Re: Hyperacusis or misophonia?

[Guest guest]

Hi Ginger, Have you explained all this to your pediatrician? My nephew with behavioral problems (not misophonia) went through a number of evaluations first to help figure out what was going on by pediatric neuro-evaluation specialists or something like that (not physical tests, more behavioral observation kind of things). I don't know, but from your discription it does not sound like the typical 4s/misophonia symtoms. I don't have hyperacusis, but it seems to me that hyperacusis is not something that would come and go like that.I have absolutely no medical expertise, so please don't take this post as more than my 02. cents worth. Maybe you could email Dr. , she might very well be too busy right now to be keeping up with all the posts here currently.To: Soundsensitivity Sent: Tuesday, September 13, 2011 12:35 PMSubject: Hyperacusis or misophonia?

Hello. I came across this board several weeks ago while I was trying to find what could be plaguing my son so. He is 11 years old and a few years ago he started to become very bothered by the sounds of a pencil or crayon writing. It went away--but then has come back over the summer.

His trigger sounds are pencils, crayons, markers, someone putting their fingers on the headliner of the car. Eating sounds do not seem to bother him so

much unless he is trying to read or do his school work (I homeschool him). At that point, EVERY noise becomes a trigger and he just explodes.

He throws pens across the room at his sisters (whoever is making the noise) and yesterday when his little sister took a drink of water while he was trying to do math, he clenched

is pen in his hand and said he was going to jam it in her eye. We cannot keep living like this and I have no idea what to do to help him, and apparently their

is nothing to do to help him, but my daughters do not need to live in this type of fear and bullying from their brother. He is in classes one day a week where

he has to write with a pencil, along with those around him, and he seems to do okay there. He even said that he was starting to get used to the sound---But then

I had him watch the Today show interview last week, and that seemed to put it in his head that he can no longer tolerate the sounds in his class. (he is obviously

very vulnerable to suggestion).

I am also not sure exactly what the difference is between misophonia and hyperacusis. And I'm wondering if it could be hyperacusis. We were at a loud restaurant last week

with music playing and he just buried his head in his hand and said he couldn't take it. (nor could he take his sister coloring across the table from him despite the background

noises being so loud). Yesterday he was complaining of being hot while doing school, so I told him to turn on the personal fan that he just had to buy, but he said it was too loud. However following dinner we went to see Blue Man Group and that did not seem to bother him at all.

I am at a loss what to do----he is making our lives miserable for fear of making a wrong move. However, when we're not doing school, those same noises do not seem to bother him (except for the pencils/crayons and fingers on the headliner). Another one that bothers him is that I can not put my finger on a book page to follow along with reading or show him his place on a page, and now I cannot even point with a pen or he goes nuts. I would really like to put him in school since he overall seems to do okay when around others (but he has threatened to kill himself which is a whole different story). He also has developed a lot of OCD behaviors over the past year or so. I feel like I need to take him to a psychiatrist or a psychologist, but from what I've read here, they can't do anything to help. But how do I deal with his violence at home? I just can't excuse that because 'he can't help it'. (granted---he has not

physically hurt one of his sisters despite the things that have been hurled at them, but the verbal abuse is just as bad).

Ginger

[Guest guest]

" it seems to me that hyperacusis is not something that would come and go "

On the contrary, I think hyperacusis/audiosensitivity can vary considerably, and

that the main cause is low cochlear pressure, which will vary with hydration,

for example. To give a concrete personal example, I have occasional Meniere

Spectrum Disorder, and sometimes wake up with a feeling of fullness in one ear.

I then get travel sick on the bus, and can get quite nauseous from the low

background hum of an idling bus engine. This all clears up by the evening, and

does not recur for months. Whilst listening to the radio on that morning I am

audiosensitive, so have to turn the radio down.

