Re: Re: Introduction and Question on CBT therapy

[Guest guest]

Please don't give up on us! Yes, it's gotten a bit strong on the debating lately, but that's actually unusual. I'm a mother of a son with 4S and have been on this site for a while and there really is a ton of support and information here. I noticed there was no response to also, but I don't really have information on CBT for this (but still should have responded sooner when I saw no one else was). If you go through some of the previous posts though, you will find information from some people who have tried CBT. If I remember correctly, CBT mostly helps in dealing with the stress of the emotional and physical reactions from triggers, which doesn't really effect the 4S itself, but can still help the overall situation by possibly lowering stress levels.

SO . . . if there is anyone out there who has tried CBT to help with 4S who might be able to respond to with more information that would be wonderful. I know everyone here is super supportive. Meanwhile, welcome both and Threesisterisland - and hugs to you!!

-Mom

From: Soundsensitivity [mailto:Soundsensitivity ] On Behalf Of threesisterislandSent: Tuesday, February 15, 2011 7:37 PMTo: Soundsensitivity Subject: Re: Introduction and Question on CBT therapy

How sad it is that not one person has answered your post and inquiries about CBT... somebody must be able to give you an answer! I would except I simply don't know.I'm new here too and, so far, all I hear about is arguing and fighting over the same stuff, all week long, over and over again ...ridiculous stuff.I agree that something should be done to bring awareness to the public and health care providers regarding this syndrome. We all do! Nobody wants to live with this awful disorder, I mean who would!But the tone of one of these commentators is so rude, arrogant and abrasive that it's simply turning me off of this forum altogether. Certainly not the 'supportive' environment that it claims to be... >> Hello! My name is . I am new to the group and I have been reading a lot of the posts in an effort to understand what is "different" about me and what can I do about it. I am an ex-linebacker and a combat veteran so I am not too proud to sound crazy. I went through the roof of a car head first in a car accident when I was younger as well so it is not surprising that my initial doctor's visit last week had a lot of notes about head trauma and being around explosions. Maybe they will actually find a root cause for me, but I had issues that match up with 4S way before any of my head trauma possibilites. Something that caught my interest is the repetitive aspect of noises. Although I can't remember this far back, initially I probably was not intolerant to my parent's and brother's eating and it was the frequent exposure to it that led to my hatred of it. Ultimately it led to a "zero tolerance" policy in my mind. The same with chewing gum and the popping sound people make with it. Over time, a "zero tolerance" policy resulted from repeated exposure to it. I'm older now, 43, and over the course of my life other noises have found their way into the zero tolerance category. It always seems to be noises that have frequent repetition to them. Besides the eating and gum, my next worse trigger is dog's toe nails clacking on our hardwood floors. My wife and daughter managed to collect 9 dogs over the years. The toe nail noises were already unbearable to me when we had two dogs so you can imagine what they are doing to me now. One dog walking across the floor doesn't seem to bother me. If a second dog follows, or the dog turns around and makes a second pass, it's all over for me. I would get angry with my wife about even letting a dog in the house. I am very thankful for this support group because this was beginning to destroy a 20 year marriage. My wife understands now that when I say you are torturing me with these dogs I literally mean torture, so we are working together to try to make things better. There are radio commercials that are triggers for me also. They play so frequently, or they have someone typing on a keyboard repeatedly, I can't stand to hear them and immediately change the station when they come on. Are there CBT therapy's that put focus on the repetitive aspect? Is my hatred really a hatred of repetition more so than the actual noise itself? It is probably a combination of both by now.> When I encounter a trigger, the initial encounter makes me immediately take notice and it's as if I am preparing myself for it to happen a second time. When it happens again, my reaction escalates. The repetition results in further escalation. I read that this may be genetic so I called my sister and she confirmed that she has issues with people eating also and actually makes noise to distract herself from it. I experimented this weekend with something else I had read about the noises not bothering you if you were making the noise. I brought myself out of hibernation from my home office and fed the dogs myself which seemed to help with the toe nails as they became part of what I was working on as opposed to being interrupted by them. I realize this will only work at feeding time and I still have to figure out a way to deal with the rest of the time. Same thing with dishes, instead of hearing the ear piercing noises all the way at the other end of the house while barricaded in my office because I know my wife is intentionally banging them together (which I actually thought she was doing until I stumbled on to the sensitivity info web page), I took over unloading the dish washer and sure enough it didn't bother me if I was the one making the noise with them.> I know I'm rambling so I will conclude with the general question about CBT therapy with an emphasis on correcting issues with repetition. Does such a therapy exist? Or even better, do we already have a checklist of things I should be doing? From what I read, I think I need to go through the process of going to the doctor which I started last week. I have been referred to an ENT and was told they will probably want to do a scan of my head with my history of head trauma. I guess I forgot to mention that I also have tinnitus but I never considered it bad enough to do anything about. That is the reason for my referral to the ENT not because I told them the sound of my dogs walking across the floor makes me want to pick one of them up and throw it out the window. Once I get to the ENT I have articles on 4S I want to share with them so they are in tune to my issues. This is where I get a bit lost. Will I be prescribed some type of noise generator in conjunction with a CBT therapy? I welcome any advice the group has to offer to the new guy. My gut tells me this is all related to how my mind reacted to the initial eating problem when I was little and now all sounds that I think are not necessary and tend to repeat end up as a trigger. Potato chip bag noise or any plastic bag noise puts me over the edge. I have had to get up and leave a Mexican Restaurant before because I think I could hear every single person in the entire restaurant eating their tortilla chips as loud as they could. Help!>

[Guest guest]

I know absolutely nothing about CBT. I don't think it's that people are being rude and not answering or just ignoring the post... I am sure there are plenty of people in this group who have never gone through CBT.†.:. Mae .:.†

You have not seen Christ, but still you love him. You cannot see him now, but you believe in him. So you are filled with a joy that cannot be explained, a joy full of glory. And you are receiving the goal of your faith -- the salvation of your souls. -1 1:8-9 (NCV)To: Soundsensitivity From: threesisterisland@...Date: Wed, 16 Feb 2011 03:37:24 +0000Subject: Re: Introduction and Question on CBT therapy

How sad it is that not one person has answered your post and inquiries about CBT... somebody must be able to give you an answer! I would except I simply don't know.

