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

One young woman anticipates seeing her relatives this Christmas, but admits a primary method she'll endure is by using her earplugs - notably for Christmas dinner.

For the 23-year-old, Christmas can be a particularly difficult time as the auditory triggers of people eating, sipping loudly and nose-blowing trigger profound anxiety.

"I experience this sensation of immediate anxiety, my every muscle will just tense up and it feels like I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to somehow control these triggers."

She has suffered from sound sensitivity since she was 16 and for her that renders the holiday period "deeply taxing".

Misophonia is a decreased threshold to particular auditory triggers, particularly those coming from those around you.

It is prevalent amongst adults. Experts found nearly 20% people suffer from it.

Frequently it's noises linked to mouth, throat or facial movements that lead to discomfort, including examples such as chewing, breathing, and repetitive finger tapping.

A Source of Dread

Lottie says: "There are so many various auditory triggers at Christmas and that can be daunting and make you dread it.

"My family are supportive, but I'm very aware that I don't want to upset others. It's like a internal conflict of enduring my distress to guarantee everyone else is happy."

So it's obvious why the traditionally happy time of the year can transform into a source of agony for sufferers.

Triggers that may appear innocuous, like someone sipping a beverage, unwrapping gifts, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can cause a visceral feeling that can even result in them skipping events entirely.

Jenna, a young adult, who has experienced sound sensitivity for over a decade, says her strategy is to put her earphones in to get through dinner. Usually, she would often retreat in a separate space to avoid distressing triggers.

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

"There is pressure to be around loved ones, and I want to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.

"I feel as if this intense irritation washes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel stressed and burst into tears and then the stress response will activate.

"It can come across as if I'm being oversensitive and overreacting, but it's tough to describe if you haven't felt it."

A Few Techniques to Cope

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

1. Visualise a Different Scenario: Creative thinking is essential. Try to associate the specific noise bothering you with an unrelated image. For instance, try to imagine someone's slurping is just a waterfall. This technique is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you poses no threat.
2. Use Humor: Use lightheartedness and turn the annoying sound into a competition with the culprit. As an example, if someone is crunching loudly attempt copying the noise. By joining in, instead of feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an willing part. And the competition element should help distract your brain and make you somewhat less sensitive.
3. Create a Scenario: 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, it could be that they're not at their best or maybe they're upset. By doing this is altering the perception of the sound. Even though the noise stays the same, your reaction of it shifts from being aggravating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate about it.