Symptoms and Triggers

Symptoms

The literal definition of Misophonia is "the hatred of sound." Certain sounds will trigger severe, unpleasant emotional responses in the sufferer, often eliciting a "fight or flight" response. This response is not triggered by all sounds however, but only certain sounds. The sounds that provoke a response are called "triggers." Triggers are very personal, and different from person to person. Whilst there are categories of noises that are common amongst sufferers, a trigger can be almost any noise within the environment. The collection of noises that set off a persons misophonia are called their "Trigger Set." This trigger set is not permanent and changes with time. Certain noises are added to it and others fall away.

The response triggered by misophonia should not be confused with the very common and normal response that many people feel when hearing an unpleasant sound, such as fingernails being drawn over a chalk board, or a fork scraping loudly on a plate. Many people find these noises excruciating, though this reaction is far less than what someone with misophonia could/ would experience.

Many people who have misophonia will isolate themselves from others in social or work situations due to the presence of triggers. This not only impacts on work performance but also on relationships, both romantic and familial.

Triggers

Trigger warning

Sometimes reading about triggers can trigger a reaction. The reading of other triggers can also create new triggers in the future.

Eating:

Chewing, crunching, cutlery scraping against teeth or plate, slurping, sipping, smacking, spitting, sucking, swallowing.

Almost any noise that is involved with the mouth, during eating, can be a trigger. Noises that involve saliva, and the sound of it in the mouth, are very common triggers.

Mouth related noise:

Burping, kissing, nail biting, lip smacking, talking with food in mouth, tooth brushing, flossing, grinding teeth.

Breathing/Cold/Flu:

Loud or soft breathing, coughing, sneezing, snorting, grunting, groaning, congested breathing, hiccups, wheezing, yawning.

Almost any noise related to being ill with a Cold or Flu are particularly difficult for those with misophonia, mainly because the noises are so repetitive.

Vocal:

Humming, muffled talking, nasally voices, overused words such as um or ah (repeated words), sibilant sounds used in talking (S, P, T, CH, K, B sounds), singing, gravelly voices, bad singing, soft whisper-like voices and whistling.

Quite often the way a singular person talks can be a trigger in of itself without any specific cause to point to.

Baby:

Baby crying, babbling and bubbling noises that babies make with their mouth, adults using baby talk, kids yelling, children playing.

Environmental Sounds

The ambient environment soundscape holds many triggers for those with misophonia.

Home/work:

Clicking from texting, keyboard/mouse tapping, TV remote, pen clicking, writing sounds, pen on paper, papers rustling/ripping, ticking clocks, cell phone ringtone, air conditioners humming.

Utensils/metals:

Dishes clattering, silverware hitting plates or other silverware, rattling change in pockets, pipes making noise, keys being used in locks.

Plastic:

Bottle squeezing/crinkling, breaking hard plastic, tapping plastic objects.

Wrappers:

Plastic bags crinkling/rustling, plastic bags opening/closing, crinkling food packages.

Cars:

Sitting idling, beep when a car door is locked, car doors slamming, keys banging against steering column, turn signal clicking, windscreen wipers, boot being slammed, movement of gear stick, clothes moving against the fabric of the car seats.

Heavy equipment:

Lawnmowers, leaf blower, air conditioners, chainsaws, heavy machinery.

Impact sounds:

Muffled bass music or TV through walls, doors/windows being slammed, basketball thumps, sudden loud/unexpected noises.

Animal noises:

Dogs barking, bird sounds, crickets, frogs, dogs or cats licking, drinking, slurping, eating, whining, dogs scratching themselves, claws tapping, cats mewling/whining, sounds of hamster running on wheel.

TV:

Loud TV or radio, static, muffled TV heard from next door.

Body Movement-related:

Foot shuffling (dry feet on floor/carpet) or tapping, finger snapping, foot-dragging, heels, flip-flops, knuckle/joint cracking, eye blinking, nail-biting and clipping, eating, chewing, fidgeting, hair twirling, movements out of the corner of eyes, repetitive foot or body movements, jaw chewing/movement, scratching,