I'm new here too and, so far, all I hear about is arguing and fighting over the same stuff, all week long, over and over again ...ridiculous stuff.

I agree that something should be done to bring awareness to the public and health care providers regarding this syndrome. We all do! Nobody wants to live with this awful disorder, I mean who would!

But the tone of one of these commentators is so rude, arrogant and abrasive that it's simply turning me off of this forum altogether. Certainly not the 'supportive' environment that it claims to be...

>

> Hello! My name is . I am new to the group and I have been reading a lot of the posts in an effort to understand what is "different" about me and what can I do about it. I am an ex-linebacker and a combat veteran so I am not too proud to sound crazy. I went through the roof of a car head first in a car accident when I was younger as well so it is not surprising that my initial doctor's visit last week had a lot of notes about head trauma and being around explosions. Maybe they will actually find a root cause for me, but I had issues that match up with 4S way before any of my head trauma possibilites. Something that caught my interest is the repetitive aspect of noises. Although I can't remember this far back, initially I probably was not intolerant to my parent's and brother's eating and it was the frequent exposure to it that led to my hatred of it. Ultimately it led to a "zero tolerance" policy in my mind. The same with chewing gum and the popping sound people make with it. Over time, a "zero tolerance" policy resulted from repeated exposure to it. I'm older now, 43, and over the course of my life other noises have found their way into the zero tolerance category. It always seems to be noises that have frequent repetition to them. Besides the eating and gum, my next worse trigger is dog's toe nails clacking on our hardwood floors. My wife and daughter managed to collect 9 dogs over the years. The toe nail noises were already unbearable to me when we had two dogs so you can imagine what they are doing to me now. One dog walking across the floor doesn't seem to bother me. If a second dog follows, or the dog turns around and makes a second pass, it's all over for me. I would get angry with my wife about even letting a dog in the house. I am very thankful for this support group because this was beginning to destroy a 20 year marriage. My wife understands now that when I say you are torturing me with these dogs I literally mean torture, so we are working together to try to make things better. There are radio commercials that are triggers for me also. They play so frequently, or they have someone typing on a keyboard repeatedly, I can't stand to hear them and immediately change the station when they come on. Are there CBT therapy's that put focus on the repetitive aspect? Is my hatred really a hatred of repetition more so than the actual noise itself? It is probably a combination of both by now.

> When I encounter a trigger, the initial encounter makes me immediately take notice and it's as if I am preparing myself for it to happen a second time. When it happens again, my reaction escalates. The repetition results in further escalation. I read that this may be genetic so I called my sister and she confirmed that she has issues with people eating also and actually makes noise to distract herself from it. I experimented this weekend with something else I had read about the noises not bothering you if you were making the noise. I brought myself out of hibernation from my home office and fed the dogs myself which seemed to help with the toe nails as they became part of what I was working on as opposed to being interrupted by them. I realize this will only work at feeding time and I still have to figure out a way to deal with the rest of the time. Same thing with dishes, instead of hearing the ear piercing noises all the way at the other end of the house while barricaded in my office because I know my wife is intentionally banging them together (which I actually thought she was doing until I stumbled on to the sensitivity info web page), I took over unloading the dish washer and sure enough it didn't bother me if I was the one making the noise with them.

> I know I'm rambling so I will conclude with the general question about CBT therapy with an emphasis on correcting issues with repetition. Does such a therapy exist? Or even better, do we already have a checklist of things I should be doing? From what I read, I think I need to go through the process of going to the doctor which I started last week. I have been referred to an ENT and was told they will probably want to do a scan of my head with my history of head trauma. I guess I forgot to mention that I also have tinnitus but I never considered it bad enough to do anything about. That is the reason for my referral to the ENT not because I told them the sound of my dogs walking across the floor makes me want to pick one of them up and throw it out the window. Once I get to the ENT I have articles on 4S I want to share with them so they are in tune to my issues. This is where I get a bit lost. Will I be prescribed some type of noise generator in conjunction with a CBT therapy? I welcome any advice the group has to offer to the new guy. My gut tells me this is all related to how my mind reacted to the initial eating problem when I was little and now all sounds that I think are not necessary and tend to repeat end up as a trigger. Potato chip bag noise or any plastic bag noise puts me over the edge. I have had to get up and leave a Mexican Restaurant before because I think I could hear every single person in the entire restaurant eating their tortilla chips as loud as they could. Help!

