Christmas Transforms Into a Terrifying Experience for Those with Misophonia.

One young woman is looking forward to being with her family during the festive period, but notes one of the only ways she'll manage to get through it is by using her hearing protection - notably for the main festive feast.

For her, Christmas often feels like a particularly difficult time as the auditory triggers of family members munching, slurping and sniffling cause her extremely uncomfortable.

"I get this feeling of instant dread, my whole body will just tighten and it as though I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to somehow control these sounds."

Lottie has lived with sound sensitivity since she was 16 and for her that makes the Christmas time "exceptionally stressful".

Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to particular auditory triggers, particularly those coming from individuals.

The condition is widespread amongst adults. Researchers found nearly 20% people suffer from it.

Often it's noises associated with eating or drinking that cause distress, including things like chewing, breathing, and pen clicking.

A Source of Dread

Lottie says: "I face so many assorted problematic noises at Christmas and that can be stressful and make you want to avoid it.

"My relatives are supportive, but I'm very aware that I don't want to make other people feel uncomfortable. It's like a constant struggle of enduring my distress to make sure others enjoy themselves."

So it's easy to understand why the traditionally happy period can quickly turn into a source of agony for affected individuals.

Sounds that may appear innocuous, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, opening presents, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can trigger a visceral feeling that can even cause them withdrawing from gatherings.

Jenna, a young adult, who has experienced sound sensitivity since aged 10, says her strategy is to listen to music to cope. On any other day, she would often retreat in a different room to minimize problematic noises.

She explains her condition is more pronounced around people she's most comfortable with, so the holidays is always "challenging".

"There's an expectation to socialize with family, and I desire to, but it's exhausting on all levels.

"I feel as if this uncontrollable anger takes hold, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel panicked and begin to weep and then panic will activate.

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

A Few Techniques to Manage

If it's an issue then there are various strategies you can use to handle the situation, based on advice from experts.

1. Imagine an Alternative: Creative thinking is key. Try to associate the specific noise bothering you with a neutral concept. As an illustration, try to imagine someone's noisy drinking is just a sink draining water. The goal is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you isn't harmful.
2. Use Humor: Introduce playfulness and turn the annoying sound into a game involving the source. As an example, if someone is crunching loudly have a go at mimicking the sound. By mimicking, rather than feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an active participant. And the competition element should help distract your brain and make you somewhat less sensitive.
3. Develop a Narrative: A further strategy is to try to fabricate an explanation about why the person making the noise is having to make that sound. For example if someone was sniffing, maybe they are not in good health or maybe they're upset. This approach is changing the meaning of the sound. Although the noise remains identical, your reaction of it moves from being aggravating, to feeling a little more neutral about it.