Shhhhhh! Being Noise Sensitive in a World Of Racket

The other night I was at a meeting and two different people at the table were doing the clickety click clack of their pens. You know what I am talking about. It is an unconscious habit, like whistling and passing gas, that only brings relief to those doing it, and annoyance to those around them. Clickety clack. Clickety clack. These were adults who should have known better. I couldn’t concentrate. My blood was boiling. I wanted to stab them with their ballpoints. 

Because I am noise sensitive, to say the least. 

I have often wondered over the years at how oblivious people are. Using speakerphones in public when they can just as easily hold it up to their ear or invest in a pair of headphones. Or the doctor’s office blaring a reality TV show in the waiting room. Or the dentist’s office blasting heavy metal from the 1980s? Or the gas station TV shouting about a local dry cleaner? Do they think I am really going to scrap my plans to fill up the tank, and run to get my winter coat out of storage? 

Don’t they know this is torture?

It is only now as a fully formed adult that I realize that, rudeness aside, I am the problem. Not those around me. I have what is called Misophonia, which is not the manufacturing of fake soup but an extreme sensitivity to certain sounds, like pen clicking. Some people experience it with the sound of others chewing their food, or breathing – yikes. And while I know I have a form of this, I don’t think it is as extreme as not being able to bear the sound of people breathing. Although now that you mention it, that is really annoying. And to those of us who suffer from this, we can’t understand why everyone else around us is not also wringing their hands in distress at the sound of the motorcycle idling behind us for miles on the freeway.

Noise sensitivity ranges from mild – which is what most people have, and might manifest as being annoyed at the incessant barking of a dog next door, or the constant beeping of a construction truck – to various forms of Hyperacusis. This is the condition  that causes physical pain from a normal decibel of noise, or even a high level of fear from the sound of a car honking. 

While I would like to think that mature and evolved humans would know that their noise production affects others, most people don’t. From parents who let their children watch TV shows (on speaker) in restaurants to people who sit in public having private conversations at a very high decibel, we just live in a loud world. And why does this matter?

Well, even if you aren’t “noise sensitive,” it turns out that it matters a great deal for us all. 

According to the Environmental Health Sciences Center at UC Davis, the noise doesn’t have to be “loud” to really be harmful. Each day we are surrounded by environmental noises such as lawn mowers, hedge trimmers and construction which is called “noise pollution” and is only second to air pollution in the hierarchy of environmental causes of health problems. From hearing issues to anxiety, noise wreaks havoc on us all. The EHSC goes on to say, “The World Health Organization (WHO) has reported that environmental noise features among the top environmental risks to health, with an estimated 1 million healthy years of life lost every year from environmental noise effects, including annoyance, sleep disturbance, and ischemic heart disease. In a Clean Air Act overview report published by the EPA, the fact that we can’t “see, taste or smell” sounds may explain why it has not received as much attention as other types of pollution, like air pollution. We are constantly surrounded by noise, yet many of us are unaware of the danger environmental noise poses to our health.” 

Meaning, this could be one of the reasons you feel fried at the end of a day or are crabbier on some days than on others.

And these environmental noises they are referring to don’t just mean working around construction all day. While some places are going to be louder than others, we are constantly being bombarded by noise; some of which is by choice through watching our favorite shows, listening to music, and having our favorite podcast on while we exercise. According to The American Public Health Association, these everyday exposures can cause not just annoyance (visualize my hand raised here), but sleep disturbances, an increase in depression and anxiety, metabolic disruption and even cognitive impairment. Noise is exhausting. And when we are fatigued, our bodies are not operating as efficiently as they should. This compromised functioning is what can lead to a strain on our mental health, our sleep cycles and, by extension, even
our relationships.

There are ways, however, to help mitigate the pitfalls of a low sound threshold. Earplugs are a must in airplanes, airports or any public place where you cannot control the noise around you. Coping mechanisms such as deep breathing exercises can also be handy tools available to you at all times. But for serious sound sensitivity, professional help is always best. Modalities such as Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) can help you navigate your reaction to sounds by changing the way you respond to your thoughts.

In the meantime, put the pen down and come out with your hands up. 

We forgive you. And we thank you.