What Is Misophonia and How Is It Treated?

Sounds like teeth grinding, chewing, and opening and closing the pen cap can be annoying for anyone after a while. In individuals with misophonia, these sounds are not only disturbing but also unbearable. The word misophonia means "hatred of certain sounds" in Latin. This condition, which is also referred to as selective sound sensitivity syndrome, actually occurs with the development of psychological and physiological symptoms resulting from a special structural abnormality in the brain. In individuals with this disorder, the fight-or-flight reflex can be activated as a result of sensitivity to some specific sounds, making the daily life of people quite challenging. Feelings such as anxiety, anger and panic are among the emotions that can be triggered by these sounds. You can find answers to questions such as what misophonia means and how does misophonia go in the rest of the article.

What is Misophonia? What are the Symptoms?

Misophonia is the occurrence of emotional reactions and discontent due to various simple sounds in some individuals. This term, which originates from the Latin words "misos (hate)" and "phone (sound)", can be briefly defined as hating the sound. The main symptom that occurs with misophonia is extreme reactions such as anger that occur in individuals against some sounds. The severity of this response may differ from person to person and depending on the type of sound they are affected by. While some people only experience feelings of discomfort and restlessness after exposure to a specific sound, some people may lose control completely and become irritable with anger.
This problem, which can occur at any age, can affect both male and female individuals regardless of gender. The onset of symptoms usually occurs in late childhood or early adolescence. Patients usually have a single sound that triggers the first attack, but over time some other sounds may be added among the triggers.
Individuals with misophonia are aware that their reactions to these low voices are more intense than normal, but the reactions that occur in them with the sound make it easier for them to lose control. Misopho, which may occur with loss of control The symptoms of nia can be summarized as follows:

• Conversion of restlessness to anger
• Conversion of disgust to hatred
• Verbal insulting to the individual who is the source of the voice
• With the sound of the voice being heard
• behaving physically aggressively towards the surrounding objects
• Escape from environments with the affected sound or doing the work done in these environments sloppy

Some individuals with misophonia try to imitate the sounds that arouse such feelings in them over time. They may show this situation as a trigger for them. In some individuals, just thinking about that sound can cause symptoms to occur. In general, individuals who can be triggered in this way have a predisposition to anxiety, depression and other psychiatric conditions compared to other people.
In addition to emotional symptoms, various physical symptoms may also occur in some individuals with misophonia:

• A sense of pressure on the body, especially in the chest area
• Tightness in the muscles
• Increased blood pressure
• Accelerated heart rate
• Increased body temperature

What Causes Misophonia?

Although the exact underlying cause of misophonia is currently unknown, it has been found that misophonia occurs more frequently in individuals with certain psychiatric disorders. Disorders such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety disorder and Tourette's syndrome are among the psychiatric disorders in which the risk of developing misophonia is increased. Apart from psychiatric disorders, misophonia is a common condition especially in individuals with tinnitus (tinnitus).
Some recent studies have suggested that the extra connections in the nerve cells in the brain responsible for the connection between hearing and emotional information processing may also be responsible for the development of misophonia.
Sounds that can trigger misophonia are quite diverse. In this disorder, which usually starts with mouth-based sounds, mouth sounds such as chewing, mouth smacking, swallowing or throat clearing are considered as the main triggering sounds. In addition to these sounds, some individuals may have the sound of writing, sniffling, crumpling of paper, the sound of a clock, the sound of a car door. Misophonia triggered by heat stroke or the sounds of birds, insects, and other animals may also develop.
Almost all sounds are considered a potential trigger for this disorder. In some individuals with misophonia, in addition to auditory triggers, some visual triggers may result in the occurrence of symptoms associated with the disease. Actions such as foot dragging, sniffing or curling hair are among the visual triggers that cause misophonia symptoms to occur in some people.

How is Misophonia Diagnosed?

Although misophonia Although it can develop on the background of various psychiatric disorders that increase the susceptibility, it is considered as a stand-alone disorder. The unique features of this disease, which can be used for misophonia test, can be summarized as follows:

• The onset of misophonia is usually in the pre-adolescence period.
• The average age at which symptoms first appear is between 9-12 years of age.
• It is more likely to be detected in women than in men.
• Misophonia is usually detected in individuals with a high level of intelligence.
• The first triggering sound is usually the mouth of another member of the family It is a voice and different voices may be included in this first trigger over time.

There are no criteria established for misophonia in current psychiatric diagnosis guidelines used today. For this reason, it is very important to be aware of misophonia by medical doctors, especially audiologists and psychiatrists, and to consider that this disease may be present in individuals in possible cases. By increasing the recognition of this disease, individuals with misophonia can be provided with support more easily.

How is the Treatment of Misophonia?

Individuals with misophonia are generally far away from social coexistence environments where these voices can emerge. they tend to stop. Some individuals try to protect themselves from the triggering sounds that may occur around them by wearing headphones constantly. Despite these avoidance methods, since misophonia tends to continue for life and there is no treatment for intolerance to sound, the discomfort should be kept under control by applying various applications. ir.
By treating the tinnitus problem in misophonia caused by tinnitus, people can develop a better tolerance to triggering sounds. Behavioral cognitive therapy, which is an important psychiatric therapy application, can help control the level of overreactions that occur after triggering sound exposure in individuals with misophonia. In addition to these methods, some patients with misophonia can relieve their symptoms by listening to non-triggering nature sounds such as rain or bird sounds with headphones.
Receiving counseling services in order to provide psychological support can be a very helpful practice for both the individual and the family of this person. Currently, there is no effective drug used for the treatment of misophonia. Therefore, psychological counseling is a very important issue in alleviating the difficulties experienced by these individuals and their relatives.
Misophonia is a disorder that was first introduced in the early 2000s and can be considered new. Therefore, it is very important to be conscious about this disorder. If you observe the symptoms of misophonia in yourself or in your environment, it is recommended to seek support by applying to health institutions.
You can ask the expert team of Group Florence Nightingale Hospitals about misophonia and ask for suggestions regarding your question. You can use the contact form on our website to reach us.

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