What's misophonia?

Misophonia is an intolerance to sounds. Some people have hard time tolerating specific sounds of the environment, not because they are too loud or they affect the communication, but because they bring out strong reactions. Irritability, disgust, anxiety and anger are few typical examples.

Most of the time (82% of cases¹), the hated sounds are produced by a specific person we know, so this issue can have a major impact on the daily lives of people with misophonia, who will often try to avoid situations where they could be confronted by their trigger. Although people with misophonia are usually aware that their reactions are excessive and unreasonable, their impulses are often uncontrollable or even automatic.

Symptoms

Misophonia's symptoms differ from person to person. It can be a reaction to certain sounds in isolated contexts or more intense reactions in various spheres of everyday life.

Causes

Misophonia's causes are not well-known. However, they seem to involve the auditory system and the limbic system, which is related to emotions.

Recommendations

In many cases, misophonia can be linked with psychological conditions such as anxiety, depression, or obsessive compulsive disorder. An interdisciplinary approach that includes psychotherapy is commonly used to treat the issue.

Currently, the most effective treatments generally involve desensitizing the person with misophonia through repetitive, controlled exposure to triggering stimuli in a comfortable environment so the person can alter their automatic negative associations.

Using noise generators can also help distract the mind, providing short-term relief so the person can resume their daily activities.