Two noises at once!

[SleepThief84]

Anyone else find they cannot stand having two competing noises going on at once?

Specifically was just in the sitting room with OH and he had the football on tv, whilst playing a music video on his phone with a heavy bassline.

Makes me want to claw my own face off!

Another example is when I used to work in an office and they piped radio through speakers in the ceiling -fine- but that you'd have some wally playing a different station on their laptop speakers, not crazy loud but loud enough to hear both simultaneously.

Just me?

Nah, I'm really funny with background noise at the best of times and two things drives me potty. I do have sensory issues though.

However, I need to admit that I clicked on the thread because I thought it would be about sneezing/coughing and farting simultaneously, which I (childishly) find extremely humorous!

Not just you!

No, I cannot bear it either. It makes me want to smash things.

I once had to quit a job after a week because it was a large open office and people were allowed radios on their desks. There would be several different stations playing at once, talk radio competing with news, and classical and dance music......by the Weds lunchtime I was having visions of throwing myself out of the window, by Friday I was close to throwing other people out of the window!

Unbearable.

Music playing AND footie on the tv?

YEP, YANBU. What an inconsiderate twat. I would switch one of them off and tell him to stop being a nob!

Nope I can't stand it either. I don't even really like having background music on unless it's really quiet. It makes me really anxious!

I find that tricky too but the 'thing' that I really can not stand at all is other people eating crisps or something similar. The noise drives me insane and I have to take myself away from the noise other I could kill😆. I'm ok to crunch crisps though😋

I hate it too. Tv and kids iPad in same room - nope, someone needs to move!

YANBU!! I can't cope with it. It makes me really anxious and irritated.

I hate it but also hate loud noise in general and it makes me tense and anxious. Gets me really on edge when my mum is over and the tv has to go up really loud.

Me!

Does my bloody nut in.

It's three for me, when I'm not "engaged" with at least two of them. Sounds very specific, but it's true!

Eg
Im watching tv - fine
Dc playing music at same time - fine, I tune it out and listen to tv
Dh speaks to me - fine, I tune out tv and music, listen to dh

Tv on and I'm not watching, fine, I tune it out
Dc playing music - fine, I tune it and the tv out
Dh speaks to me - ahhh, I can't concentrate with so many things happening at once!

I also get really irritated and anxious and sometimes have to just walk out of a room.

I can't bear it. It makes me feel angry.

I'm with you OP. There's a rule in this house that only one noise is allowed at once. DD2 (6 months) is not complying.

YANBU. I hate this. Competing background noise just sends me into a spin.

I will also have a total meltdown if I'm talking on the phone and there is background noise or - god forbid - somebody else starts trying to talk to me at the same time. Makes me very stabby.

I get like this, sensory overload!

there is a girl at work who has the most irritating voice and I cant focus on anything when she starts and she talks non stop, I find myself silently fuming, however, there is another girl in my office who has a lovely voice and when she answers a call, I could sit and listen to her all day. I think it depends on the type of noise.

No it's dreadful I cannot stand it. I've taken to ordering everything to be turned off at home when this happens I seem to be getting more & more annoyed about this.

I'm disgusting, I thought this was going to be about some type of fart you did.

Me neither. Too many sound sources at once drive me loopy!

LorLorr2 - lol, actually I thought it was about competing with your partner with sex noises..lol

fine, I tune out tv and music, listen to dh

I think this is a key point: I feel that some of us just lack the ability to tune out noises? My husband will say to me "just don't listen to it"....he won't even notice the other sound if he is focusing on one. I just don't have the ability, I physically can't tune it out.

Do you think there is a way this can be learned? At one point I was considering trying hypnotherapy. I find it bothers me much more when I am already anxious or upset about something. When I had bad PND it was awful, noisy neighbours left me contemplating suicide at one point

I really struggle with competing noises as well, particularly if they are quite similar noises - i.e. I can happily hear two people chatting in a room with the radio playing music in the background, but if it was two people chatting in the room and the radio was playing a news or discussion programme also involving people talking at length, I would feel like committing murder.

I really, really love my noise cancelling headphones. I love they filter everything so I can only hear one thing.