The Holiday Season Often Proves to Be a Terrifying Experience for Misophonia Sufferers.

One young woman anticipates seeing her family this Christmas, but admits a key strategy she'll endure is by wearing her earplugs - notably for the main festive feast.

For her, Christmas often feels like a particularly difficult time as the noises of other people chewing, drinking noisily and sniffling trigger intense distress.

"I get this sensation of instant dread, my whole body will just tense up and it feels like I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to manage these sounds."

The individual has lived with sound sensitivity for several years and for her that makes the festive season "deeply taxing".

Misophonia is a decreased threshold to certain sounds, especially noises made by other people.

The condition is widespread across the population. A study reported almost one in five people suffer from it.

Frequently it's sounds connected to mouth, throat or facial movements that lead to discomfort, along with examples such as crunching, breathing, and pen clicking.

'Anxiety Inducing'

She explains: "You encounter so many different triggering sounds at Christmas and that can be stressful and make you want to avoid it.

"My family are understanding, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of managing my symptoms to guarantee everyone else is happy."

So it's obvious why the supposedly joyous time of the year can rapidly become a source of agony for affected individuals.

Noises that may seem harmless, like someone slurping a Buck's fizz, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or eating the holiday meal can trigger a powerful reaction that can even cause them avoiding social settings altogether.

She, a young adult, who has experienced misophonia from childhood, explains her strategy is to listen to music to manage the meal. On any other day, she would often retreat in a separate space to minimize problematic noises.

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

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

"I feel as if this sudden rage washes over me, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel stressed and burst into tears and then panic will take over.

"To others it appears as if I'm being oversensitive and overreacting, but it's difficult to convey unless you've experienced it."

Three Ways to Cope

If you suffer then there are various strategies you can try to cope the situation, according to experts.

1. Imagine a Different Scenario: Imagination is crucial. Work on connecting the specific noise affecting you with an unrelated image. For instance, try to picture someone's noisy drinking is just a sink draining water. This technique is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you is neutral.
2. Try a Competition: Have a bit of fun and make the irritating noise into a challenge involving the source. As an example, if someone is eating noisily have a go at joining in. By joining in, instead of feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an willing part. And the game aspect should help shift your attention and make you a little less affected.
3. Craft a Story: A further strategy is to try to create a little story about the reason someone creating the sound is behaving that way. So if someone was sniffing, perhaps they're not in good health or maybe they're upset. This approach is altering the perception of the sound. While the noise doesn't change, your interpretation of it changes from being irritating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate about it.