Thanks Ginger for the good description of your son's problems. My definition of

audiosensitivity, which is associated with objective abnormalities of middle ear

muscle reflexes, is when someone entering a room where the TV/radio is on has to

turn down the volume, so I would expect to find typical reflex abnormalities in

him. Unfortunately, no one has bothered to follow up my work or even check it

out in 25 years. If your son has other symptoms of Meniere Spectrum Disorder, or

history of ear disease, then at least you will know where the trouble

originates. The audiosensitivity may even be medically treatable, but convincing

the otologist will be the hard part!

You are quite right to note the difficulty of distinguishing audiosensitivity

(hyperacusis) from misophonia, reinforcing my point that you can't explain one

without the other. In this case the misophonia looks like an overgeneralised

phobic conditioned response to sounds other than the original aversive ones.

**********************************************************************

>

> Hi Ginger, Have you explained all this to your pediatrician? My nephew with

behavioral problems (not misophonia) went through a number of evaluations first

to help figure out what was going on by pediatric neuro-evaluation specialists

or something like that (not physical tests, more behavioral observation kind of

things).  I don't know, but from your discription it does not sound like the

typical 4s/misophonia symtoms. I don't have hyperacusis, but it seems to me that

hyperacusis is not something that would come and go like that.

> I have absolutely no medical expertise, so please don't take this post as more

than my 02. cents worth. Maybe you could email Dr. , she might very well

be too busy right now to be keeping up with all the posts here currently.

>

>

>

> ________________________________

>

> To: Soundsensitivity

> Sent: Tuesday, September 13, 2011 12:35 PM

> Subject: Hyperacusis or misophonia?

>

>

>  

>

> Hello.  I came across this board several weeks ago while I was trying to find

what could be plaguing my son so.  He is 11 years old

> and a few years ago he started to become very bothered by the sounds of a

pencil or crayon writing.  It went away--but then has come back over the

summer.

> His trigger sounds are pencils, crayons, markers, someone putting their

fingers on the headliner of the car.  Eating sounds do not seem to bother him

so

> much unless he is trying to read or do his school work (I homeschool him). 

At that point, EVERY noise becomes a trigger and he just explodes.

> He throws pens across the room at his sisters (whoever is making the noise)

and yesterday when his little sister took a drink of water while he was trying

to do math, he clenched

> is pen in his hand and said he was going to jam it in her eye.  We cannot

keep living like this and I have no idea what to do to help him, and apparently

their

> is nothing to do to help him, but my daughters do not need to live in this

type of fear and bullying from their brother.  He is in classes one day a week

where

> he has to write with a pencil, along with those around him, and he seems to do

okay there.  He even said that he was starting to get used to the sound---But

then

> I had him watch the Today show interview last week, and that seemed to put it

in his head that he can no longer tolerate the sounds in his class. (he is

obviously

> very vulnerable to suggestion).

>  

> I am also not sure exactly what the difference is between misophonia and

hyperacusis.  And I'm wondering if it could be hyperacusis.  We were at a loud

restaurant last week

> with music playing and he just buried his head in his hand and said he

couldn't take it. (nor could he take his sister coloring across the table from

him despite the background

> noises being so loud).  Yesterday he was complaining of being hot while doing

school, so I told him to turn on the personal fan that he just had to buy, but

he said it was too loud. However following dinner we went to see Blue Man Group

and that did not seem to bother him at all.

>  

> I am at a loss what to do----he is making our lives miserable for fear of

making a wrong move.  However, when we're not doing school, those same noises

do not seem to bother him (except for the pencils/crayons and fingers on the

headliner).  Another one that bothers him is that I can not put my finger on a

book page to follow along with reading or show him his place on a page, and now

I cannot even point with a pen or he goes nuts. I would really like to put him

in school since he overall seems to do okay when around others (but he has

threatened to kill himself which is a whole different story).  He also has

developed a lot of OCD behaviors over the past year or so.  I feel like I need

to take him to a psychiatrist or a psychologist, but from what I've read here,

they can't do anything to help.  But how do I deal with his violence at home? 

I just can't excuse that because 'he can't help it'. (granted---he has not

physically hurt one of his

> sisters despite the things that have been hurled at them, but the verbal

abuse is just as bad).

>  

> Ginger

>