Christmas Transforms Into a Living Hell for Those with Misophonia.

A 23-year-old anticipates being with her family during the festive period, but notes a key strategy she'll cope is by using her earplugs - particularly at the holiday meal.

For her, the holidays often feels like a notably tough season as the sounds of family members munching, slurping and nose-blowing trigger extremely uncomfortable.

"I experience this sensation of immediate anxiety, my every muscle will just tense up and it as though I'm in danger, and I need to stop these sounds."

Lottie has lived with misophonia for several years and for her that renders the festive season "incredibly overwhelming".

Misophonia is a decreased threshold to certain sounds, especially noises made by individuals.

It's surprisingly common in the UK. Researchers found nearly 20% people experience it.

Often it's noises connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that trigger a reaction, along with examples such as crunching, breathing, and pen clicking.

A Source of Dread

Lottie says: "You encounter so many various auditory triggers at the holidays and that can be daunting and make you want to avoid it.

"My family are understanding, but I'm very aware that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a really big battle of sacrificing my own sanity to ensure others enjoy themselves."

So it's clear why the supposedly joyous season can quickly turn into a source of agony for affected individuals.

Triggers that may appear innocuous, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, unwrapping gifts, or eating the holiday meal can trigger a strong emotional response that can even cause them withdrawing from gatherings.

She, a 21-year-old student, who has experienced sound sensitivity for over a decade, explains the approach she intends to use is to use headphones to manage the meal. On any other day, she would frequently go in a separate space to avoid problematic noises.

She explains her condition is more intense around people she's closest to, so the holidays is always "difficult".

"There's an expectation to spend time with loved ones, and I want to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.

"The sensation is this intense irritation takes hold, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel stressed and immediately start crying and then the stress response will activate.

"It can come across as if I'm being unreasonable and melodramatic, but it's hard to explain unless you've experienced it."

Several Strategies to Handle It

If it's an issue then there are a few methods you can use to handle the situation, as suggested by specialists.

1. Imagine a Different Scenario: Mental imagery is essential. Work on connecting the triggering sound causing distress with a neutral concept. For instance, try to envision someone's noisy drinking is just a sink draining water. The goal is to teach your brain that the sound affecting you is neutral.
2. Try a Competition: Use lightheartedness and turn the annoying sound into a challenge involving the source. As an example, if someone is eating noisily try joining in. By mimicking, rather than feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an willing part. And the challenge should help shift your attention and make you slightly more tolerant.
3. Develop a Narrative: A further strategy is to try to invent a reason about the reason someone making the noise is doing it. So if someone was sniffing, maybe they are not in good health or are troubled. This approach is altering the perception of the sound. While the noise remains identical, your reaction of it moves from being annoying, to feeling a bit more accepting about it.