When Sound Sensitivity Starts to Take Over Your Life
You’ve managed sound sensitivity for a long time.
At first, it felt like annoyance — something you could tolerate or work around.
Maybe it started with the way your partner chewed. Dinner became tense. Meals that once felt intimate began to feel excruciating. The sound of chewing alone could send your body into a surge of irritation or panic.
Then you noticed it spreading.
Footsteps in certain parts of the house became unbearable. The texture of the floor mattered — linoleum, hardwood, carpet — each one triggering a different reaction. You and your partner tried to adapt. Special slippers. Walking more quietly. Even changing paths through the house to avoid certain sounds.
They’ve been supportive. You love each other.
And still — it hasn’t stopped.
Recently, you may have noticed something that scared you: while sitting together, relaxed, reading or resting, you suddenly couldn’t tolerate the sound of their breathing. A sound that should feel neutral — even comforting — now feels overwhelming.
At that point, it’s no longer “just annoyance.”
Sound sensitivity is impacting your most intimate relationships. You may find yourself bracing, withdrawing, or imagining separation — not because you don’t care, but because your nervous system feels constantly on edge.
Alongside that comes shame:
Why am I reacting this way? Why can’t I control it? Why does this feel so extreme when no one else seems to understand?
Misophonia can feel especially isolating because it doesn’t always look “serious” from the outside. There’s no obvious danger. No visible injury. And yet, your body reacts as if something is deeply wrong.
That doesn’t mean you’re broken.
It means your nervous system has learned to respond to sound in a way that no longer feels sustainable.
This free 15-minute phone call is a gentle way to explore fit — no commitment, just space to ask questions and see what support feels right.
When Sound Triggers the Nervous System
Misophonia isn’t about being “too sensitive,” dramatic, or intolerant. It’s a nervous-system response, not a personality flaw or a failure of coping.
Certain sounds — chewing, breathing, footsteps, repetitive noises, specific textures of sound — trigger an immediate physiological reaction. Your body goes into alarm before you’ve had time to think, reason, or decide how you feel. The response can include surges of anger, panic, disgust, urgency, or the intense need to escape.
Many people try to manage this by:
Avoiding shared spaces
Controlling the environment
Using headphones constantly
Asking loved ones to change their behavior
Pushing through while feeling flooded with shame or guilt
These strategies can help short-term, but they don’t change how the nervous system has learned to respond. Over time, the range of triggering sounds often expands, and relationships can become increasingly strained.
This isn’t because you’re “getting worse.” It’s because the nervous system is doing exactly what it was designed to do: detect threat and react quickly — even when the threat isn’t logical or intentional.
Understanding misophonia as a nervous-system pattern is often the first step toward working with it differently — with less self-blame, less secrecy, and more room for change.
Why Logic and Control Aren’t Enough
Many people with misophonia are thoughtful, self-aware, and highly capable. You may understand exactly why a sound shouldn’t bother you — and still feel your body react as if something is wrong.
That’s because misophonia doesn’t begin in the thinking parts of the brain. It starts in fast, automatic nervous-system pathways that respond before logic has a chance to intervene. Telling yourself to calm down, reminding yourself that a loved one isn’t doing anything wrong, or trying to power through rarely settles the reaction — and often adds shame on top of the activation.
Some people are prescribed medication for anxiety or mood, and while this can be supportive for some, it doesn’t necessarily change the specific sensory threat response that misophonia involves. Others try to manage the problem by exerting more control — stricter routines, more avoidance, more self-monitoring — which can temporarily reduce exposure but often increases tension and isolation over time.
What’s missing in these approaches is support for the nervous system itself.
When sound sensitivity is understood as a learned physiological response, the focus shifts from “How do I stop reacting?” to “How does my system learn safety again?” That learning doesn’t happen through force or reasoning — it happens through paced, relational work that allows the body to experience activation without being overwhelmed or needing to escape.
This is where somatic, nervous-system–based therapy becomes relevant — not as a quick fix, but as a way to gradually change how your body responds, so sound no longer dominates your inner and relational life.
How I Can Help
In my work, misophonia is approached as a learned nervous-system pattern, not something to eliminate through force, exposure, or willpower. The goal isn’t to make sounds disappear or to train yourself to tolerate more than you can handle — it’s to help your nervous system change how it responds over time.
We begin by slowing things down. Rather than working directly with the most distressing sounds, we focus on building capacity: noticing activation early, tracking sensations in the body, and learning how your system moves toward settling when it feels supported. This creates the conditions for change without overwhelming your nervous system or your relationships.
Sessions are collaborative and carefully paced. We may move between conversation, body-based awareness, and moments of focused attention, always guided by what your system can integrate. There is no pushing, flooding, or expectation that you “get over it.” Instead, we work with the reality of how your body responds — and allow new responses to emerge gradually.
Over time, many people notice that sounds feel less intrusive, less urgent, or easier to recover from — not because they’ve forced calm, but because their nervous system has learned that it doesn’t need to stay in alarm. Relationships often feel less strained as reactivity softens and avoidance loosens.
This work is not about a cure or a quick fix. It’s about creating a different relationship with activation — one that gives you more choice, more space, and more steadiness in your daily life.
Who This Work Is For
This approach may be a good fit if:
Sound sensitivity has begun to affect your relationships, routines, or sense of ease at home or work
You notice strong bodily reactions — anger, panic, urgency, or disgust — that feel out of proportion to the situation but very real in your body
You’ve tried coping strategies, medication, or reasoning your way through reactions, with limited or short-term relief
You want support that works with your nervous system, not against it
You value a thoughtful, paced approach rather than quick fixes or intensity-based interventions
This work often resonates with people who are high-functioning, self-aware, and used to managing discomfort — especially when that management has started to cost too much.
When This May Not Be the Right Fit
This approach may not be the best fit if you’re looking for:
A rapid cure or guarantee that sound sensitivity will disappear
A strictly exposure-based program without attention to pacing or nervous-system readiness
A highly structured, skills-only model with fixed timelines
Treatment that prioritizes symptom suppression over relational and physiological safety
My work is intentional and attuned. We move at a pace designed to support long-term change, not urgency. During a consultation, we can explore together whether this approach aligns with what you’re hoping for.
A Gentle Next Step
Sound sensitivity can be isolating — especially when it affects the people and spaces you care about most. If misophonia has started to shape your daily life, your relationships, or your sense of safety, you don’t have to navigate it alone.
A consultation is a chance to talk about what you’re experiencing, ask questions, and get a feel for whether this approach is the right fit. There’s no expectation to decide anything on the call — just an opportunity to explore what support could look like.
If this resonates, you’re welcome to schedule a free 15-minute consultation to take the next step at a pace that feels right for you.
This free 15-minute phone call is a gentle way to explore fit — no commitment, just space to ask questions and see what support feels right.