AIBU to ask if misophonia is real?

[Twowrongsdontmakearight]

DS (15) has self diagnosed misophonia. For a few years he has overreacted badly to some sounds like sniffing (particularly me and DD) and people licking fingers when eating fish and chips. He has described a growing rage that makes him want to lash out. As he's got older he's learned to take himself away when the feeling of rage starts but we're heading into winter which is colds/flu and of course sniffing season.

I've never heard of it but when I Googled it it does sound possible. Have any of you lovely MNers come across this? Is it something to see the GP about or will he grow out of it? Any thoughts? I've posted in AIBU because I can't work out the more appropriate place. Thank you.

My husband has it and I suffer with sensory issues, yes it is very real. Well done to your DS for recognising he had an issue and researching it!

I feel exactly the same way if I have to listen to eating sounds. Loud chewing drives me absolutely mad. I have to leave the room if I see one of the kids getting an apple...

He won't be likely to grow out of it. I'd say tell his school in case they'll let him sit his upcoming exams in isolation to avoid distractions, but I know first hand nobody cares about any disorder without a medical note so perhaps a GP would be the first port of call.

No idea about this issue but I feel for you and your DS. And particularly if he ever ends up on a commuter train I shouldn't grin but the inability of some people to deal with their dripping noses is beyond!

Thanks for that Hypotenuse. Is it something to see a GP about? Can they actually do anything?

It is absolutely real.

It sounds like he has identified specific sounds and can remove himself, but a chat with the GP or CAMHS might be helpful as CBT can help manage it.

I'm certain I have it. If I hear people cough or sneeze I actually feel furious. DH has a cold at the moment and I could happily strangle him.

My dm suffers with this. And, I am sorry to say, I do mean suffer. It has affected every aspect of her life: work, friendships, family, marriage. She doesn't recognise that it's her: she feels rage and blames the person causing it. Good for your ds that he has recognised a problem he has and is researching his condition

I suffer with it. I've noticed that as I get older more and more things are added to the list that make me irrationally angry. My main "hate" is the sound of people eating - crunching and lip smacking gives me a horrific feeling of rage and disgust right in the pit of my stomach. I have to remove myself from the situation.

Other things that get to me are banging noises, repetitive tapping, screaming, loud breathing, gulping when drinking, whispered voices, teeth scraping on a fork, repeated words/phrases.

Reading that back I must be a bloody nightmare to live with. I have to go into another room when Ds drinks as he takes massive mouthfuls and gulps when he swallows, it's bloody horrible!

Well done to your Ds for recognising it and finding coping techniques.

Yes it's real. I suspect I have it. I hate even being in bed and hearing DH breathe heavily. Daily noises set me on edge and I won't even tell you what my tinnitus has done to my mental health.

Yes. I've always hated the sound of people eating. I can vividly remember sitting in a caravan with my parents & Dsis on holiday, aged about 5, struggling to finish my lunch as I could hear all 3 of them chewing. Made my skin crawl.

I would see a GP to get a medical diagnosis, sensory issues are becoming more recognised as a learning difficulty and the letter could persuade a SENCO to allow alternative seating for exams.

There's only coping mechanisms, no treatment. I have to distract myself from sensory overload, my husband has to leave the room or start turning things off, occasionally (couple of times a week) he might snap and ask people to just SHUSH. Luckily we get each other.

My dad has it he gets so angry at the sounds of sniffing, eating, slurping and tapping of keyboards in particular. Those sounds are annoying to most people but he seriously gets abnormally angry.

He said once it made him so angry he probably would have murdered someone if he worked in an office with computers and he was serious. He is generally not an angry person about anything else. As a result of his shouting due to his misophonia I am terrified of sniffing, blowing my nose or scraping my plate in front of anyone. I am now 27 and when I scrape my plate or gulp a drink accidentally I get panicked and apologise to my DH. He always says "I'm not your dad, don't apologise, it doesn't bother me!" It affected our whole family. Even if he was holding it in he would give us the look and leave the room. It was upsetting - it isn't like we made the noises on purpose, we tried our best not to!

I'm not sure what kind of help there is out there to be honest. My dad would never seek help anyway as he thinks everyone else is the problem and can't see the rage to certain noises is abnormal. So OP well done to your DS for recognising his condition, I hope he finds a way to manage it so it doesn't impact on him too much or other people.

Thank you so much to everyone for sharing that. It does sound highly likely that he has it. When he was much younger he used to ask me to breathe more slowly (!) which I realise now must have been because he hated the sound. I do feel a bit guilty because I used to get very cross with him when he used to keep shouting at DD.

I'll make an appointment to see the GP. Hoping that if he's already started taking himself away from situations he might be open to CBT.

I suffer from this and it effects my life a great deal. The noises that set me off are, people chewing, teeth scraping on forks/spoons, gulping sounds when people drink, noisy breathing, licking fingers... The most weird one is people brushing their teeth! There's probably more. Sometimes I can't even look at people when they are eating.

Luckily I have a very understanding DH who doesn't get offended when I put my fingers in my ears when he's eating next to me on the sofa!

I put the radio on when we're eating at the table and I know how to avoid things, but it's taken time and learning.

Just be understanding, because honestly, this is real and difficult!

Gloria it is a horrible sound, I agree (and I don't suffer from misophonia!) however, if someone does it by accident once in a blue moon (like one single time in a month or something) I guess you grit your teeth? Well, my dad would scream at us which is ridiculous! Fair enough if it was every meal but normally it's only if we were cutting something hard.

It makes me want to maim people when they eat with their mouths open. It's been like this since I was a child; my Mum used to go batshit when I would tell my Dad to eat with his mouth closed, but it genuinely hurts my ears. Sniffing doesn't bother me, and I work in an infant school so am not squeamish at all. Blood, poop, pee, sick, I can handle it. So long as you don't chew with an open mouth.

DH doesn't eat with his mouth open (because he's terrified of my madness) but eats loudly and swills fizzy pop around his teeth which also makes me a bit angry. I can't sit next to him if he has a can of pop and the radio is always on in the kitchen at mealtimes.

Yip me and my husband both have it. I literally want to punch people when I hear them chewing, slurping, snoring, breathing heavily, swallowing loudly, anything like that. My husband does the kkkk kkkk noise when asleep and I want to strangle him! My daughter does a weird sucking noise when she's asleep and I can't sleep in the same room as her.

I'm always saying to my husband do you have to breathe so loudly and he just looks at me like

There's a misophonia site, and various groups on fb that will help.

There is no cure, only trying to minimise the chance of being triggered, so earplugs, listening to music, even being out the room when someone is eating. More oftenthan not someone with this is triggered more by family members than strangers.

No amount of getting used to it, suck it up, just ignore it works. There is a real spike of adrenaline and just pure white hot anger when I hear a noise that triggers me. But it's the noise not the person.

He can not help the reaction but there's things like the earplugs that will minimise the chance of a reaction.

I think I have this a little bit, when I was younger it was much worse, but now I can tolerate sounds. Being slightly deaf helps too!

It is definitely real and I have sympathy for your ds having to deal with it.

I can't eat breakfast in the same room as my children. I hate public transport and my exp must have been terrified to eat!