Misophonia: When Everyday Sounds Feel Overwhelming
- Kaitlyn Boudreault
- 22 hours ago
- 8 min read
Imagine this: You are at your local park trying to enjoy some fresh air. When you originally arrived, everything was quiet.
But over time, things become loud.
You hear a dog start barking repeatedly nearby. Then, someone begins shouting across the field to their friends, and a dump truck passes by, wheels squealing.
These sounds may not bother some people. But for others, these sounds can be intense, overwhelming, and distressing.
In these moments, your body tightens, focus becomes limited, and you feel irritated or anxious, with an intense urge to escape the space.
If this resonates with you, you may be experiencing misophonia.
Misophonia is a sound sensitivity condition, and it can significantly impact your daily functioning.
This condition is quite common among neurodivergent individuals.
One systematic review of the literature found that approximately 12.8 to 35.5% of autistic individuals experience misophonia.
The exact reason for the link between neurodivergence and misophonia is not widely known. But some understanding currently suggests that they are closely connected because neurodivergent individuals' nervous system processes sensory input differently.
While misophonia can feel like protection in the short-term, it can contribute to long-term exhaustion and burnout, making it important to understand and manage it effectively.
Fortunately, Blue Sky Learning understands how exhausting it can be to navigate environments every day that don’t feel safe or sensory-friendly for your mind.
You can work with a neurodiversity-affirming therapist in Ontario, Canada, or an international neurodivergent coach to develop strategies that support your nervous system rather than forcing you to push through.
But first, let’s explore what misophonia actually is, why it happens, and the strategies that can help you manage misophonia in a way that respects your neurodivergent experience.
What Is Misophonia?
Misophonia, also called selective sound sensitivity syndrome, is a condition where certain sounds trigger an emotional, physiological, or behavioural response.
It is a sensory sensitivity that can result in a variety of emotions to sounds, ranging from anger and annoyance to panic and the desire to escape the situation.
These responses tend to be disproportionate to the situation, and others may perceive them as unreasonable given the circumstances. However, your nervous system is responding to threats differently.
Even though the sound may be harmless physically, your nervous system doesn’t perceive it that way. Misophonia causes a reaction that can feel immediate, strong, and difficult to control.
For some neurodivergent individuals, misophonia can feel like constantly hearing sounds and never feeling safe to navigate these environments with the sounds.
One moment, you could be enjoying yourself. But the next moment, your nervous system decides to become overwhelmed due to a sound you hear in the background. It keeps responding to the sound repeatedly and is unable to cope with it.
This leap can cause you to feel distressed or may make you feel stuck in a loop. Reactions can include:
Irritation or discomfort
Anger or rage
Feeling trapped or needing to escape
It may also cause challenges with navigating workplaces, academic environments, relationships, or responsibilities at home.
You’re not overreacting here or being sensitive. Your nervous system is responding to how it perceives the world.
What Sounds Can Trigger Misophonia?
The exact cause of misophonia is unknown. But some specific triggers can commonly trigger misophonia. Some of the common trigger sounds include:
Chewing or eating noises
Dogs barking
Lip smacking or swallowing
Repetitive tapping or clicking
Pen clicking or keyboard typing
Breathing or sniffing sounds
Foot shaking or repetitive movement sounds
Water Dripping
Keyboard Typing or Mouse Clicking
Knuckle Cracking
Sniffling, Coughing, or Throat Clearing
Plastic Crinkling or Bag Noises
Ticking Clocks
In some cases, you may experience distress due to the mere anticipation of a sound that is triggering for you. If this happens, you may avoid certain environments, relationships, or activities to reduce exposure to your triggers.
What Does Misophonia Feel Like?
There is no universal experience for misophonia. Misophonia varies widely between individuals who experience it. It also can vary in the same individual, depending on the environment and the intensity of the sound(s).
Despite these differences, there are some similarities.
Many people describe misophonia as a loop, where a sound occurs, and your body starts to react instantly to this. The more you hear the sound, the more intense your emotional intensity becomes, and your nervous system may want to shut down or flee.
During these moments, you may feel:
A sudden spike in adrenaline
Muscle tension or jaw clenching
Racing heart or shallow breathing
Emotional flooding or irritability
Urge to leave immediately
You may also feel stuck or as if you are operating on autopilot, with your body reacting to sounds before you are able to make a conscious effort to intervene.
The Connection Between Misophonia and Neurodivergence
There is no one reason for the connection between misophonia and neurodivergence. However, there is current research to suggest that the connection may be due to a combination of factors, including differences in the way the brain processes sound, emotions, and threat detection.
Let’s explore these contributing factors below.
Sensory Processing Differences
There’s a strong link between neurodivergence and sensory processing differences.
Approximately 42-88% of autistic individuals and 50% of individuals with ADHD experience sensory processing challenges.
For those who experience sensory processing differences, this means that certain sounds are processed more intensely than they would be for people without these sensory differences.
If you have sensory processing differences, your brain may interpret repetitive sounds as overwhelming and treat them as a threat, even if they are not.
As a result, neurodivergent individuals, especially autistic people and ADHDers, are more prone to experiencing misophonia.
Nervous System Threat Response
Your nervous system contains a fight-or-flight system, also called your sympathetic nervous system. This is an automatic and survival-driven system that causes your body to face or flee from a situation that it perceives as dangerous.
Research suggests that misophonia and neurodivergence may involve an overactive sympathetic nervous system or amygdala, which is the emotional centre of your brain.
