Guest guest Posted August 5, 2012 Report Share Posted August 5, 2012 I don't really DEAL with it, I just retreat to a quiet room. Or listen to music, read a book to forget my worries. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 5, 2012 Report Share Posted August 5, 2012 As I have shared before, I have found that explaining from the beginning to my friends that I have " crazily hypersensitive hearing " and that certain sounds really hurt my ears or make me nuts - I am very clear that the things that trigger me are not things that the other people are doing wrong, (even though sometimes it is) but that it is my sensitivity. I use the example that if a person has a friend who is sensitive to perfume, the friends may be more sensitive about not wearing perfume when they are with that friend. There is nothing wrong or bad or evil about wearing perfume - but to the person who is sensitive, it is offensive and they need to get away fom it as soon as possible. then, in the future - rather than saying what we all want to say - " what is your effing problem you pig? can't you eat quieter? I know cows that could eat potato chips and make less noise! " I can just say, " I'm sorry. you have every right to do what you are doing, but it is triggerring my hearing thing. Would you rather stop doing it or that I just go into another room? 9 times out of 10, if it is someone who really cares about you, they would rather stop doing it. Sometimes, they may want you to go out of the room - and you can't take it personally... Hope this helps,Sheryl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 18, 2012 Report Share Posted August 18, 2012 Sage, My particular trigger is the crinkling of snack bags and packages (hearing all the snacks being consumed before a movies starts is a particular postal moment for me). In the cubicle world of my office, I used to just get up and take a break when someone near me opened up a bag of chips - I hadn't heard of misphonia and just knew how much I HATED that sound - but I didn't want to give in to the anger I felt. One day, the fellow on the other side of my cubicle wall started in on his afternoon snack. Instead of letting it grate on my nerves and walking away, I decided to talk to him about it. " Hey Mike, can I confide in you about something? I cannot stand the crinkling of plastic and mylar bags - it's just a weird pet peeve of mine. Can I ask you to pour those chips out on a napkin or a piece of paper and toss that bag away? " He was very kind and said that he had heard of others that were bothered by chewing noises. I assured him that it wasn't the chewing or any other eating noises - just the crinkling of the packaging. For some reason that struck him as very funny. He laughed as he dumped out the chips. Fair enough - I actually felt a little proud that I had opened up about it. Well, the next day we had a staff meeting. Mike thought it would be just hysterical to supply everyone else at the table with bags of chips and cookies. At a signal from him, out came the bags, with a maximum effort placed on crinkling. I laughed along with the rest of them for a while. But after about 5 minutes (and a total inability on my part to concentrate on the meeting), I got up and left the room. When I didn't come back, Mike came and found me. He saw the rage on my face and apologized. I explained to him that my anger wasn't directed at the joke or even Mike or the others. " It's those F***ing Bags! " I said. And it was like a light went off in Mike. " You really can't handle crinkling bags? " he asked. " I want to do serious violence to someone or something, when I hear them, " I told him. He doesn't really understand, but he empathizes now. I worked with that group for another two years before moving to a different office, and while there was some occasional teasing during those years about my 'odd affliction,' the group as a whole did make an effort to dispense with their snack bags when I was around. While I have a couple other triggers, I realize from reading here that my misphonia is a relatively mild form. I am so glad I shared it with my co-workers. In the new office, I take a bit of ribbing, but we keep a stack of napkins on a shelf for those who need to pour out their snacks. Jeanne > > How do you guys deal with misophonia? I was with my friend earlier this week, she had bought a slice of chocolate cake from this tiny shop. we went back to our hotel room and she started eating it.. as you guys know it put me in a lot of pain. i ended taking the plate from her and throwing it against the wall. i felt sooo bad afterwards. i just don't know how to deal with this haha > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 18, 2012 Report Share Posted August 18, 2012 Hi Jeanne,Firstly, I'd like to commend you for having the courage to stand up to these people and asserting yourself. I think that it takes alot of courage to do that. I've always thought that bringing this issue up would only lead to ridicule, tease and perhaps worse (as you experienced at the meeting). Unfortunately, some ill intentioned people may actually use it against us (so I think twice before talking to someone about it). I think that a lot depends on the consideration of the person(s) receiving the information. Unfortunately, I don't have a crystal ball and can't guess people's reaction or intention with the information. Anyhow, I can say that you handled yourself well and congrats to you.Margaret To: Soundsensitivity Sent: Saturday, August 18, 2012 12:50:30 PM Subject: Re: friends Sage, My particular trigger is the crinkling of snack bags and packages (hearing all the snacks being consumed before a movies starts is a particular postal moment for me). In the cubicle world of my office, I used to just get up and take a break when someone