🔗 Share this article Yuletide Can Be a Living Hell for Those with Misophonia. With time, people have found ways to try to better manage their misophonia. One young woman anticipates seeing her relatives this Christmas, but notes one of the only ways she'll manage to get through it is by relying on her earplugs - especially during the holiday meal. For her, Christmas is a notably tough period as the auditory triggers of other people chewing, sipping loudly and sniffling make her feel extremely uncomfortable. "I experience this sensation of sudden panic, my whole body will just freeze and it seems as if I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to somehow control these noises." Lottie has lived with sound sensitivity from a young age and for her that causes the Christmas time "exceptionally stressful". Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to specific noises, notably sounds produced by those around you. It is prevalent across the population. A study found nearly 20% people are affected by it. Frequently it's sounds linked to bodily functions that lead to discomfort, including examples such as crunching, heavy breathing, and pen clicking. 'Anxiety Inducing' Lottie says: "You encounter so many different triggering sounds at the holidays and that can be daunting and make you dread it. "My family are aware, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to upset others. It's like a constant struggle of enduring my distress to guarantee everyone else is happy." So it's clear why the most wonderful season can transform into a source of agony for sufferers. Sounds that may appear innocuous, like someone sipping a beverage, opening presents, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can provoke a strong emotional response that can even lead to them skipping events entirely. Jenna is planning strategies to manage the family meal. The student, a young adult, who has dealt with misophonia from childhood, explains the approach she intends to use is to put her earphones in to get through dinner. On any other day, she would frequently go in a quiet area to escape triggering sounds. She says her condition is worse around people she's most familiar with, so the holidays is always "hard". "People assume you to spend time with family, and I want to, but it's physically and mentally challenging. "The sensation is this sudden rage takes hold, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel panicked and burst into tears and then the stress response will take over. "It can come across as if I'm being difficult and dramatic, but it's difficult to convey without firsthand experience." Several Strategies to Handle It If it's an issue then there are some different techniques you can use to handle the situation, based on advice from clinical psychologists. Imagine Something Else: Creative thinking is essential. Work on connecting the particular sound affecting you with something completely different. As an illustration, try to imagine someone's noisy drinking is just a gentle stream. By doing this is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you poses no threat. Use Humor: Have a bit of fun and turn the annoying sound into a challenge with the person. As an example, if someone is eating noisily have a go at mimicking the sound. By mimicking, rather than feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an active participant. And the competition element should help distract your brain and make you slightly more tolerant. Develop a Narrative: One more method is to try to fabricate an explanation about why the person creating the sound is doing it. Imagine if someone was making a nasal sound, perhaps they're not in good health or could be emotional. By doing this is altering the perception of the sound. While the sound stays the same, your interpretation of it changes from being aggravating, to feeling a bit more accepting towards it.
With time, people have found ways to try to better manage their misophonia. One young woman anticipates seeing her relatives this Christmas, but notes one of the only ways she'll manage to get through it is by relying on her earplugs - especially during the holiday meal. For her, Christmas is a notably tough period as the auditory triggers of other people chewing, sipping loudly and sniffling make her feel extremely uncomfortable. "I experience this sensation of sudden panic, my whole body will just freeze and it seems as if I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to somehow control these noises." Lottie has lived with sound sensitivity from a young age and for her that causes the Christmas time "exceptionally stressful". Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to specific noises, notably sounds produced by those around you. It is prevalent across the population. A study found nearly 20% people are affected by it. Frequently it's sounds linked to bodily functions that lead to discomfort, including examples such as crunching, heavy breathing, and pen clicking. 'Anxiety Inducing' Lottie says: "You encounter so many different triggering sounds at the holidays and that can be daunting and make you dread it. "My family are aware, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to upset others. It's like a constant struggle of enduring my distress to guarantee everyone else is happy." So it's clear why the most wonderful season can transform into a source of agony for sufferers. Sounds that may appear innocuous, like someone sipping a beverage, opening presents, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can provoke a strong emotional response that can even lead to them skipping events entirely. Jenna is planning strategies to manage the family meal. The student, a young adult, who has dealt with misophonia from childhood, explains the approach she intends to use is to put her earphones in to get through dinner. On any other day, she would frequently go in a quiet area to escape triggering sounds. She says her condition is worse around people she's most familiar with, so the holidays is always "hard". "People assume you to spend time with family, and I want to, but it's physically and mentally challenging. "The sensation is this sudden rage takes hold, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel panicked and burst into tears and then the stress response will take over. "It can come across as if I'm being difficult and dramatic, but it's difficult to convey without firsthand experience." Several Strategies to Handle It If it's an issue then there are some different techniques you can use to handle the situation, based on advice from clinical psychologists. Imagine Something Else: Creative thinking is essential. Work on connecting the particular sound affecting you with something completely different. As an illustration, try to imagine someone's noisy drinking is just a gentle stream. By doing this is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you poses no threat. Use Humor: Have a bit of fun and turn the annoying sound into a challenge with the person. As an example, if someone is eating noisily have a go at mimicking the sound. By mimicking, rather than feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an active participant. And the competition element should help distract your brain and make you slightly more tolerant. Develop a Narrative: One more method is to try to fabricate an explanation about why the person creating the sound is doing it. Imagine if someone was making a nasal sound, perhaps they're not in good health or could be emotional. By doing this is altering the perception of the sound. While the sound stays the same, your interpretation of it changes from being aggravating, to feeling a bit more accepting towards it.