When you experience a trigger sound, your nervous system may react to these sounds as a threat, even if they are not.
This can lead to your sympathetic nervous system unconsciously and immediately responding in an emotional and physical way before your conscious awareness fully registers the sound.
Sensory Overload
Sensory overload involves a situation where the amount of information coming over your senses exceeds the capacity of sensory information that your nervous system can handle.
As a result, you become overwhelmed and may experience intense distress, anxiety, or physical discomfort.
In neurodivergent individuals, sensory overload tends to be more intense due to:
Increased sensory awareness
Difficulty filtering background noise
Higher baseline nervous system activation
In these situations, misophonia is part of the experience of sensory overload and overwhelm, rather than an isolated experience on its own.
In these cases, misophonia is part of a broader sensory profile rather than an isolated issue.
Anxiety, Trauma, and Stress Load
Anxiety, trauma, and stress are more common among autistic individuals and those with ADHD than in the general population.
Misophonia can be triggered by chronic stress, past trauma, high anxiety states, or emotional exhaustion.
When the nervous system is already overloaded, sensory triggers may feel more intense and harder to regulate.
Why Do Certain Sounds Trigger Strong Reactions?
It is not exactly known as to why certain sounds trigger more intense reactions than others.
But one explanation may be that misophonia involves the brain assigning high emotional significance to certain auditory patterns.
For instance, if you hear a dog barking, instead of your nervous system filtering out this background noise, your brain may flag this as important or threatening.
This creates a loop where the sound triggers emotional activation in the brain to pay attention to the sound. You then experience a physical response and increased attention to the sound, which can intensify your reaction.
Over time, this loop strengthens and becomes more automatic, and your nervous system learns to respond quickly for protection even when protection is not needed.
The Impact of Misophonia on Daily Life
Misophonia is a spectrum.
For some individuals, sounds may bother them, but not enough to impact their functioning. For others, misophonia can impact emotional well-being, relationships, work, and academic performance.
Some of the common impacts of misophonia on daily life include:
Emotional exhaustion: You may feel constant sensory vigilance, which can cause you to feel fatigued or burnt out on a continuous basis.
Social avoidance: You may avoid attending social events for fear that there will be certain sounds present that can trigger your misophonia.
Relationship strain: Misophonia may cause misunderstandings in relationships because others may not understand why you are avoiding social gatherings or aren’t able to be around them.
Anxiety and anticipation: You may experience intense anxiety thinking about environments that trigger your misophonia.
Concentration: If you are constantly focused on the distress that certain sounds are causing you, it may cause you to become distracted from more important tasks.
How Is Misophonia Managed?
Misophonia often stems from a nervous system that experiences the world differently.
Managing misophonia is not a one-size-fits-all approach. It may involve a combination of support, such as recognizing triggers, practicing coping strategies, and engaging in neurodiversity-affirming therapy or coaching that can help reduce distress and improve sensory regulation.
Sensory regulation: Use fidget tools, noise-cancelling headphones, white or brown noise, weighted blankets, or sensory breaks and movement.
Acceptance: Accept that this misophonia is related to how your brain works.
Dialectical behavioural therapy: Helps you respond to distressing situations.
Breathing techniques: Try diaphragmatic breathing to ease anxiety around sound triggers.
Environmental adjustments: Consider changing your environment by sitting away from triggers, creating a quiet zone in your home or at work, or planning for breaks in sensory-heavy settings.
Talk to a trusted person: Verbalizing your anxiety and distress can help to reduce your distress around the sounds that trigger your misophonia.
Predictability and planning: Write down when your triggers occur and create an exit strategy or coping tools that you can use within these situations.
Self-Compassion: Recognize that misophonia is not your fault, and you don’t need to feel ashamed for experiencing it. Treating yourself the way you would a friend.
Supporting Someone With Misophonia
If someone you love is experiencing misophonia, knowing how to support them can be complicated. The first step often involves asking them if they need support and, if so, how.
If the individual isn’t quite sure what they need, here are some strategies that have helped people with misophobia before:
Avoid judgmental language.
Respect sensory needs.
Offer accommodations.
Try not to take reactions personally.
Practice mindfulness & sensory regulation alongside them
FAQs
Is misophonia a mental illness?
Misophonia is not officially classified as a mental illness, but it is recognized in research and clinical discussions as a sensory-emotional processing condition.
Is misophonia linked to autism or ADHD?
Yes. It is more commonly reported in neurodivergent individuals.
Can misophonia go away?
It may not fully disappear, but symptoms can improve with support and coping strategies.
Why do sounds feel so intense?
The nervous system may interpret certain sounds as threats, activating fight or flight responses.
Book a Free Consultation With Blue Sky Learning
Are you or someone you know experiencing misophonia?
Do you feel overwhelmed?
Support is available to help you understand your misophonia and build strategies that work with your brain.
Book a free 20-minute consultation with one of Blue Sky Learning’s neurodiversity-affirming therapists in Ontario, Canada, or intentional coaches.
Email hello@blueskylearning.ca or book through our website.
References
Andrés-Romero, M. et al. (2023). Neural mechanisms of misophonia: A review. Frontiers in Neuroscience.Cavanna, A. E., & Seri, S. (2022). Misophonia: Current perspectives.
Jastreboff, M. M., & Jastreboff, P. J. (2015). Treatments for decreased sound tolerance.
Taylor, S. (2021). The psychology of sound sensitivity disorders.
Swedo, S. E. et al. (2022). Misophonia: Consensus definition. Journal of Clinical Psychology.
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