The Holiday Season Often Proves to Be a Terrifying Experience for Misophonia Sufferers.

A 23-year-old is looking forward to spending time with her relatives over the holidays, but admits a key strategy she'll endure is by relying on her hearing protection - particularly at the holiday meal.

For her, Christmas often feels like a particularly difficult season as the auditory triggers of people eating, drinking noisily and nose-blowing cause her extremely uncomfortable.

"There's this sensation of immediate anxiety, my entire being will just tense up and it feels like I'm in peril, and I need to manage these triggers."

She has experienced this condition for several years and for her that makes the holiday period "incredibly overwhelming".

Misophonia is a decreased threshold to particular auditory triggers, notably sounds produced by individuals.

It's surprisingly common in the UK. A study reported a significant portion of people are affected by it.

Often it's sounds connected to eating or drinking that cause distress, along with things like crunching, heavy breathing, and repetitive finger tapping.

A Source of Dread

Lottie says: "I face so many different triggering sounds at Christmas and that can be anxiety inducing and make you want to avoid it.

"My family are aware, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of enduring my distress to ensure everyone else is happy."

So it's clear why the most wonderful time of the year can rapidly become a source of agony for those with the condition.

Noises that may seem harmless, like someone sipping a beverage, unwrapping gifts, or eating the holiday meal can cause a visceral feeling that can even cause them avoiding social settings altogether.

Jenna, a 21-year-old student, who has dealt with sound sensitivity for over a decade, states currently her plan is to put her earphones in to manage the meal. On any other day, she would usually isolate herself in a different room to escape problematic noises.

She explains her sensitivity is more intense around people she's most familiar with, so the holidays is always "challenging".

"People assume you to spend time with loved ones, and I want to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.

"It's like this sudden rage comes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel anxious and burst into tears and then the stress response will activate.

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

Three Ways to Manage

For those affected then there are various strategies you can attempt to manage the situation, based on advice from experts.

1. Visualise a Different Scenario: Mental imagery is key. Try to associate the specific noise causing distress with an unrelated image. As an illustration, try to imagine someone's noisy drinking is just a waterfall. The goal is to teach your brain that the sound triggering you poses no threat.
2. Try a Competition: Have a bit of fun and make the irritating noise into a game with the person. For instance, 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 active participant. And the game aspect should help shift your attention and make you slightly more tolerant.
3. Create a Scenario: Another technique is to try to create a little story about why the person making the noise is having to make that sound. For example if someone was sniffing, perhaps they're not in good health or could be emotional. The idea is re-framing the context of the sound. Even though the noise stays the same, your reaction of it moves from being irritating, to feeling a bit more accepting towards it.