>

[Guest guest]

I responded privately welcoming him and offering a link to my post on the public site regarding will power, I also stated I would respond when I had time to answer his questions more directly which I will do tonight when I get home from work.The heated debate is uncommon and normally this group is proactive in solutions and help but this has been subdued due to the complications over the past week. Although uncomfortable I believe the issue has been temporarily resolved. ( Regarding the name) and we can again focus on support.R Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone on 3Sender: Soundsensitivity Date: Wed, 16 Feb 2011 03:37:24 -0000To: <Soundsensitivity >ReplyTo: Soundsensitivity Subject: Re: Introduction and Question on CBT therapy How sad it is that not one person has answered your post and inquiries about CBT... somebody must be able to give you an answer! I would except I simply don't know.I'm new here too and, so far, all I hear about is arguing and fighting over the same stuff, all week long, over and over again ...ridiculous stuff.I agree that something should be done to bring awareness to the public and health care providers regarding this syndrome. We all do! Nobody wants to live with this awful disorder, I mean who would!But the tone of one of these commentators is so rude, arrogant and abrasive that it's simply turning me off of this forum altogether. Certainly not the 'supportive' environment that it claims to be... >> Hello! My name is . I am new to the group and I have been reading a lot of the posts in an effort to understand what is " different " about me and what can I do about it. I am an ex-linebacker and a combat veteran so I am not too proud to sound crazy. I went through the roof of a car head first in a car accident when I was younger as well so it is not surprising that my initial doctor's visit last week had a lot of notes about head trauma and being around explosions. Maybe they will actually find a root cause for me, but I had issues that match up with 4S way before any of my head trauma possibilites. Something that caught my interest is the repetitive aspect of noises. Although I can't remember this far back, initially I probably was not intolerant to my parent's and brother's eating and it was the frequent exposure to it that led to my hatred of it. Ultimately it led to a " zero tolerance " policy in my mind. The same with chewing gum and the popping sound people make with it. Over time, a " zero tolerance " policy resulted from repeated exposure to it. I'm older now, 43, and over the course of my life other noises have found their way into the zero tolerance category. It always seems to be noises that have frequent repetition to them. Besides the eating and gum, my next worse trigger is dog's toe nails clacking on our hardwood floors. My wife and daughter managed to collect 9 dogs over the years. The toe nail noises were already unbearable to me when we had two dogs so you can imagine what they are doing to me now. One dog walking across the floor doesn't seem to bother me. If a second dog follows, or the dog turns around and makes a second pass, it's all over for me. I would get angry with my wife about even letting a dog in the house. I am very thankful for this support group because this was beginning to destroy a 20 year marriage. My wife understands now that when I say you are torturing me with these dogs I literally mean torture, so we are working together to try to make things better. There are radio commercials that are triggers for me also. They play so frequently, or they have someone typing on a keyboard repeatedly, I can't stand to hear them and immediately change the station when they come on. Are there CBT therapy's that put focus on the repetitive aspect? Is my hatred really a hatred of repetition more so than the actual noise itself? It is probably a combination of both by now.> When I encounter a trigger, the initial encounter makes me immediately take notice and it's as if I am preparing myself for it to happen a second time. When it happens again, my reaction escalates. The repetition results in further escalation. I read that this may be genetic so I called my sister and she confirmed that she has issues with people eating also and actually makes noise to distract herself from it. I experimented this weekend with something else I had read about the noises not bothering you if you were making the noise. I brought myself out of hibernation from my home office and fed the dogs myself which seemed to help with the toe nails as they became part of what I was working on as opposed to being interrupted by them. I realize this will only work at feeding time and I still have to figure out a way to deal with the rest of the time. Same thing with dishes, instead of hearing the ear piercing noises all the way at the other end of the house while barricaded in my office because I know my wife is intentionally banging them together (which I actually thought she was doing until I stumbled on to the sensitivity info web page), I took over unloading the dish washer and sure enough it didn't bother me if I was the one making the noise with them.> I know I'm rambling so I will conclude with the general question about CBT therapy with an emphasis on correcting issues with repetition. Does such a therapy exist? Or even better, do we already have a checklist of things I should be doing? From what I read, I think I need to go through the process of going to the doctor which I started last week. I have been referred to an ENT and was told they will probably want to do a scan of my head with my history of head trauma. I guess I forgot to mention that I also have tinnitus but I never considered it bad enough to do anything about. That is the reason for my referral to the ENT not because I told them the sound of my dogs walking across the floor makes me want to pick one of them up and throw it out the window. Once I get to the ENT I have articles on 4S I want to share with them so they are in tune to my issues. This is where I get a bit lost. Will I be prescribed some type of noise generator in conjunction with a CBT therapy? I welcome any advice the group has to offer to the new guy. My gut tells me this is all related to how my mind reacted to the initial eating problem when I was little and now all sounds that I think are not necessary and tend to repeat end up as a trigger. Potato chip bag noise or any plastic bag noise puts me over the edge. I have had to get up and leave a Mexican Restaurant before because I think I could hear every single person in the entire restaurant eating their tortilla chips as loud as they could. Help!>

[Guest guest]

Yes, welcome to both and Threesisterisland. I have never tried CBT for 4S nor have I ever used sound generators. I wear earplugs or listen to an ipod when necessary and the rest of the time am trying to replace negative feelings with positive feelings when I hear noises that bother me. Sorry I can't be of any other assistance but is right I recall reading older posts about CBT and I'm sure those who've tried it for 4S will chime in. HeidiSent from my iPhone

Please don't give up on us! Yes, it's gotten a bit strong on the debating lately, but that's actually unusual. I'm a mother of a son with 4S and have been on this site for a while and there really is a ton of support and information here. I noticed there was no response to also, but I don't really have information on CBT for this (but still should have responded sooner when I saw no one else was). If you go through some of the previous posts though, you will find information from some people who have tried CBT. If I remember correctly, CBT mostly helps in dealing with the stress of the emotional and physical reactions from triggers, which doesn't really effect the 4S itself, but can still help the overall situation by possibly lowering stress levels.

SO . . . if there is anyone out there who has tried CBT to help with 4S who might be able to respond to with more information that would be wonderful. I know everyone here is super supportive. Meanwhile, welcome both and Threesisterisland - and hugs to you!!

