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

Lottie anticipates being with her relatives this Christmas, but says a key strategy she'll cope is by relying on her noise-cancelling devices - notably for the main festive feast.

For her, Christmas often feels like a particularly difficult period as the noises of other people chewing, drinking noisily and nose-blowing make her feel extremely uncomfortable.

"I experience this feeling of sudden panic, my whole body will just tense up and it seems as if I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to somehow control these noises."

Lottie has lived with sound sensitivity since she was 16 and for her that renders the holiday period "incredibly overwhelming".

Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to particular auditory triggers, especially noises made by those around you.

It is prevalent amongst adults. Researchers discovered nearly 20% people suffer from it.

Typically it's sounds associated with mouth, throat or facial movements that trigger a reaction, as well as examples such as chewing, breathing, and pen clicking.

Triggering Stress

Lottie says: "There are so many various auditory triggers at the holidays and that can be stressful and make you want to avoid it.

"My relatives are aware, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to upset others. It's like a constant struggle of enduring my distress to ensure others enjoy themselves."

So it's obvious why the supposedly joyous season can rapidly become a source of agony for sufferers.

Noises that may seem harmless, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, unwrapping gifts, or eating the holiday meal can cause a powerful reaction that can even result in them avoiding social settings altogether.

Jenna, a 21-year-old student, who has struggled with sound sensitivity for over a decade, states the approach she intends to use is to listen to music to get through dinner. Typically, she would usually isolate herself in a quiet area to escape distressing triggers.

She notes her misophonia is more pronounced around people she's most comfortable with, so the holidays is always "difficult".

"People assume you to be around family, and I wish to, but it's exhausting on all levels.

"I feel as if this uncontrollable anger comes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel panicked and immediately start crying and then fight-or-flight will kick in.

"To others it appears as if I'm being unreasonable and dramatic, but it's difficult to convey without firsthand experience."

Three Ways to Manage

If you suffer then there are various strategies you can use to handle the situation, as suggested by specialists.

1. Imagine Something Else: Imagination is essential. Attempt to link the specific noise causing distress with an unrelated image. As an illustration, try to imagine someone's slurping is just a sink draining water. This technique is to help your brain learn that the sound affecting you is neutral.
2. Try a Competition: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a competition with the person. As an example, if someone is crunching loudly attempt mimicking the sound. Through participation, instead of feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an engaged person. And the game aspect should help distract your brain and make you a little less affected.
3. Craft a Story: One more method is to try to create a little story about why the person making the noise is behaving that way. 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 sound remains identical, your understanding of it moves from being annoying, to feeling a bit more accepting towards it.