Christmas Often Proves to Be a Terrifying Experience for Misophonia Sufferers.

Lottie hopes for seeing her family over the holidays, but notes a key strategy she'll endure is by relying on her noise-cancelling devices - especially during the holiday meal.

For her, Christmas is a notably tough period as the sounds of other people chewing, sipping loudly and nose-blowing trigger profound anxiety.

"I experience this wave of instant dread, my entire being will just tense up and it as though I'm in peril, and I need to stop these sounds."

Lottie has suffered from misophonia from a young age and for her that makes the festive season "deeply taxing".

Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to specific noises, especially noises coming from individuals.

It's surprisingly common across the population. Researchers discovered almost one in five people suffer from it.

Frequently it's sounds connected to eating or drinking that trigger a reaction, along with things like crunching, heavy breathing, and repetitive finger tapping.

'Anxiety Inducing'

The sufferer notes: "I face so many assorted problematic noises at the holidays and that can be anxiety inducing and make you want to avoid it.

"Those close to me 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 make sure others enjoy themselves."

So it's easy to understand why the supposedly joyous period can rapidly become a stressful ordeal for those with the condition.

Triggers that may be considered normal, like someone sipping a beverage, opening presents, or enjoying festive food can provoke a strong emotional response that can even result in them skipping events entirely.

Jenna, a young adult, who has dealt with sound sensitivity since aged 10, explains her strategy is to listen to music to manage the meal. Usually, she would usually isolate herself in a separate space to avoid triggering sounds.

She says her sensitivity is more intense around people she's most comfortable with, so Christmas is always "challenging".

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

"The sensation is this intense irritation washes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel panicked and begin to weep and then the stress response will activate.

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

A Few Techniques to Manage

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

1. Imagine an Alternative: Imagination is key. Attempt to link the specific noise bothering you with a neutral concept. So for example, try to picture someone's slurping is just a waterfall. This technique is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you poses no threat.
2. Try a Competition: Introduce playfulness and make the irritating noise into a challenge with the person. As an example, if someone is crunching loudly have a go at mimicking the sound. Through participation, instead of feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an active participant. And the challenge should help shift your attention and make you somewhat less sensitive.
3. Create a Scenario: A further strategy is to try to invent a reason about why the person making the noise is behaving that way. For example if someone was making a nasal sound, perhaps they're not in good health or could be emotional. This approach is changing the meaning of the sound. Although the noise remains identical, your interpretation of it changes from being aggravating, to feeling a little more neutral about it.