For Dr Jane Gregory the list includes pigeons, ticking clocks and the sound of popcorn being eaten.
"I cried on the plane the other day because I couldn't figure out the volume on my new headphones and so I couldn't block out the sound of a guy sniffing," she says.
Gregory is among those who experience misophonia, a phenomenon in which particular sounds can prove unbearable, triggering emotions from anxiety and panic to shame and anger. Now in her book, Sounds Like Misophonia, the academic is on a mission to explore what's behind it, and to help those affected cope.
Gregory, a clinical psychologist at the University of Oxford, suggests misophonia is far from being a simple sensitivity to sound. It can be fed by a complex interplay of factors, including a lower ability to filter out certain noises, the association of negative meanings with particular sounds, and the burden of feelings associated with an emotional response to them.
The book offers exercises based on cognitive behavioural therapy to help readers understand the origins of their misophonia, reframe the meanings they attach to sounds and develop coping strategies.
Denne historien er fra September 18, 2023-utgaven av The Guardian.
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Denne historien er fra September 18, 2023-utgaven av The Guardian.
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