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

One young woman is looking forward to seeing her relatives during the festive period, but notes a key strategy she'll endure is by using her hearing protection - particularly at Christmas dinner.

For the 23-year-old, the holidays can be a especially challenging time as the sounds of people eating, drinking noisily and breathing heavily trigger profound anxiety.

"I get this sensation of instant dread, 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 suffered from this condition for several years and for her that renders the Christmas time "deeply taxing".

Misophonia is a reduced tolerance to certain sounds, particularly those coming from other people.

The condition is widespread amongst adults. A study found a significant portion of people suffer from it.

Often it's sounds connected to bodily functions that lead to discomfort, including examples such as chewing, heavy breathing, and pen clicking.

Triggering Stress

She explains: "You encounter so many different triggering sounds at Christmas and that can be stressful and make you want to avoid it.

"Those close to me are aware, but I'm very aware that I don't want to spoil the mood. It's like a internal conflict of sacrificing my own sanity to guarantee everyone else is happy."

So it's clear why the traditionally happy time of the year can rapidly become a stressful ordeal for affected individuals.

Sounds that may appear innocuous, like someone sipping a beverage, unwrapping gifts, or eating the holiday meal can trigger a strong emotional response that can even result in them withdrawing from gatherings.

She, a university student, who has experienced sound sensitivity for over a decade, says the approach she intends to use is to put her earphones in to cope. Usually, she would often retreat in a separate space to avoid triggering sounds.

She explains her condition is more intense around people she's most comfortable with, so the holidays is always "difficult".

"There is pressure to spend time with family, and I want to, but it's draining.

"The sensation is this sudden rage takes hold, which can feel shameful, or I'll feel stressed and burst into tears and then fight-or-flight will take over.

"It may seem as if I'm being oversensitive and melodramatic, but it's tough to describe unless you've experienced it."

Several Strategies to Handle It

If you suffer then there are various strategies you can attempt to manage the situation, according to specialists.

1. Picture an Alternative: Mental imagery is essential. Try to associate the specific noise affecting you with something completely different. So for example, try to picture someone's slurping is just a waterfall. The goal is to retrain your mind that the sound affecting you is neutral.
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 attempt copying the noise. Through participation, rather than feeling like the sound is unwanted, you become an willing part. And the challenge should help distract your brain and make you a little less affected.
3. Create a Scenario: One more method is to try to create a little story about why the person creating the sound is behaving that way. Imagine if someone was sniffing, maybe they are not at their best or maybe they're upset. The idea is re-framing the context of the sound. Even though the noise stays the same, your interpretation of it shifts from being annoying, to feeling a bit more accepting towards it.