerful reaction that can even cause them avoiding social settings altogether.
She, a 21-year-old student, who has struggled with misophonia since aged 10, says currently her plan is to use headphones to manage the meal. Typically, she would usually isolate herself in a separate space to escape problematic noises.
She notes her sensitivity is more pronounced around people she's most comfortable with, so Christmas is always "difficult".
"There is pressure to spend time with family, and I want to, but it's exhausting on all levels.
"I feel as if this uncontrollable anger comes over me, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel panicked and burst into tears and then fight-or-flight will activate.
"It can come across as if I'm being oversensitive and overreacting, but it's tough to describe without firsthand experience."
Three Ways to Cope
If it's an issue then there are various strategies you can try to cope the situation, as suggested by specialists.
- Picture an Alternative: Mental imagery is crucial. Work on connecting the specific noise bothering you with an unrelated image. For instance, try to picture someone's noisy drinking is just a sink draining water. This technique is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you isn't harmful.
- Use Humor: Introduce playfulness and make the irritating noise into a challenge involving the source. For example, if someone is crunching loudly have a go at copying the noise. Through participation, instead of feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an willing part. And the game aspect should help shift your attention and make you a little less affected.
- Develop a Narrative: A further strategy is to try to create a little story about why the person creating the sound is doing it. Imagine if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not feeling well or could be emotional. This approach is changing the meaning of the sound. Even though the noise remains identical, your reaction of it changes from being aggravating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate towards it.