-Mom

From: Soundsensitivity [mailto:Soundsensitivity ] On Behalf Of threesisterislandSent: Tuesday, February 15, 2011 7:37 PMTo: Soundsensitivity Subject: Re: Introduction and Question on CBT therapy

How sad it is that not one person has answered your post and inquiries about CBT... somebody must be able to give you an answer! I would except I simply don't know.I'm new here too and, so far, all I hear about is arguing and fighting over the same stuff, all week long, over and over again ...ridiculous stuff.I agree that something should be done to bring awareness to the public and health care providers regarding this syndrome. We all do! Nobody wants to live with this awful disorder, I mean who would!But the tone of one of these commentators is so rude, arrogant and abrasive that it's simply turning me off of this forum altogether. Certainly not the 'supportive' environment that it claims to be... >> Hello! My name is . I am new to the group and I have been reading a lot of the posts in an effort to understand what is "different" about me and what can I do about it. I am an ex-linebacker and a combat veteran so I am not too proud to sound crazy. I went through the roof of a car head first in a car accident when I was younger as well so it is not surprising that my initial doctor's visit last week had a lot of notes about head trauma and being around explosions. Maybe they will actually find a root cause for me, but I had issues that match up with 4S way before any of my head trauma possibilites. Something that caught my interest is the repetitive aspect of noises. Although I can't remember this far back, initially I probably was not intolerant to my parent's and brother's eating and it was the frequent exposure to it that led to my hatred of it. Ultimately it led to a "zero tolerance" policy in my mind. The same with chewing gum and the popping sound people make with it. Over time, a "zero tolerance" policy resulted from repeated exposure to it. I'm older now, 43, and over the course of my life other noises have found their way into the zero tolerance category. It always seems to be noises that have frequent repetition to them. Besides the eating and gum, my next worse trigger is dog's toe nails clacking on our hardwood floors. My wife and daughter managed to collect 9 dogs over the years. The toe nail noises were already unbearable to me when we had two dogs so you can imagine what they are doing to me now. One dog walking across the floor doesn't seem to bother me. If a second dog follows, or the dog turns around and makes a second pass, it's all over for me. I would get angry with my wife about even letting a dog in the house. I am very thankful for this support group because this was beginning to destroy a 20 year marriage. My wife understands now that when I say you are torturing me with these dogs I literally mean torture, so we are working together to try to make things better. There are radio commercials that are triggers for me also. They play so frequently, or they have someone typing on a keyboard repeatedly, I can't stand to hear them and immediately change the station when they come on. Are there CBT therapy's that put focus on the repetitive aspect? Is my hatred really a hatred of repetition more so than the actual noise itself? It is probably a combination of both by now.> When I encounter a trigger, the initial encounter makes me immediately take notice and it's as if I am preparing myself for it to happen a second time. When it happens again, my reaction escalates. The repetition results in further escalation. I read that this may be genetic so I called my sister and she confirmed that she has issues with people eating also and actually makes noise to distract herself from it. I experimented this weekend with something else I had read about the noises not bothering you if you were making the noise. I brought myself out of hibernation from my home office and fed the dogs myself which seemed to help with the toe nails as they became part of what I was working on as opposed to being interrupted by them. I realize this will only work at feeding time and I still have to figure out a way to deal with the rest of the time. Same thing with dishes, instead of hearing the ear piercing noises all the way at the other end of the house while barricaded in my office because I know my wife is intentionally banging them together (which I actually thought she was doing until I stumbled on to the sensitivity info web page), I took over unloading the dish washer and sure enough it didn't bother me if I was the one making the noise with them.> I know I'm rambling so I will conclude with the general question about CBT therapy with an emphasis on correcting issues with repetition. Does such a therapy exist? Or even better, do we already have a checklist of things I should be doing? From what I read, I think I need to go through the process of going to the doctor which I started last week. I have been referred to an ENT and was told they will probably want to do a scan of my head with my history of head trauma. I guess I forgot to mention that I also have tinnitus but I never considered it bad enough to do anything about. That is the reason for my referral to the ENT not because I told them the sound of my dogs walking across the floor makes me want to pick one of them up and throw it out the window. Once I get to the ENT I have articles on 4S I want to share with them so they are in tune to my issues. This is where I get a bit lost. Will I be prescribed some type of noise generator in conjunction with a CBT therapy? I welcome any advice the group has to offer to the new guy. My gut tells me this is all related to how my mind reacted to the initial eating problem when I was little and now all sounds that I think are not necessary and tend to repeat end up as a trigger. Potato chip bag noise or any plastic bag noise puts me over the edge. I have had to get up and leave a Mexican Restaurant before because I think I could hear every single person in the entire restaurant eating their tortilla chips as loud as they could. Help!>

[Guest guest]

Yes, threesisterisland please ignore anything you find rude. I certainly am trying. We are listening and are here to help and to support each other in any way we can. I am always so happy to see another person has found this site and does not have to think for one more day they are the only person with this issue. Sent from my iPhone

