The Holiday Season Can Be a Terrifying Experience for Individuals Living with Sound Sensitivity.

Lottie anticipates spending time with her relatives this Christmas, but admits a key strategy she'll endure is by relying on her noise-cancelling devices - particularly at the main festive feast.

For her, the holidays is a especially challenging time as the noises of family members munching, slurping and sniffling trigger extremely uncomfortable.

"I get this feeling of instant dread, my whole body will just tense up and it as though I'm in peril, and I need to somehow control these triggers."

The individual has lived with misophonia for several years and for her that makes the Christmas time "incredibly overwhelming".

Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to particular auditory triggers, particularly those produced by those around you.

It's surprisingly common in the UK. Experts discovered nearly 20% people are affected by it.

Typically it's noises associated with eating or drinking that lead to discomfort, as well as things like crunching, heavy breathing, and foot tapping.

A Source of Dread

Lottie says: "I face so many different triggering sounds at Christmas and that can be anxiety inducing and make you dread it.

"My family are aware, but I'm very aware that I don't want to upset others. It's like a really big battle of sacrificing my own sanity to ensure everyone else is happy."

So it's easy to understand why the supposedly joyous season can rapidly become a living nightmare for those with the condition.

Triggers that may seem harmless, like someone drinking champagne, unwrapping gifts, or eating the holiday meal can trigger a strong emotional response that can even cause them skipping events entirely.

Jenna, a university student, who has experienced misophonia from childhood, states currently her plan is to listen to music to manage the meal. On any other day, she would usually isolate herself in a different room to escape problematic noises.

She says her misophonia is worse around people she's most familiar with, so Christmas is always "challenging".

"People assume you to socialize with family, and I want to, but it's physically and mentally challenging.

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

"To others it appears as if I'm being oversensitive and dramatic, but it's hard to explain if you haven't felt it."

Several Strategies to Handle It

If you suffer then there are a few methods you can attempt to manage the situation, according to experts.

1. Imagine a Different Scenario: Imagination is crucial. Attempt to link the triggering sound causing distress with something completely different. As an illustration, try to picture someone's noisy drinking is just a gentle stream. The goal is to help your brain learn that the sound affecting you isn't harmful.
2. Make it a Game: Use lightheartedness and make the irritating noise into a challenge with the culprit. As an example, if someone is crunching loudly have a go at joining in. By joining in, rather than feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an active participant. And the competition element should help distract your brain and make you somewhat less sensitive.
3. Develop a Narrative: One more method is to try to create a little story about why the person making the noise is doing it. Imagine if someone was sniffing, it could be that they're not in good health or are troubled. The idea is re-framing the context of the sound. While the sound remains identical, your reaction of it moves from being aggravating, to feeling a slightly more compassionate about it.