🔗 Share this article Yuletide Transforms Into a Living Hell for Those with Misophonia. With time, people discover strategies to handle their misophonia. One young woman hopes for spending time with her loved ones during the festive period, but says a primary method she'll endure is by relying on her hearing protection - particularly at Christmas dinner. For her, the holidays often feels like a especially challenging time as the sounds of other people chewing, drinking noisily and nose-blowing cause her extremely uncomfortable. "I experience this feeling of instant dread, my every muscle will just tighten and it as though I'm in peril, and I need to stop these noises." She has suffered from this condition since she was 16 and for her that causes the Christmas time "deeply taxing". Misophonia is a decreased threshold to particular auditory triggers, especially noises made by those around you. It's surprisingly common across the population. A study reported nearly 20% people suffer from it. Often it's sounds linked to eating or drinking that cause distress, as well as things like chewing, heavy breathing, and repetitive finger tapping. Triggering Stress She explains: "I face so many different triggering sounds at Christmas and that can be daunting and make you fear it. "My relatives are supportive, but I'm very aware that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of managing my symptoms to ensure others enjoy themselves." So it's obvious why the most wonderful period can transform into a stressful ordeal for affected individuals. Triggers that may appear innocuous, like someone drinking champagne, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can cause a powerful reaction that can even result in them withdrawing from gatherings. A 21-year-old student is considering coping mechanisms to get her through the holiday dinner. The student, a 21-year-old student, who has dealt with misophonia from childhood, explains currently her plan is to listen to music to get through dinner. Usually, she would frequently go in a different room to minimize triggering sounds. She says her condition is more pronounced around people she's most familiar with, so Christmas is always "hard". "There is pressure to be around 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 embarrassing, or I'll feel panicked and burst into tears and then panic will take over. "To others it appears as if I'm being unreasonable and dramatic, but it's tough to describe if you haven't felt it." Three Ways to Manage If it's an issue then there are a few methods you can attempt to manage the situation, as suggested by experts. Visualise a Different Scenario: Creative thinking is essential. Try to associate the particular sound causing distress with an unrelated image. So for example, try to imagine someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. By doing this is to help your brain learn that the sound affecting you is neutral. Use Humor: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a challenge with the culprit. For instance, if someone is eating noisily attempt copying the noise. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an willing part. And the game aspect should help redirect your focus and make you somewhat less sensitive. Craft a Story: Another technique is to try to invent a reason about the reason someone making the noise is doing it. So if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not feeling well or could be emotional. By doing this is re-framing the context of the sound. Even though the sound doesn't change, your interpretation of it shifts from being irritating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate towards it.
With time, people discover strategies to handle their misophonia. One young woman hopes for spending time with her loved ones during the festive period, but says a primary method she'll endure is by relying on her hearing protection - particularly at Christmas dinner. For her, the holidays often feels like a especially challenging time as the sounds of other people chewing, drinking noisily and nose-blowing cause her extremely uncomfortable. "I experience this feeling of instant dread, my every muscle will just tighten and it as though I'm in peril, and I need to stop these noises." She has suffered from this condition since she was 16 and for her that causes the Christmas time "deeply taxing". Misophonia is a decreased threshold to particular auditory triggers, especially noises made by those around you. It's surprisingly common across the population. A study reported nearly 20% people suffer from it. Often it's sounds linked to eating or drinking that cause distress, as well as things like chewing, heavy breathing, and repetitive finger tapping. Triggering Stress She explains: "I face so many different triggering sounds at Christmas and that can be daunting and make you fear it. "My relatives are supportive, but I'm very aware that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of managing my symptoms to ensure others enjoy themselves." So it's obvious why the most wonderful period can transform into a stressful ordeal for affected individuals. Triggers that may appear innocuous, like someone drinking champagne, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can cause a powerful reaction that can even result in them withdrawing from gatherings. A 21-year-old student is considering coping mechanisms to get her through the holiday dinner. The student, a 21-year-old student, who has dealt with misophonia from childhood, explains currently her plan is to listen to music to get through dinner. Usually, she would frequently go in a different room to minimize triggering sounds. She says her condition is more pronounced around people she's most familiar with, so Christmas is always "hard". "There is pressure to be around 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 embarrassing, or I'll feel panicked and burst into tears and then panic will take over. "To others it appears as if I'm being unreasonable and dramatic, but it's tough to describe if you haven't felt it." Three Ways to Manage If it's an issue then there are a few methods you can attempt to manage the situation, as suggested by experts. Visualise a Different Scenario: Creative thinking is essential. Try to associate the particular sound causing distress with an unrelated image. So for example, try to imagine someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. By doing this is to help your brain learn that the sound affecting you is neutral. Use Humor: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a challenge with the culprit. For instance, if someone is eating noisily attempt copying the noise. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an willing part. And the game aspect should help redirect your focus and make you somewhat less sensitive. Craft a Story: Another technique is to try to invent a reason about the reason someone making the noise is doing it. So if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not feeling well or could be emotional. By doing this is re-framing the context of the sound. Even though the sound doesn't change, your interpretation of it shifts from being irritating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate towards it.