Interesting.It seems that threesisterisland does not prefer the posting style of one of the participants here. One of the great things about this board is that if you do not care for somebody's posting style, you do not have to read his or her posts. Very simple and incredibly empowering when you think about it. Threesisterisland is allowing a the style of a single poster here to turn him or off to an entire forum. Why? When all of the control lies with threesisterisland!!!OK. The topic is CBT. Would anybody care to identify which of the ten classic cognitive distortions in the CBT literature it is that threesisterisland is displaying in the post quoted directly below? Maybe that would be a good way to start addressing the very important concerns that brings to the table in his post.smn> >> > Hello! My name is . I am new to the group and I have been reading a lot of the posts in an effort to understand what is "different" about me and what can I do about it. I am an ex-linebacker and a combat veteran so I am not too proud to sound crazy. I went through the roof of a car head first in a car accident when I was younger as well so it is not surprising that my initial doctor's visit last week had a lot of notes about head trauma and being around explosions. Maybe they will actually find a root cause for me, but I had issues that match up with 4S way before any of my head trauma possibilites. Something that caught my interest is the repetitive aspect of noises. Although I can't remember this far back, initially I probably was not intolerant to my parent's and brother's eating and it was the frequent exposure to it that led to my hatred of it. Ultimately it led to a "zero tolerance" policy in my mind. The same with chewing gum and the popping sound people make with it. Over time, a "zero tolerance" policy resulted from repeated exposure to it. I'm older now, 43, and over the course of my life other noises have found their way into the zero tolerance category. It always seems to be noises that have frequent repetition to them. Besides the eating and gum, my next worse trigger is dog's toe nails clacking on our hardwood floors. My wife and daughter managed to collect 9 dogs over the years. The toe nail noises were already unbearable to me when we had two dogs so you can imagine what they are doing to me now. One dog walking across the floor doesn't seem to bother me. If a second dog follows, or the dog turns around and makes a second pass, it's all over for me. I would get angry with my wife about even letting a dog in the house. I am very thankful for this support group because this was beginning to destroy a 20 year marriage. My wife understands now that when I say you are torturing me with these dogs I literally mean torture, so we are working together to try to make things better. There are radio commercials that are triggers for me also. They play so frequently, or they have someone typing on a keyboard repeatedly, I can't stand to hear them and immediately change the station when they come on. Are there CBT therapy's that put focus on the repetitive aspect? Is my hatred really a hatred of repetition more so than the actual noise itself? It is probably a combination of both by now.> > When I encounter a trigger, the initial encounter makes me immediately take notice and it's as if I am preparing myself for it to happen a second time. When it happens again, my reaction escalates. The repetition results in further escalation. I read that this may be genetic so I called my sister and she confirmed that she has issues with people eating also and actually makes noise to distract herself from it. I experimented this weekend with something else I had read about the noises not bothering you if you were making the noise. I brought myself out of hibernation from my home office and fed the dogs myself which seemed to help with the toe nails as they became part of what I was working on as opposed to being interrupted by them. I realize this will only work at feeding time and I still have to figure out a way to deal with the rest of the time. Same thing with dishes, instead of hearing the ear piercing noises all the way at the other end of the house while barricaded in my office because I know my wife is intentionally banging them together (which I actually thought she was doing until I stumbled on to the sensitivity info web page), I took over unloading the dish washer and sure enough it didn't bother me if I was the one making the noise with them.> > I know I'm rambling so I will conclude with the general question about CBT therapy with an emphasis on correcting issues with repetition. Does such a therapy exist? Or even better, do we already have a checklist of things I should be doing? From what I read, I think I need to go through the process of going to the doctor which I started last week. I have been referred to an ENT and was told they will probably want to do a scan of my head with my history of head trauma. I guess I forgot to mention that I also have tinnitus but I never considered it bad enough to do anything about. That is the reason for my referral to the ENT not because I told them the sound of my dogs walking across the floor makes me want to pick one of them up and throw it out the window. Once I get to the ENT I have articles on 4S I want to share with them so they are in tune to my issues. This is where I get a bit lost. Will I be prescribed some type of noise generator in conjunction with a CBT therapy? I welcome any advice the group has to offer to the new guy. My gut tells me this is all related to how my mind reacted to the initial eating problem when I was little and now all sounds that I think are not necessary and tend to repeat end up as a trigger. Potato chip bag noise or any plastic bag noise puts me over the edge. I have had to get up and leave a Mexican Restaurant before because I think I could hear every single person in the entire restaurant eating their tortilla chips as loud as they could. Help!> >>

[Guest guest]

Despite his abrupt nature, Dr Nagler has made some very credible points. I agree with his parting comments. I believe we do have a lot more control over this condition then we give our selves credit for, I myself have been lucky enough to become liberated in part from the negative symptoms this condition imposes and that was through the power of thought alone. Its not easy but it is possible and I will never go back to where I was.

I personally feel that we should take the positive out of his messages, band together and really push to make a difference. I feel that each and everyone of us has the ability to rise up, be heard and make a change for the better. 

Working together, I believe we have what it takes to solve this puzzle.  

 

OK.  I'll voluntarily withdraw.I am a mathematician and a surgeon - an analytical fellow who (obviously) is not particularly " touchy-feely. "   I came here to find more about 4S.  And after spending hours upon hours meticulously going though some 600 posts line-by-line, I get it.  I really get it.  There is no question in my mind that you have a very real condition and are truly suffering.  This ain't Little League.

Along the way I have also shared a thought or two - maybe not as elegantly stated as some might have preferred, but it is what it is.  And I am absolutely convinced that you - every single one of you - has much more control than you give yourselves credit for.

Allow me to offer a parting thought.When I didn't know where to turn or what to do because of the severe intrusive tinnitus that had literally destroyed stolen my life, I asked my clergyman for advice.  Here is what he said to me:

Remember when you were a kid and your mommy bought you a jigsaw puzzle?  Remember how excited you were?  You'd take the top off the box, and set it on its side so that you could see what the " final product " was supposed to look like.  Then you'd dump all 375 interlocking pieces on the floor and immediately turn them cardboard-side-down, so you could see the colors and designs.  Then what did you do?  Right!  You assembled the border.   Finally you filled in the pieces so that the jigsaw puzzle wound up looking just like the cover of the box.  What satisfaction!

