🔗 Share this article Christmas Transforms Into a Nightmare for Misophonia Sufferers. Through experience, people develop strategies to cope with their misophonia. One young woman anticipates spending time with her loved ones during the festive period, but says a key strategy she'll manage to get through it is by wearing her earplugs - particularly at Christmas dinner. In her case, Christmas is a especially challenging period as the sounds of people eating, slurping and breathing heavily make her feel extremely uncomfortable. "There's this wave of immediate anxiety, my every muscle will just tense up and it as though I'm in danger, and I need to somehow control these triggers." She has suffered from misophonia for several years and for her that causes the Christmas time "exceptionally stressful". Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to specific noises, especially noises coming from other people. It is prevalent amongst adults. Researchers reported almost one in five people experience it. Often it's noises connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that trigger a reaction, along with examples such as chewing, breathing, and repetitive finger tapping. Triggering Stress The sufferer notes: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises at Christmas and that can be stressful and make you fear it. "Those close to me are understanding, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to spoil the mood. It's like a internal conflict of enduring my distress to make sure the event goes smoothly." So it's clear why the supposedly joyous season can transform into a source of agony for sufferers. Sounds that may be considered normal, like someone drinking champagne, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can provoke a powerful reaction that can even result in them withdrawing from gatherings. Jenna is considering ways to manage Christmas lunch. Jenna, a university student, who has dealt with sound sensitivity since aged 10, states her strategy is to put her earphones in to get through dinner. Typically, she would often retreat in a separate space to avoid problematic noises. She explains her sensitivity is worse around people she's most comfortable with, so Christmas is always "hard". "People assume you to spend time with family, and I desire to, but it's exhausting on all levels. "It's like this sudden rage washes over me, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel anxious and immediately start crying and then panic will activate. "To others it appears as if I'm being oversensitive and melodramatic, but it's tough to describe if you haven't felt it." A Few Techniques to Manage If it's an issue then there are a few methods you can try to cope the situation, as suggested by specialists. Visualise Something Else: Mental imagery is essential. Work on connecting the specific noise affecting you with something completely different. For instance, try to picture someone's noisy drinking is just a sink draining water. By doing this is to teach your brain that the sound triggering you poses no threat. Try a Competition: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a challenge with the person. For instance, if someone is crunching loudly try joining in. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an active participant. And the game aspect should help redirect your focus and make you a little less affected. Create a Scenario: A further strategy is to try to invent a reason about why the person creating the sound is having to make that sound. Imagine if someone was sniffing, maybe they are not in good health or maybe they're upset. This approach is re-framing the context of the sound. Although the sound remains identical, your interpretation of it moves from being annoying, to feeling a bit more accepting towards it.
Through experience, people develop strategies to cope with their misophonia. One young woman anticipates spending time with her loved ones during the festive period, but says a key strategy she'll manage to get through it is by wearing her earplugs - particularly at Christmas dinner. In her case, Christmas is a especially challenging period as the sounds of people eating, slurping and breathing heavily make her feel extremely uncomfortable. "There's this wave of immediate anxiety, my every muscle will just tense up and it as though I'm in danger, and I need to somehow control these triggers." She has suffered from misophonia for several years and for her that causes the Christmas time "exceptionally stressful". Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to specific noises, especially noises coming from other people. It is prevalent amongst adults. Researchers reported almost one in five people experience it. Often it's noises connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that trigger a reaction, along with examples such as chewing, breathing, and repetitive finger tapping. Triggering Stress The sufferer notes: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises at Christmas and that can be stressful and make you fear it. "Those close to me are understanding, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to spoil the mood. It's like a internal conflict of enduring my distress to make sure the event goes smoothly." So it's clear why the supposedly joyous season can transform into a source of agony for sufferers. Sounds that may be considered normal, like someone drinking champagne, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can provoke a powerful reaction that can even result in them withdrawing from gatherings. Jenna is considering ways to manage Christmas lunch. Jenna, a university student, who has dealt with sound sensitivity since aged 10, states her strategy is to put her earphones in to get through dinner. Typically, she would often retreat in a separate space to avoid problematic noises. She explains her sensitivity is worse around people she's most comfortable with, so Christmas is always "hard". "People assume you to spend time with family, and I desire to, but it's exhausting on all levels. "It's like this sudden rage washes over me, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel anxious and immediately start crying and then panic will activate. "To others it appears as if I'm being oversensitive and melodramatic, but it's tough to describe if you haven't felt it." A Few Techniques to Manage If it's an issue then there are a few methods you can try to cope the situation, as suggested by specialists. Visualise Something Else: Mental imagery is essential. Work on connecting the specific noise affecting you with something completely different. For instance, try to picture someone's noisy drinking is just a sink draining water. By doing this is to teach your brain that the sound triggering you poses no threat. Try a Competition: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a challenge with the person. For instance, if someone is crunching loudly try joining in. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an active participant. And the game aspect should help redirect your focus and make you a little less affected. Create a Scenario: A further strategy is to try to invent a reason about why the person creating the sound is having to make that sound. Imagine if someone was sniffing, maybe they are not in good health or maybe they're upset. This approach is re-framing the context of the sound. Although the sound remains identical, your interpretation of it moves from being annoying, to feeling a bit more accepting towards it.