near me opened up a bag of chips - I hadn't heard of misphonia and just knew how much I HATED that sound - but I didn't want to give in to the anger I felt. One day, the fellow on the other side of my cubicle wall started in on his afternoon snack. Instead of letting it grate on my nerves and walking away, I decided to talk to him about it. "Hey Mike, can I confide in you about something? I cannot stand the crinkling of plastic and mylar bags - it's just a weird pet peeve of mine. Can I ask you to pour those chips out on a napkin or a piece of paper and toss that bag away?" He was very kind and said that he had heard of others that were bothered by chewing noises. I assured him that it wasn't the chewing or any other eating noises - just the crinkling of the packaging. For some reason that struck him as very funny. He laughed as he dumped out the chips. Fair enough - I actually felt a little proud that I had opened up about it. Well, the next day we had a staff meeting. Mike thought it would be just hysterical to supply everyone else at the table with bags of chips and cookies. At a signal from him, out came the bags, with a maximum effort placed on crinkling. I laughed along with the rest of them for a while. But after about 5 minutes (and a total inability on my part to concentrate on the meeting), I got up and left the room. When I didn't come back, Mike came and found me. He saw the rage on my face and apologized. I explained to him that my anger wasn't directed at the joke or even Mike or the others. "It's those F***ing Bags!" I said. And it was like a light went off in Mike. "You really can't handle crinkling bags?" he asked. "I want to do serious violence to someone or something, when I hear them," I told him. He doesn't really understand, but he empathizes now. I worked with that group for another two years before moving to a different office, and while there was some occasional teasing during those years about my 'odd affliction,' the group as a whole did make an effort to dispense with their snack bags when I was around. While I have a couple other triggers, I realize from reading here that my misphonia is a relatively mild form. I am so glad I shared it with my co-workers. In the new office, I take a bit of ribbing, but we keep a stack of napkins on a shelf for those who need to pour out their snacks. Jeanne > > How do you guys deal with misophonia? I was with my friend earlier this week, she had bought a slice of chocolate cake from this tiny shop. we went back to our hotel room and she started eating it.. as you guys know it put me in a lot of pain. i ended taking the plate from her and throwing it against the wall. i felt sooo bad afterwards. i just don't know how to deal with this haha > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 18, 2012 Report Share Posted August 18, 2012 Hi Jeanne I don't even go into movie theatres anymore. It's just not worth it. The crunching of the popcorn, crinkling of food wrappers, and the sound of the sticky floors being stepped on, all send me over the edge. I can't even concentrate on the movie. Even when the movie is very loud, I can still hear these noises. Office meetings are particularly difficult. Fortunately, my current job does not put me in that position often at all. I do have clients who bring in drinks. Some of their swallowing makes me cringe. It's impressive you got up the courage to speak your mind. I am fortunate to not have a severe case of misophonia. Thanks be to God! Thanks for sharing!! > > > > How do you guys deal with misophonia? I was with my friend earlier this week, she had bought a slice of chocolate cake from this tiny shop. we went back to our hotel room and she started eating it.. as you guys know it put me in a lot of pain. i ended taking the plate from her and throwing it against the wall. i felt sooo bad afterwards. i just don't know how to deal with this haha > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 18, 2012 Report Share Posted August 18, 2012 PS I have a friend who makes moaning noises of pleasure when she eats desserts. I want to smack her. I have talked with her about it, and she doesn't care. I leave the room when she's eating. She thinks it's rude. I figure leaving is better than exploding on her. Although, I get it that certain situations preclude one from leaving (such as hotel rooms, in your earlier example). Aaargh. > > How do you guys deal with misophonia? I was with my friend earlier this week, she had bought a slice of chocolate cake from this tiny shop. we went back to our hotel room and she started eating it.. as you guys know it put me in a lot of pain. i ended taking the plate from her and throwing it against the wall. i felt sooo bad afterwards. i just don't know how to deal with this haha > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 20, 2012 Report Share Posted August 20, 2012 Jeanne, it is horrifying to me that this colleague, after very kindly pouring his chips into a napkin, would then engineer a prank intended to cause you distress. It's pretty big of you not to get angry at him. Though it sounds like he overcame his jerkiness in the end, it is interesting that he didn't take you at your word but instead needed to test you. I despise pranks and practical jokes, as well as the mindset that engages in them. > > > > How do you guys deal with misophonia? I was with my friend earlier this week, she had bought a slice of chocolate cake from this tiny shop. we went back to our hotel room and she started eating it.. as you guys know it put me in a lot of pain. i ended taking the plate from her and throwing it against the wall. i felt sooo bad afterwards. i just don't know how to deal with this haha > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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