He continued:The world may be like the jigsaw puzzle mentioned above - - with a few very minor changes.  First of all, only God gets to see the cover of the box, not man.  God sees the picture side of the pieces; man only sees the cardboard side.  Oh yes, two additional minor differences.  There is no border, and the number of pieces is infinite.  Other than that, it's just like the jigsaw puzzle your mommy bought you long ago.

That story has stayed with me all these years.  I have managed to solve a tiny piece of my puzzle.  My parting wish is that each of you will, in time, be able to solve a tiny piece of yours.Best to all -

smn> > >

> > > Hello! My name is . I am new to the group and I have been> reading a lot of the posts in an effort to understand what is> " different " about me and what can I do about it. I am an ex-linebacker

> and a combat veteran so I am not too proud to sound crazy. I went> through the roof of a car head first in a car accident when I was> younger as well so it is not surprising that my initial doctor's visit

> last week had a lot of notes about head trauma and being around> explosions. Maybe they will actually find a root cause for me, but I> had issues that match up with 4S way before any of my head trauma

> possibilites. Something that caught my interest is the repetitive> aspect of noises. Although I can't remember this far back, initially I> probably was not intolerant to my parent's and brother's eating and it

> was the frequent exposure to it that led to my hatred of it. Ultimately> it led to a " zero tolerance " policy in my mind. The same with chewing> gum and the popping sound people make with it. Over time, a " zero

> tolerance " policy resulted from repeated exposure to it. I'm older now,> 43, and over the course of my life other noises have found their way> into the zero tolerance category. It always seems to be noises that

> have frequent repetition to them. Besides the eating and gum, my next> worse trigger is dog's toe nails clacking on our hardwood floors. My> wife and daughter managed to collect 9 dogs over the years. The toe

> nail noises were already unbearable to me when we had two dogs so you> can imagine what they are doing to me now. One dog walking across the> floor doesn't seem to bother me. If a second dog follows, or the dog

> turns around and makes a second pass, it's all over for me. I would get> angry with my wife about even letting a dog in the house. I am very> thankful for this support group because this was beginning to destroy a

> 20 year marriage. My wife understands now that when I say you are> torturing me with these dogs I literally mean torture, so we are working> together to try to make things better. There are radio commercials that

> are triggers for me also. They play so frequently, or they have someone> typing on a keyboard repeatedly, I can't stand to hear them and> immediately change the station when they come on. Are there CBT

> therapy's that put focus on the repetitive aspect? Is my hatred really> a hatred of repetition more so than the actual noise itself? It is> probably a combination of both by now.> > > When I encounter a trigger, the initial encounter makes me

> immediately take notice and it's as if I am preparing myself for it to> happen a second time. When it happens again, my reaction escalates. > The repetition results in further escalation. I read that this may be

> genetic so I called my sister and she confirmed that she has issues with> people eating also and actually makes noise to distract herself from it.> I experimented this weekend with something else I had read about the

> noises not bothering you if you were making the noise. I brought myself> out of hibernation from my home office and fed the dogs myself which> seemed to help with the toe nails as they became part of what I was

> working on as opposed to being interrupted by them. I realize this will> only work at feeding time and I still have to figure out a way to deal> with the rest of the time. Same thing with dishes, instead of hearing

> the ear piercing noises all the way at the other end of the house while> barricaded in my office because I know my wife is intentionally banging> them together (which I actually thought she was doing until I stumbled

> on to the sensitivity info web page), I took over unloading the dish> washer and sure enough it didn't bother me if I was the one making the> noise with them.> > > I know I'm rambling so I will conclude with the general question

> about CBT therapy with an emphasis on correcting issues with repetition.> Does such a therapy exist? Or even better, do we already have a> checklist of things I should be doing? From what I read, I think I need

> to go through the process of going to the doctor which I started last> week. I have been referred to an ENT and was told they will probably> want to do a scan of my head with my history of head trauma. I guess I

> forgot to mention that I also have tinnitus but I never considered it> bad enough to do anything about. That is the reason for my referral to> the ENT not because I told them the sound of my dogs walking across the

> floor makes me want to pick one of them up and throw it out the window. > Once I get to the ENT I have articles on 4S I want to share with them so> they are in tune to my issues. This is where I get a bit lost. Will I

> be prescribed some type of noise generator in conjunction with a CBT> therapy? I welcome any advice the group has to offer to the new guy. > My gut tells me this is all related to how my mind reacted to the

> initial eating problem when I was little and now all sounds that I think> are not necessary and tend to repeat end up as a trigger. Potato chip> bag noise or any plastic bag noise puts me over the edge. I have had to

> get up and leave a Mexican Restaurant before because I think I could> hear every single person in the entire restaurant eating their tortilla> chips as loud as they could. Help!> > >> >

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Cat,Please do not withdraw! I don't always agree with everything you post, but that doesn't mean that I don't respect your opinions. I actually have learned a lot from the information you have put forth. I too am a Mathematician and Senior Software Engineer for the last 25 years and I guess I appreciate your logical approach to discussions. Since I am an Aspie, I guess that makes sense LOL!Cheers,JRSent from my iPad

