🔗 Share this article Christmas Often Proves to Be a Living Hell for Misophonia Sufferers. Through experience, people have found ways to try to better manage their condition. A 23-year-old hopes for being with her relatives over the holidays, but says a primary method she'll manage to get through it is by wearing her noise-cancelling devices - particularly at the holiday meal. For the 23-year-old, this time of year can be a particularly difficult period as the auditory triggers of other people chewing, drinking noisily and nose-blowing cause her extremely uncomfortable. "There's this wave of instant dread, my every muscle will just tighten and it feels like I'm in peril, and I need to manage these triggers." She has lived with this condition since she was 16 and for her that causes the festive season "exceptionally stressful". Misophonia is a decreased threshold to particular auditory triggers, especially noises produced by those around you. It's surprisingly common in the UK. Experts discovered almost one in five people are affected by it. Typically it's noises linked to eating or drinking that trigger a reaction, along with examples such as crunching, breathing, and pen clicking. Triggering Stress Lottie says: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises at Christmas and that can be stressful and make you want to avoid it. "My family are supportive, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a really big battle of managing my symptoms to make sure everyone else is happy." So it's easy to understand why the supposedly joyous season can rapidly become a living nightmare for those with the condition. Triggers that may appear innocuous, like someone sipping a beverage, unwrapping gifts, or eating the holiday meal can trigger a strong emotional response that can even result in them avoiding social settings altogether. Another individual is already thinking about strategies to manage the holiday dinner. She, a young adult, who has dealt with sound sensitivity since aged 10, says her strategy is to use headphones to manage the meal. Usually, she would usually isolate herself in a quiet area to minimize problematic noises. She explains her condition is worse around people she's closest to, so the holidays is always "challenging". "There is pressure to be around family, and I desire to, but it's physically and mentally challenging. "I feel as if this sudden rage comes over me, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel stressed and begin to weep and then the stress response will take over. "It can come across as if I'm being unreasonable and overreacting, but it's tough to describe if you haven't felt it." A Few Techniques to Manage If you suffer then there are some different techniques you can attempt to manage the situation, according to clinical psychologists. Picture Something Else: Mental imagery is essential. Work on connecting the particular sound bothering you with a neutral concept. For instance, try to envision someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. The goal is to help your brain learn that the sound triggering you poses no threat. Make it a Game: Introduce playfulness and turn the annoying sound into a competition involving the source. For example, if someone is eating noisily have a go at joining in. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an willing part. And the challenge should help redirect your focus and make you a little less affected. Create a Scenario: Another technique is to try to invent a reason about why the person making the noise is doing it. For example if someone was making a nasal sound, perhaps they're not feeling well or are troubled. By doing this is changing the meaning of the sound. Even though the sound doesn't change, your understanding of it shifts from being annoying, to feeling a little more neutral towards it.
Through experience, people have found ways to try to better manage their condition. A 23-year-old hopes for being with her relatives over the holidays, but says a primary method she'll manage to get through it is by wearing her noise-cancelling devices - particularly at the holiday meal. For the 23-year-old, this time of year can be a particularly difficult period as the auditory triggers of other people chewing, drinking noisily and nose-blowing cause her extremely uncomfortable. "There's this wave of instant dread, my every muscle will just tighten and it feels like I'm in peril, and I need to manage these triggers." She has lived with this condition since she was 16 and for her that causes the festive season "exceptionally stressful". Misophonia is a decreased threshold to particular auditory triggers, especially noises produced by those around you. It's surprisingly common in the UK. Experts discovered almost one in five people are affected by it. Typically it's noises linked to eating or drinking that trigger a reaction, along with examples such as crunching, breathing, and pen clicking. Triggering Stress Lottie says: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises at Christmas and that can be stressful and make you want to avoid it. "My family are supportive, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a really big battle of managing my symptoms to make sure everyone else is happy." So it's easy to understand why the supposedly joyous season can rapidly become a living nightmare for those with the condition. Triggers that may appear innocuous, like someone sipping a beverage, unwrapping gifts, or eating the holiday meal can trigger a strong emotional response that can even result in them avoiding social settings altogether. Another individual is already thinking about strategies to manage the holiday dinner. She, a young adult, who has dealt with sound sensitivity since aged 10, says her strategy is to use headphones to manage the meal. Usually, she would usually isolate herself in a quiet area to minimize problematic noises. She explains her condition is worse around people she's closest to, so the holidays is always "challenging". "There is pressure to be around family, and I desire to, but it's physically and mentally challenging. "I feel as if this sudden rage comes over me, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel stressed and begin to weep and then the stress response will take over. "It can come across as if I'm being unreasonable and overreacting, but it's tough to describe if you haven't felt it." A Few Techniques to Manage If you suffer then there are some different techniques you can attempt to manage the situation, according to clinical psychologists. Picture Something Else: Mental imagery is essential. Work on connecting the particular sound bothering you with a neutral concept. For instance, try to envision someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. The goal is to help your brain learn that the sound triggering you poses no threat. Make it a Game: Introduce playfulness and turn the annoying sound into a competition involving the source. For example, if someone is eating noisily have a go at joining in. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an willing part. And the challenge should help redirect your focus and make you a little less affected. Create a Scenario: Another technique is to try to invent a reason about why the person making the noise is doing it. For example if someone was making a nasal sound, perhaps they're not feeling well or are troubled. By doing this is changing the meaning of the sound. Even though the sound doesn't change, your understanding of it shifts from being annoying, to feeling a little more neutral towards it.