Christmas 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 cope is by relying on her noise-cancelling devices - particularly at the holiday meal.

For the 23-year-old, Christmas often feels like a particularly difficult time as the auditory triggers of family members munching, drinking noisily and nose-blowing cause her intense distress.

"I get this sensation of sudden panic, my entire being will just freeze and it seems as if I'm in peril, and I need to somehow control these triggers."

She has lived with this condition since she was 16 and for her that renders the holiday period "incredibly overwhelming".

Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to certain sounds, especially noises coming from other people.

The condition is widespread amongst adults. Experts discovered a significant portion of people suffer from it.

Often it's noises connected to bodily functions that lead to discomfort, as well as examples such as crunching, breathing, and repetitive finger tapping.

'Anxiety Inducing'

Lottie says: "There are so many different triggering sounds at Christmas and that can be daunting and make you dread it.

"My relatives are supportive, but I'm very mindful that I don't want to upset others. It's like a really big battle of managing my symptoms to guarantee everyone else is happy."

So it's clear why the most wonderful period can transform into a living nightmare for those with the condition.

Noises that may seem harmless, like someone drinking champagne, rustling a roll of wrapping paper, or tucking into a Christmas dinner can provoke a strong emotional response that can even lead to them avoiding social settings altogether.

The student, a young adult, who has dealt with sound sensitivity from childhood, states the approach she intends to use is to listen to music to cope. Usually, she would frequently go in a separate space to minimize problematic noises.

She notes her condition is worse around people she's closest to, so the holidays is always "hard".

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

"I feel as if this uncontrollable anger washes over me, which can feel embarrassing, or I'll feel stressed and begin to weep and then the stress response will kick in.

"To others it appears as if I'm being difficult 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 various strategies you can attempt to manage the situation, according to experts.

1. Picture a Different Scenario: Mental imagery 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 gentle stream. This technique is to retrain your mind that the sound triggering you poses no threat.
2. Make it a Game: Introduce playfulness and make the irritating noise into a game involving the source. As an example, if someone is eating noisily have a go at copying the noise. By mimicking, instead of feeling like the sound is an attack, you become an willing part. And the challenge should help distract your brain and make you a little less affected.
3. Develop a Narrative: A further strategy is to try to create a little story about why the person making the noise is doing it. So if someone was sniffing, maybe they are not feeling well or could be emotional. By doing this is altering the perception of the sound. Although the sound stays the same, your understanding of it shifts from being irritating, to feeling a little more neutral about it.