OK. I'll voluntarily withdraw.I am a mathematician and a surgeon - an analytical fellow who (obviously) is not particularly "touchy-feely." I came here to find more about 4S. And after spending hours upon hours meticulously going though some 600 posts line-by-line, I get it. I really get it. There is no question in my mind that you have a very real condition and are truly suffering. This ain't Little League.Along the way I have also shared a thought or two - maybe not as elegantly stated as some might have preferred, but it is what it is. And I am absolutely convinced that you - every single one of you - has much more control than you give yourselves credit for.Allow me to offer a parting thought.When I didn't know where to turn or what to do because of the severe intrusive tinnitus that had literally destroyed stolen my life, I asked my clergyman for advice. Here is what he said to me:Remember when you were a kid and your mommy bought you a jigsaw puzzle? Remember how excited you were? You'd take the top off the box, and set it on its side so that you could see what the "final product" was supposed to look like. Then you'd dump all 375 interlocking pieces on the floor and immediately turn them cardboard-side-down, so you could see the colors and designs. Then what did you do? Right! You assembled the border. Finally you filled in the pieces so that the jigsaw puzzle wound up looking just like the cover of the box. What satisfaction!He continued:The world may be like the jigsaw puzzle mentioned above - - with a few very minor changes. First of all, only God gets to see the cover of the box, not man. God sees the picture side of the pieces; man only sees the cardboard side. Oh yes, two additional minor differences. There is no border, and the number of pieces is infinite. Other than that, it's just like the jigsaw puzzle your mommy bought you long ago.That story has stayed with me all these years. I have managed to solve a tiny piece of my puzzle. My parting wish is that each of you will, in time, be able to solve a tiny piece of yours.Best to all -smn> > >> > > Hello! My name is . I am new to the group and I have been> reading a lot of the posts in an effort to understand what is> "different" about me and what can I do about it. I am an ex-linebacker> and a combat veteran so I am not too proud to sound crazy. I went> through the roof of a car head first in a car accident when I was> younger as well so it is not surprising that my initial doctor's visit> last week had a lot of notes about head trauma and being around> explosions. Maybe they will actually find a root cause for me, but I> had issues that match up with 4S way before any of my head trauma> possibilites. Something that caught my interest is the repetitive> aspect of noises. Although I can't remember this far back, initially I> probably was not intolerant to my parent's and brother's eating and it> was the frequent exposure to it that led to my hatred of it. Ultimately> it led to a "zero tolerance" policy in my mind. The same with chewing> gum and the popping sound people make with it. Over time, a "zero> tolerance" policy resulted from repeated exposure to it. I'm older now,> 43, and over the course of my life other noises have found their way> into the zero tolerance category. It always seems to be noises that> have frequent repetition to them. Besides the eating and gum, my next> worse trigger is dog's toe nails clacking on our hardwood floors. My> wife and daughter managed to collect 9 dogs over the years. The toe> nail noises were already unbearable to me when we had two dogs so you> can imagine what they are doing to me now. One dog walking across the> floor doesn't seem to bother me. If a second dog follows, or the dog> turns around and makes a second pass, it's all over for me. I would get> angry with my wife about even letting a dog in the house. I am very> thankful for this support group because this was beginning to destroy a> 20 year marriage. My wife understands now that when I say you are> torturing me with these dogs I literally mean torture, so we are working> together to try to make things better. There are radio commercials that> are triggers for me also. They play so frequently, or they have someone> typing on a keyboard repeatedly, I can't stand to hear them and> immediately change the station when they come on. Are there CBT> therapy's that put focus on the repetitive aspect? Is my hatred really> a hatred of repetition more so than the actual noise itself? It is> probably a combination of both by now.> > > When I encounter a trigger, the initial encounter makes me> immediately take notice and it's as if I am preparing myself for it to> happen a second time. When it happens again, my reaction escalates. > The repetition results in further escalation. I read that this may be> genetic so I called my sister and she confirmed that she has issues with> people eating also and actually makes noise to distract herself from it.> I experimented this weekend with something else I had read about the> noises not bothering you if you were making the noise. I brought myself> out of hibernation from my home office and fed the dogs myself which> seemed to help with the toe nails as they became part of what I was> working on as opposed to being interrupted by them. I realize this will> only work at feeding time and I still have to figure out a way to deal> with the rest of the time. Same thing with dishes, instead of hearing> the ear piercing noises all the way at the other end of the house while> barricaded in my office because I know my wife is intentionally banging> them together (which I actually thought she was doing until I stumbled> on to the sensitivity info web page), I took over unloading the dish> washer and sure enough it didn't bother me if I was the one making the> noise with them.> > > I know I'm rambling so I will conclude with the general question> about CBT therapy with an emphasis on correcting issues with repetition.> Does such a therapy exist? Or even better, do we already have a> checklist of things I should be doing? From what I read, I think I need> to go through the process of going to the doctor which I started last> week. I have been referred to an ENT and was told they will probably> want to do a scan of my head with my history of head trauma. I guess I> forgot to mention that I also have tinnitus but I never considered it> bad enough to do anything about. That is the reason for my referral to> the ENT not because I told them the sound of my dogs walking across the> floor makes me want to pick one of them up and throw it out the window. > Once I get to the ENT I have articles on 4S I want to share with them so> they are in tune to my issues. This is where I get a bit lost. Will I> be prescribed some type of noise generator in conjunction with a CBT> therapy? I welcome any advice the group has to offer to the new guy. > My gut tells me this is all related to how my mind reacted to the> initial eating problem when I was little and now all sounds that I think> are not necessary and tend to repeat end up as a trigger. Potato chip> bag noise or any plastic bag noise puts me over the edge. I have had to> get up and leave a Mexican Restaurant before because I think I could> hear every single person in the entire restaurant eating their tortilla> chips as loud as they could. Help!> > >> >>

[Guest guest]

Hi Cat,Please do not withdraw! I don't always agree with everything you post, but that doesn't mean that I don't respect your opinions. I actually have learned a lot from the information you have put forth. I too am a Mathematician and Senior Software Engineer for the last 25 years and I guess I appreciate your logical approach to discussions. Since I am an Aspie, I guess that makes sense LOL!Cheers,JRSent from my iPad

