Tap, tap, tap, flick, flick, flick, chew,
chew, chew, sniff, sniff, sniff, slurp, slurp, slurp…
WOULD YOU PLEASE STOP MAKING THAT NOISE!!!!!
Since I can remember I’ve gotten very, very
(and I mean extremely) easily irritated by little noises that people make. It
all started with my dad who used to sit and bite and break his fingernails off.
(Gross, right? And also very much annoying while I’m trying to watch TV in the
same room.)
But no – it wasn’t just a soft flicking noise
lost in the background noise, followed by the occasional spit. It was a
constant rhythm that came straight from the bowels of hell to invade my brain
and prevent me from focussing on anything else. I became a volcano of irritable
anger that would eventually explode and spew out all my emotion – that was the
only way I would start feeling better.
Of course, my dad thought I was crazy and that there was something
wrong with me. I’m ‘over-sensitive’
and I need to get some help. I just thought I was the only one willing to admit
to him how annoying he is – being so outspoken and all. From there it just got
worse. Eventually any of these little noises that people make would irritate
me.
I’ve always wondered why these seemingly
insignificant noises have the power to take full control of my brain function
and transform me into the Incredible Hulk for a few seconds. Am I just a
seriously intolerant person with a bad temper?
I’ve tried to block out the noises, really I have. If
someone taps their foot, at first I’ll try and tap along to drown out the
noise. I even tried blocking my ears. Nothing helped! I thought I could learn
to just control it and stop freaking out, but that never worked out. And I’ve
always carried around some guilt about my crazy reactions. That is, until I
discovered that I’m not crazy!
Introducing: Misophonia. Here comes a little bit of factual information, but please bear
with me as I fight to prove my sanity to you.
American neuroscientists Pawel and Margaret
Jastreboff coined the term in 1991, and it literally means ‘hatred of
sound’. It’s also known as Selective Sound Sensitivity Syndrome (4S) and is a
form of decreased sound tolerance that results in extreme reactions. (Sounds
about right, hey?) You can go and read more of the details on Wikipedia, but I
checked every single box. So it must exist.
The interesting part is that it’s not a
problem with the hearing pathways in the brain – it’s actually an abnormally
strong reaction of the limbic (or emotional) system and the autonomic nervous
system (body control system). And reactions are involuntary – that’s the part
that I enjoy the most. That’s the part that means I’m not crazy! Or – I am
crazy but I can’t do anything about it! There’s even a support group.
So I’ve decided to raise awareness about the
condition. And the first way to do that is to get a celebrity on board. You
know how Parkinson’s has Michael J Fox? Well, apparently we have
Kelly Ripa. Now we just have to get out
there, get noticed and have some people work hard to cure our disorder – for the
safety of all our loved ones!
There we go - let the saving begin!
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