Yuletide Often Proves to Be a Nightmare for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.

A 23-year-old hopes for spending time with her relatives over the holidays, but notes one of the only ways she'll endure is by using her hearing protection - especially during the holiday meal.

For her, Christmas is a especially challenging period as the noises of family members munching, drinking noisily and nose-blowing cause her profound anxiety.

"There's this wave of immediate anxiety, my whole body will just tighten and it seems as if I'm in a threatening situation, and I need to stop these triggers."

Lottie has lived with sound sensitivity for several years and for her that makes the Christmas time "exceptionally stressful".

Misophonia is an intense sensitivity to certain sounds, particularly those produced by individuals.

It is prevalent in the UK. Researchers found almost one in five people experience it.

Often it's noises connected to bodily functions that cause distress, including examples such as chewing, breathing, and foot tapping.

A Source of Dread

Lottie says: "I face so many various auditory triggers at Christmas and that can be anxiety inducing and make you want to avoid it.

"Those close to me are aware, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to spoil the mood. It's like a constant struggle of enduring my distress to ensure everyone else is happy."

So it's easy to understand why the traditionally happy period can quickly turn into a stressful ordeal for those with the condition.

Sounds that may be considered normal, like someone drinking champagne, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can cause a powerful reaction that can even lead to them avoiding social settings altogether.

Jenna, a university student, who has dealt with sound sensitivity from childhood, states currently her plan is to put her earphones in to manage the meal. On any other day, she would often retreat in a separate space to minimize distressing triggers.

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

"There's an expectation to socialize with family, and I want to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.

"It's like this uncontrollable anger washes over me, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel panicked and immediately start crying and then the stress response will activate.

"To others it appears as if I'm being oversensitive and melodramatic, but it's tough to describe unless you've experienced it."

Three Ways to Manage

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

1. Picture a Different Scenario: Imagination is essential. Try to associate the triggering sound affecting you with an unrelated image. For instance, try to envision someone's slurping is just a waterfall. This technique is to teach your brain that the sound affecting you is neutral.
2. Make it a Game: Introduce playfulness and turn the annoying sound into a game involving the source. For instance, if someone is eating noisily try copying the noise. Through participation, rather than feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an engaged person. And the challenge should help shift your attention and make you slightly more tolerant.
3. Create a Scenario: Another technique is to try to invent a reason about why the person making the noise is doing it. For example if someone was making a nasal sound, perhaps they're not in good health or maybe they're upset. By doing this is re-framing the context of the sound. While the sound stays the same, your interpretation of it changes from being annoying, to feeling a slightly more compassionate towards it.