Christmas Often Proves to Be a Nightmare for Misophonia Sufferers.

Lottie anticipates spending time with her relatives this Christmas, but notes a key strategy she'll manage to get through it is by using her noise-cancelling devices - particularly at the main festive feast.

In her case, this time of year can be a notably tough season as the sounds of family members munching, drinking noisily and sniffling trigger extremely uncomfortable.

"I experience this wave of immediate anxiety, my whole body will just freeze and it feels like I'm in peril, and I need to somehow control these sounds."

She has suffered from sound sensitivity from a young age and for her that renders the Christmas time "incredibly overwhelming".

Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to specific noises, particularly those made by individuals.

It's surprisingly common across the population. Experts reported nearly 20% people suffer from it.

Typically it's sounds connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that cause distress, including things like crunching, heavy breathing, and foot tapping.

Triggering Stress

She explains: "You encounter so many assorted problematic noises 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 spoil the mood. It's like a constant struggle of managing my symptoms to make sure others enjoy themselves."

So it's obvious why the most wonderful period can rapidly become a stressful ordeal for affected individuals.

Noises that may seem harmless, like someone sipping a beverage, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can cause a powerful reaction that can even lead to them skipping events entirely.

She, a university student, who has experienced sound sensitivity from childhood, explains the approach she intends to use is to put her earphones in to manage the meal. Usually, she would frequently go in a different room to avoid triggering sounds.

She notes her sensitivity is more pronounced around people she's closest to, so the holidays is always "difficult".

"There's an expectation to socialize with loved ones, and I desire to, but it's draining.

"The sensation is this uncontrollable anger washes over me, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel stressed and burst into tears and then panic will take over.

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

Three Ways to Handle It

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

1. Visualise a Different Scenario: Imagination is essential. 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. By doing this is to help your brain learn that the sound triggering you isn't harmful.
2. Try a Competition: Have a bit of fun and make the irritating noise into a challenge with the culprit. For instance, if someone is eating noisily have a go at copying the noise. Through participation, instead of feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an active participant. And the challenge should help shift your attention and make you slightly more tolerant.
3. Develop a Narrative: Another technique is to try to invent a reason about why the person making the noise is behaving that way. Imagine if someone was making a nasal sound, it could be that they're not at their best or are troubled. By doing this is re-framing the context of the sound. While the sound stays the same, your interpretation of it shifts from being irritating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate about it.