Misophonia - "People who have misophonia are most commonly annoyed, or even enraged, by such ordinary sounds as other people eating, breathing, sniffing, or coughing; Though a few sufferers are bothered by sounds they make themselves, most are not. . . The reactions are completely involuntary. Sensitivity to these sounds tends to be exacerbated by anger, stress, hunger, or fatigue." (from Wikipedia)
Ok. So a little more insight into my everyday craziness. I, or perhaps I should say "other people", suffer regularly from my misophonia. I CAN NOT stand the sound of other people eating. All those disgusting snuffly, smacky, chompy, sucking noises that people make when they are trying to ingest food are more than I can handle. A gross chewer can seriously inspire me to violence. I am not alone. My sister also shares my distaste for sloppy eaters. Kelly Ripa also admits to having misophonia. It is in fact very common, so I know I'm not crazy when I wanna punch someone in the face for chewing with their mouth open. I actually have certain people on a special mental list; "Eat with only under dire circumstances"!
I absolutely cannot sit at a table with people when they are eating unless I am also eating. I think my own chewing blocks out most of their noise. I of course chew perfectly and do not understand why others cannot master this basic function. Unfortunately my husband and son don't breath well through their noses and so often they suck air in and out of their mouths while chewing. It makes me want to stab them with my fork.
So, yesterday my hubby and I went to lunch at this great Chinese restaurant near our house and we were seated right across the aisle from this middle aged Chinese couple. As I was perusing the lunch menu, I started to hear the noises. Smacking, snuffling, sniffling and slurping so loud they must have heard him in the kitchen. The man chewed so loud I could count the number of chews he made just by listening. OMG! Then, he started taking bites of some dish that had either bones or seeds in it and as he chewed he would suck the bones up to the front of his mouth and then spit them out onto his plate! Ugh! I thought I was gonna puke. I told my husband I wouldn't be able to eat sitting beside that. I had this marvelous mental image of me jumping up, tipping over his chair, jumping on his chest and jamming my chopsticks into his eyes.
Rage Face
Fortunately our neighbors finished eating (if you can call it that), before our food arrived and I was able to enjoy my lunch. I know this sounds crazy. My husband thinks I'm nuts, but I just can't help it! I literally want to kill disgusting eaters. I can trace this problem all the way back to my childhood. My Dad used to have this absolutely awful way of eating, and my Mom's second husband was a big, fat, gluttonous slob, so I have had a really long time for this issue to fester. One time my Grandfather was eating and blabbing at the same time, and he talked so much that the coleslaw her was chewing fell right out of his mouth and onto his fat, hairy arm! Blech!!! God, it's no wonder I'm messed up!
So, that's that. You can call me crazy all you want, but I am not alone! My condition, which is really all your fault, has a name and it is real. Now if you'll just all not chew around me we'll get alone just fine. Oh, and don't sneeze near me either or I may have to kill you.
Michy
haha I have to ask....what did our father do??? The "second husband" and the Grandfather (I'm assuming its the paternal one), those two I know all too well. But I really don't recall anything traumatic about dad's eating habits. Enlighten me. lol
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