Yuletide Transforms Into a Nightmare for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.

A 23-year-old is looking forward to spending time with her family over the holidays, but notes a primary method she'll cope is by relying on her earplugs - particularly at the holiday meal.

In her case, Christmas can be a particularly difficult period as the auditory triggers of people eating, sipping loudly and breathing heavily make her feel intense distress.

"I experience this sensation of sudden panic, my entire being will just tighten and it seems as if I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to stop these triggers."

She has lived with this condition from a young age and for her that makes the holiday period "deeply taxing".

Misophonia is a decreased threshold to particular auditory triggers, notably sounds made by other people.

It's surprisingly common amongst adults. A study reported a significant portion of people suffer from it.

Often it's noises connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that trigger a reaction, including things like crunching, breathing, and foot tapping.

'Anxiety Inducing'

The sufferer notes: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises at Christmas and that can be anxiety inducing and make you want to avoid it.

"My relatives are understanding, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to upset others. It's like a constant struggle of sacrificing my own sanity to ensure others enjoy themselves."

So it's easy to understand why the traditionally happy period can rapidly become a stressful ordeal for sufferers.

Sounds that may seem harmless, like someone drinking champagne, unwrapping gifts, or enjoying festive food can provoke a visceral feeling that can even lead to them avoiding social settings altogether.

Jenna, a university student, who has dealt with misophonia since aged 10, states her strategy is to put her earphones in to manage the meal. Usually, she would often retreat in a separate space to minimize problematic noises.

She says her misophonia is worse around people she's most familiar with, so the holidays is always "challenging".

"There is pressure to spend time with loved ones, and I desire to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.

"It's like this uncontrollable anger comes over me, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel stressed and immediately start crying and then fight-or-flight will activate.

"It can come across as if I'm being oversensitive and melodramatic, but it's difficult to convey unless you've experienced it."

Three Ways to Cope

If you suffer then there are some different techniques you can attempt to manage the situation, as suggested by clinical psychologists.

1. Imagine an Alternative: Creative thinking is essential. Work on connecting the specific noise affecting you with an unrelated image. So for example, try to envision someone's noisy drinking is just a sink draining water. By doing this is to teach your brain that the sound triggering you is neutral.
2. Try a Competition: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a game with the culprit. For example, if someone is eating noisily attempt mimicking the sound. By mimicking, rather than feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an willing part. And the challenge should help redirect your focus and make you slightly more tolerant.
3. Develop a Narrative: A further strategy is to try to create a little story about the reason someone creating the sound is having to make that sound. So if someone was making a nasal sound, maybe they are not feeling well or maybe they're upset. This approach is changing the meaning of the sound. Although the sound doesn't change, your interpretation of it shifts from being irritating, to feeling a little more neutral about it.