Yuletide Transforms Into a Terrifying Experience for Misophonia Sufferers.

A 23-year-old is looking forward to being with her relatives this Christmas, but says a key strategy she'll endure is by relying on her hearing protection - particularly at Christmas dinner.

For the 23-year-old, this time of year is a especially challenging time as the auditory triggers of family members munching, slurping and breathing heavily make her feel extremely uncomfortable.

"I experience this feeling of immediate anxiety, my entire being will just tense up and it as though I'm in danger, and I need to manage these sounds."

Lottie has lived with misophonia from a young age and for her that causes the holiday period "deeply taxing".

Misophonia is a decreased threshold to particular auditory triggers, especially noises made by individuals.

It's surprisingly common amongst adults. Researchers discovered a significant portion of people suffer from it.

Frequently it's sounds associated with mouth, throat or facial movements that trigger a reaction, as well as things like chewing, heavy breathing, and foot tapping.

Triggering Stress

The sufferer notes: "I face so many different triggering sounds at the holidays and that can be stressful and make you dread it.

"My relatives are understanding, but I'm very conscious that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of enduring my distress to make sure the event goes smoothly."

So it's easy to understand why the traditionally happy season can rapidly become a source of agony for sufferers.

Sounds that may appear innocuous, like someone sipping a beverage, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or eating the holiday meal can cause a strong emotional response that can even cause them avoiding social settings altogether.

The student, a young adult, who has experienced sound sensitivity from childhood, explains the approach she intends to use is to listen to music to cope. Usually, she would frequently go in a separate space to avoid problematic noises.

She says her condition is more intense around people she's closest to, so Christmas is always "difficult".

"People assume you to be around loved ones, and I want to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.

"The sensation is this sudden rage washes over me, which can feel awkward, or I'll feel stressed and burst into tears and then the stress response will kick in.

"It may seem as if I'm being difficult and overreacting, but it's tough to describe if you haven't felt it."

A Few Techniques to Handle It

If it's an issue then there are a few methods you can use to handle the situation, based on advice from clinical psychologists.

1. Picture Something Else: Creative thinking is crucial. Attempt to link the specific noise affecting you with a neutral concept. So for example, try to imagine someone's noisy drinking is just a gentle stream. This technique is to help your brain learn that the sound triggering you isn't harmful.
2. Make it a Game: Have a bit of fun and turn the annoying sound into a game with the person. For example, if someone is crunching loudly try copying the noise. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an engaged person. And the challenge should help redirect your focus and make you somewhat less sensitive.
3. Craft a Story: One more method is to try to invent a reason about the reason someone creating the sound is doing it. So if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not at their best or maybe they're upset. By doing this is changing the meaning of the sound. While the noise remains identical, your interpretation of it changes from being aggravating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate about it.