Ask a question about misophonia | Psychology Today

Welcome to Line of Questions. The first topic is the blog itself. Lines of inquiry are truly areas of inquiry and inquiry into little understood subjects. Misophonia. If you’ve landed here, you probably know what misophonia is. That means there are a lot of questions. That’s because most discussions about misophonia are dominated by questions. Researchers are still in the early stages of defining this condition and recognizing its basic features and functions. Misophonia is a neurological disorder in which (supposedly) regular pattern-based or repetitive sights and sounds cause an involuntary and highly unpleasant physiological response in the body. defense mechanism.

When a person with misophonia is triggered, they are taken away from their normal state (without warning and against their conscious will) and panic. rage and aversion (among other anxious states), often overwhelmed by the urge to fight off unpleasant sights or sounds by fleeing or eliminating the unpleasant presence. Misophonic reactions are terrible for everyone, although the texture and intensity of each individual reaction is different. Once you have endured something big or small, no one wants to experience it again. This makes sense! What healthy organism, from humans to inchworms, intentionally puts itself in mortal danger? It feels like it’s a deadly danger.

This is where one of the central dilemmas of misophonia materializes. That is, people with misophonia avoid things that cause misophonia. Unfortunately, misophonia triggers (also called “activators”) are very common. These are usually pattern-based, repetitive sounds and associated sights. Eating, drinking, shaking, shaking legs, tapping on the keyboard, the buzzing of the radiator, the rumbling of the microwave, the buzzing of the refrigerator. Trigger here, there, everywhere. Unfortunately, many of these sights and sounds are produced by the body, and people with misophonia tend to be triggered by familiar objects. People with misophonia are very often most strongly triggered by something very close and familiar – family.

My 22-year-old son (we’ll call him Thomas) has misophonia. My body is an unfortunate place for many of his activators, both visually and audibly. Misophonia requires a major recalibration of our relationships. Thomas and I cannot be easily and comfortably in each other’s physical presence. Misophonia triggers related to the sounds and movements of my body repel my son. He can’t do anything about this.

When Thomas sees my legs shake or hears the sound of my mouth, his organism (his entire being, mind, body, and spirit) is triggered by physiological tornadoes triggered by unconscious defense systems. It jumps into tension and becomes frightening. This is why people with misophonia avoid entities that activate the response, such as the corpse of a loved one. It is not uncommon for people with misophonia to avoid loved ones because of the stimulating sights and sounds of their bodies. Those who suffer from misophonia develop deep anxiety about the very people who make up their primary support and social systems, and are exposed to painful isolation and relationship challenges that are already painfully sheltered. There is a possibility that it will be superimposed on the way the world is.

Misophonia can also change our daily lives, with our bodies activating someone else’s misophonia. The sights and sounds of my body are experienced as an indescribable danger to my child. My voice drives Thomas into a chaotic state that he cannot control and cannot resist, even though he wants to be with his mother. It’s a cruel dilemma for both of us. When I’m around my son, I’m on alert because I feel like I’m a radioactive noise that can cause problems. I become my own bundle of tension and tension, monitoring my every squeak and movement, suppressing, eliminating, or avoiding the sights and sounds of my child falling over. anxiety.

Misophonia remakes each of us. If you are reading this article because a loved one suffers from misophonia, you too may know this truth, which can be asserted from practical experience, if not the benefit of scientific research. Not: Misophonia can have a negative and serious impact on people with the condition. It affects everyone who has a relationship with the patient, including those of us whose body sights and sounds activate our loved ones.

The challenges, pain and troubles that these realities bring into the lives of people with misophonia will be one of the areas of investigation for this blog. But this is not a hopeless endeavor. My son has misophonia. This is a defining feature of his life and our relationship. But as author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie reminded us in her classic TED talk, no one is a single story. Thomas doesn’t just have misophonia. So am I, and so is our relationship. Thomas is growing up. he, career and enjoy a lively time social life It is defined by many deep friendships and joys. Despite the barriers we face, Thomas and I communicate lovingly and well. Misophonia requires us to care for each other and our relationships in a different way, and so do we.

This blog moves between life on the ground and life in the lab, sharing the everyday problems of misophonia and the secrets of misophonia so that our lives and relationships are not filled with such challenges. We explore the concerns of scientists trying to understand. Some upcoming topics will be about the relationships between people with misophonia and their families, asking how they can not only survive, but thrive, despite the challenges.

In addition to being a mom who asks questions, I’m also a university professor whose job just so happens to give me useful tools for living with the mysteries of medicine. My main academic interest has long been in knowledge production, including how categories of medical knowledge exist. In other words, I’ve been asking the same questions for a while, and these questions apply directly to misophonia. “How do I know what I know?” Who will tell us what and why? Who wins and who loses in this equation?

These are very urgent questions, not only for science, but also for those of us who have overcome misophonia and deal with it every day.