Misophonia: Living/dealing with it

There are many noises that human beings cannot stand/have a dislike to but when certain noises, that many consider normal and hardly take any notice of, within daily life make your nerves flare and feel like nails on a chalkboard, it can result in an increase in anxiety and stress levels.

Misophonia is something that is not talked about enough and can be seen as a misconception. I want to share a overview of what it is before talking about how specific noises have affected myself over the course of my life so far and the tricks that have helped me to manage these uncomfortable feelings.

Misophonia is a powerful emotional response to anticipating/the persistence of a specific sound affecting 1 in 6.5 adults (15%) and can trigger many emotions with three key ones being Anger, Disgust & Anxiety with physical responses to these noises being the 'fight or flight' mode.

This condition can begin during childhood, seen within homes & schools, with some fear of noises carrying on into adulthood, seen particularly within shared accommodation, workplaces, public transport and intimate relationships, making it a challenge for both the person living with this condition and those around them.

Triggering noises can be from humans i.e. chomping, clearing throat, persistent coughing, sniffling, doors slamming and even animal noises especially with birds. Although it is unclear what causes Misophonia, research has shown there to be a link with people who also experience either Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Anxiety Disorder or Tourette Syndrome and is common with people experiencing Tinnitus as well.

Despite there are no cures, medications or treatment, several therapies that shown to be effective to managing this condition including Tinnitus Retraining Therapy, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Counselling (all of which available to view on 'A-Z of Mental Health').

In terms of myself, I've experienced overwhelming feelings when hearing certain noises especially during childhood with noises including the sound of fireworks going off and the sound of dogs barking, particularly the ones with loud deep voiced barks. In these situations, the emotions would be so overwhelming that I'd contently be putting the hands over/fingers in my ears throughout the entire duration of these noises and isolating myself away.

These two fears I am pleased to say have pretty much gone and have managed to be tolerated throughout mid teens to early twenties. There have, however, been different new noises that have triggered strong emotions between the stages mentioned, one in particular being loud human noises in situations such as restaurants or social gatherings but strangely fine with large gatherings when attending concerts and gigs.

Despite these feelings, I tend to keep busy both on my own and socially with other people, and have found certain treatments to have helped over recent years including guided meditation/breathing exercises, listening to calming music through headphones, trying to keep a regular sleep pattern going and the most useful one I have found is journaling these thoughts and feelings down which believe me helps A LOT and makes you understand why you are feeling like this.

I hope this has all helped in some way, shape or form and to anyone out there experiencing this overwhelming feelings because of this condition, please know that you are not alone in what you are feeling and that there are people/charities out there who can help 💙💙💙