What are the symptoms of misophonia?
The symptoms of misophonia revolve around how you react to trigger sounds. The reactions all seem to fall under the natural “fight-or-flight” instincts. That means the reactions can be:
- Emotional. These are feelings you experience, and they can be intense or overwhelming. For many, these feelings escalate rapidly, as if someone stepped on your emotional gas pedal. That means irritation or annoyance can quickly turn into anger or even rage.
- Body. These are self-protective processes that kick in automatically. Most of these are similar to what happens to you in a dangerous or frightening situation.
- Behavioral. These are actions that happen in response to trigger sounds. These are usually impulse- or instinct-driven. That means you may not have full control over them. Violent reactions (toward either people or objects) are possible, but not common.
Emotional reactions can include:
- Anger.
- Anxiety.
- Disgust.
- Fear.
- Irritation.
Body reactions can include:
- Blood pressure increases.
- Chest pressure or tightness.
- Goosebumps (gooseflesh).
- Heart rate increases.
- Sweating.
Behavioral reactions can include:
- Avoiding situations where trigger sounds can happen.
- Leaving the area when a trigger sound happens.
- Verbal or vocal reactions, such as talking or yelling at who/what made the sound).
- Non-violent action to stop the sound.
- Violent action to stop the sound (rare).
The severity of the symptoms can also vary. When the symptoms are less severe, the emotional and body reactions may be all you experience. If symptoms are more severe, the effects may be so strong that you might also have a behavioral reaction.
In very severe cases, a person may react so strongly — either with words or actions — that they don’t have time to think before they behave in a way that’s upsetting to others. In those situations, it’s common for the person with misophonia to recognize and regret what they did afterward. But they may still struggle to control similar reactions in the future.
Common trigger sounds
Any sound can trigger misophonia. However, some sounds are much more likely to be triggers. Sounds on TV, the radio or other electronic devices can trigger misophonia, but the reaction may not be as intense as it would be if the source of the sound were actually close to you.
The sound types are:
| Sound type | Sound examples |
|---|---|
| Eating/drinking noises. | Smacking lips; chewing (especially with mouth open) food or gum; crunching sounds; slurping; loud swallowing or gulping. |
| Breathing noises. | Snoring, sniffling or nose blowing; heavy breathing. |
| Activity and movement noises. | Tapping fingers or toes; clicking a pen; loud typing; eating utensil sounds. |
| Mouth/throat noises. | Throat clearing; coughing; loud kissing. |
| Other. | Ticking (watch or clock); plumbing (toilet flushing or water dripping); ringing (bell or phone); animal sounds; rustling (paper or plastic). |
| Sound type | |
| Eating/drinking noises. | |
| Sound examples | |
| Smacking lips; chewing (especially with mouth open) food or gum; crunching sounds; slurping; loud swallowing or gulping. | |
| Breathing noises. | |
| Sound examples | |
| Snoring, sniffling or nose blowing; heavy breathing. | |
| Activity and movement noises. | |
| Sound examples | |
| Tapping fingers or toes; clicking a pen; loud typing; eating utensil sounds. | |
| Mouth/throat noises. | |
| Sound examples | |
| Throat clearing; coughing; loud kissing. | |
| Other. | |
| Sound examples | |
| Ticking (watch or clock); plumbing (toilet flushing or water dripping); ringing (bell or phone); animal sounds; rustling (paper or plastic). |
What causes misophonia?
Experts don’t know what causes misophonia. However, they suspect it may be a combination of factors. Some of these suspected factors include:
- Brain structure differences.
- Other conditions.
- Family history or genetics.
Brain structure differences
Research shows that people with misophonia are more likely to have certain differences in their brain structure and activity. One of those differences is having more connections and activity in and between certain areas of your brain.
The affected brain areas control how you process sounds and manage your emotions. Hearing and emotions are part of your brain’s built-in self-protection system. That’s why you feel and learn to associate emotions like anger, disgust and fear with threatening situations.
Misophonia is much like turning on a radio left at maximum volume. The sudden intense noise makes you react instinctively to make the sound stop. Likewise, misophonia can instinctively (and mistakenly) send you into fight-or-flight mode. That leads to emotional, body and behavioral reactions and symptoms.
Other conditions
Misophonia is more likely to happen in people with certain conditions like neurodivergence, mental health conditions and hearing-related conditions or symptoms. Listed below are some examples of conditions with links to misophonia:
Neurodivergent conditions and other brain disorders
- Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
- Autism spectrum disorder.
- Tourette syndrome.
Mental health conditions
- Major depressive disorder (MDD).
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
- Borderline personality disorder (BPD).
Hearing-related conditions or symptoms
- Hearing loss.
- Tinnitus.
- Hyperacusis.
Misophonia is also more common in people who have obsessive-compulsive traits, but don’t fully meet the criteria for a formal obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) diagnosis. Just under 24% of people with these traits also have misophonia.
Family history or genetics
There’s evidence that misophonia might be a condition that runs in families. There’s also at least one genetic mutation that experts think plays a role. However, more research is necessary to determine if these possibilities are true.
