Misophonia?

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I don’t have a problem with noises like chewing, sucking something through a straw, etc. (Actually, I find the sound of chewing something crunchy rather pleasant.) But I can’t stand humming or whistling, especially if it’s out of tune. And certain people’s voices set me off. I have a male coworker who has a very nasal, whiny-sounding voice (I know that’s a weird combination, but it’s true). If he sends me an email, I “hear” it in his voice, and it makes me want to delete the message. Female coworkers who sound young and stuck-up (i.e., like the girls who bullied me through school) also set me off. I want to tell them, “Shut up!” I try to keep my conversations with them as efficient as possible. They might be lovely people, but I can’t get past their voices.

Can anyone relate to this? How do you deal with it?

I don't have any problems with the sound of chewing either but I do have misophonia. I get easily agitated at the sound of loud coughing or sneezing. When I was younger I couldn't stand the sound of people talking outside my bedroom (my bedroom was downstairs). I would literally scream out of fury.

I also get misophonia with the sound of babies and toddlers crying. I wouldn't hurt a crying infant but I sure do get upset. Even just 2 seconds of hearing an infant already sends me into agitation mode.

Misophonia can make us appear angry or insensitive, but we are not. We understand that these sounds are unavoidable, but we can't help feeling upset by them. It's what misophonia is all about.

One observation: the thing with voices reminding you of bullies sounds more like trauma-triggering than misophonia.

I have it too, mostly with chewing and slurping I also know someone who speaks very loudly and has the kind of shrill laugh that sets my teeth on edge. Or glass squeaking when you wash it *shudder*

In my experience, there's no benefit in trying to explain this to people (except maybe very close ones who love you but even then it's a gamble) as they get mortally offended and angry. Everybody has sounds they hate, nails on a chalkboard anyone? But if you try to explain to them how they would feel if they had to listen to that for a long period of time, they think you're being a drama queen.

I couldn't find any truly efficient way around it. I wear headphones a lot, never eat with people who can't eat quietly and go out of my way to just avoid such situations. Just in my experience, if I try to put up with it, I start feeling intense anger and even hatred for the source

I'm sorry, I'm not helping, just wanted you to know you're not alone in this.

I can't stand humming or whistling, either, especially when it's no specific tune I can recognize, just aimless whistling into the air. Also, habitual throat clearing drives me nuts.

One thing that drives me nuts-- Fox "News" Channel. I can understand that they are expressing how they feel about this coronavirus, and how "President" Trump is handling it (or lack thereof), but it's the way they express it that causes misophonia in me. IOW, it sounds to me as if they are saying (by their tones of voice) that if I do not agree 110% (yes, an impossibility, because the highest percentage is 100) with every single word that they and Trump say, that I am automatically to be considered against America (and that also I am ordered to never under any circumstances listen to or read any "liberal" sources [that it has to be Fox, the New York Post, the Washington Times, Alex Jones, Rush Limbaugh and Trump only-- everything else is "fake news"]).

I mean, if they just offered reasoned and moderate-volume arguments that they would like for me to consider, that would be one thing; this shouting, however (and my sister Marilyn does it too) drives me crazy (and subsequently causes me to shout into the air whenever I take walks outside). On the other hand, my other sister's house in Alabama (my sister Michel lives there) is an oasis, because they don't have cable or satellite, and the only time Fox "News" is on there is when my brother-in-law (her husband Ron) watches it on his IPad. Not only that, but my nephew Eli has plenty with which he can amuse himself, and when I've visited there, I have generally had a very pleasant time; I would, therefore, be far less miserable cooped up there than here (JMO, though).

I actually do have misophonia. Instead of towards mouth sounds, my misophonia focuses towards every day sounds (like dogs barking) and sound effects that you heard in comedy cartoons and other media. The Tarzan yell and Bugs Bunny's "What's Up Doc" catchphrase are my "arch-enemy" sounds because they both set me off. Tarzan's yell is the worst since it appears all over the media and even imitated by the characters in a lot of them!