Yuletide Transforms Into a Living Hell for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.

Lottie anticipates being with her family over the holidays, but says one of the only ways she'll cope is by using her noise-cancelling devices - especially during the main festive feast.

For the 23-year-old, Christmas is a especially challenging time as the auditory triggers of family members munching, slurping and nose-blowing make her feel profound anxiety.

"There's this wave of sudden panic, 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."

Lottie has experienced sound sensitivity from a young age and for her that causes the holiday period "exceptionally stressful".

Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to particular auditory triggers, notably sounds coming from other people.

It is prevalent amongst adults. Experts reported a significant portion of people experience it.

Typically it's sounds associated with eating or drinking that cause distress, including examples such as crunching, heavy breathing, and repetitive finger tapping.

'Anxiety Inducing'

She explains: "I face so many various auditory triggers at the holidays and that can be anxiety inducing and make you fear it.

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

So it's obvious why the traditionally happy season can rapidly become a living nightmare for affected individuals.

Noises that may be considered normal, like someone sipping a beverage, unwrapping gifts, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can cause a powerful reaction that can even result in them withdrawing from gatherings.

The student, a young adult, who has experienced misophonia for over a decade, explains the approach she intends to use is to use headphones to manage the meal. Usually, she would usually isolate herself in a quiet area to avoid problematic noises.

She explains her condition is more pronounced around people she's closest to, so the holidays is always "challenging".

"People assume you to spend time with loved ones, and I wish to, but it's exhausting on all levels.

"It's like this intense irritation takes hold, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel stressed and begin to weep and then the stress response will kick in.

"It can come across as if I'm being oversensitive and dramatic, but it's tough to describe without firsthand experience."

Several Strategies to Cope

For those affected then there are some different techniques you can try to cope the situation, based on advice from experts.

1. Visualise a Different Scenario: Mental imagery is key. Work on connecting the triggering sound affecting you with an unrelated image. As an illustration, try to picture someone's noisy drinking is just a sink draining water. The goal is to teach your brain that the sound triggering you poses no threat.
2. Try a Competition: Use lightheartedness and turn the annoying sound into a competition with the person. As an example, if someone is crunching loudly have a go at joining in. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is being imposed on you, you become an willing part. And the competition element should help shift your attention and make you somewhat less sensitive.
3. Create a Scenario: Another technique is to try to invent a reason about why the person creating the sound is behaving that way. Imagine if someone was sniffing, maybe they are not at their best or could be emotional. By doing this is changing the meaning of the sound. Although the noise stays the same, your reaction of it shifts from being aggravating, to feeling a bit more accepting about it.