OK. I'll voluntarily withdraw.I am a mathematician and a surgeon - an analytical fellow who (obviously) is not particularly "touchy-feely." I came here to find more about 4S. And after spending hours upon hours meticulously going though some 600 posts line-by-line, I get it. I really get it. There is no question in my mind that you have a very real condition and are truly suffering. This ain't Little League.Along the way I have also shared a thought or two - maybe not as elegantly stated as some might have preferred, but it is what it is. And I am absolutely convinced that you - every single one of you - has much more control than you give yourselves credit for.Allow me to offer a parting thought.When I didn't know where to turn or what to do because of the severe intrusive tinnitus that had literally destroyed stolen my life, I asked my clergyman for advice. Here is what he said to me:Remember when you were a kid and your mommy bought you a jigsaw puzzle? Remember how excited you were? You'd take the top off the box, and set it on its side so that you could see what the "final product" was supposed to look like. Then you'd dump all 375 interlocking pieces on the floor and immediately turn them cardboard-side-down, so you could see the colors and designs. Then what did you do? Right! You assembled the border. Finally you filled in the pieces so that the jigsaw puzzle wound up looking just like the cover of the box. What satisfaction!He continued:The world may be like the jigsaw puzzle mentioned above - - with a few very minor changes. First of all, only God gets to see the cover of the box, not man. God sees the picture side of the pieces; man only sees the cardboard side. Oh yes, two additional minor differences. There is no border, and the number of pieces is infinite. Other than that, it's just like the jigsaw puzzle your mommy bought you long ago.That story has stayed with me all these years. I have managed to solve a tiny piece of my puzzle. My parting wish is that each of you will, in time, be able to solve a tiny piece of yours.Best to all -smn> > >> > > Hello! My name is . I am new to the group and I have been> reading a lot of the posts in an effort to understand what is> "different" about me and what can I do about it. I am an ex-linebacker> and a combat veteran so I am not too proud to sound crazy. I went> through the roof of a car head first in a car accident when I was> younger as well so it is not surprising that my initial doctor's visit> last week had a lot of notes about head trauma and being around> explosions. Maybe they will actually find a root cause for me, but I> had issues that match up with 4S way before any of my head trauma> possibilites. Something that caught my interest is the repetitive> aspect of noises. Although I can't remember this far back, initially I> probably was not intolerant to my parent's and brother's eating and it> was the frequent exposure to it that led to my hatred of it. Ultimately> it led to a "zero tolerance" policy in my mind. The same with chewing> gum and the popping sound people make with it. Over time, a "zero> tolerance" policy resulted from repeated exposure to it. I'm older now,> 43, and over the course of my life other noises have found their way> into the zero tolerance category. It always seems to be noises that> have frequent repetition to them. Besides the eating and gum, my next> worse trigger is dog's toe nails clacking on our hardwood floors. My> wife and daughter managed to collect 9 dogs over the years. The toe> nail noises were already unbearable to me when we had two dogs so you> can imagine what they are doing to me now. One dog walking across the> floor doesn't seem to bother me. If a second dog follows, or the dog> turns around and makes a second pass, it's all over for me. I would get> angry with my wife about even letting a dog in the house. I am very> thankful for this support group because this was beginning to destroy a> 20 year marriage. My wife understands now that when I say you are> torturing me with these dogs I literally mean torture, so we are working> together to try to make things better. There are radio commercials that> are triggers for me also. They play so frequently, or they have someone> typing on a keyboard repeatedly, I can't stand to hear them and> immediately change the station when they come on. Are there CBT> therapy's that put focus on the repetitive aspect? Is my hatred really> a hatred of repetition more so than the actual noise itself? It is> probably a combination of both by now.> > > When I encounter a trigger, the initial encounter makes me> immediately take notice and it's as if I am preparing myself for it to> happen a second time. When it happens again, my reaction escalates. > The repetition results in further escalation. I read that this may be> genetic so I called my sister and she confirmed that she has issues with> people eating also and actually makes noise to distract herself from it.> I experimented this weekend with something else I had read about the> noises not bothering you if you were making the noise. I brought myself> out of hibernation from my home office and fed the dogs myself which> seemed to help with the toe nails as they became part of what I was> working on as opposed to being interrupted by them. I realize this will> only work at feeding time and I still have to figure out a way to deal> with the rest of the time. Same thing with dishes, instead of hearing> the ear piercing noises all the way at the other end of the house while> barricaded in my office because I know my wife is intentionally banging> them together (which I actually thought she was doing until I stumbled> on to the sensitivity info web page), I took over unloading the dish> washer and sure enough it didn't bother me if I was the one making the> noise with them.> > > I know I'm rambling so I will conclude with the general question> about CBT therapy with an emphasis on correcting issues with repetition.> Does such a therapy exist? Or even better, do we already have a> checklist of things I should be doing? From what I read, I think I need> to go through the process of going to the doctor which I started last> week. I have been referred to an ENT and was told they will probably> want to do a scan of my head with my history of head trauma. I guess I> forgot to mention that I also have tinnitus but I never considered it> bad enough to do anything about. That is the reason for my referral to> the ENT not because I told them the sound of my dogs walking across the> floor makes me want to pick one of them up and throw it out the window. > Once I get to the ENT I have articles on 4S I want to share with them so> they are in tune to my issues. This is where I get a bit lost. Will I> be prescribed some type of noise generator in conjunction with a CBT> therapy? I welcome any advice the group has to offer to the new guy. > My gut tells me this is all related to how my mind reacted to the> initial eating problem when I was little and now all sounds that I think> are not necessary and tend to repeat end up as a trigger. Potato chip> bag noise or any plastic bag noise puts me over the edge. I have had to> get up and leave a Mexican Restaurant before because I think I could> hear every single person in the entire restaurant eating their tortilla> chips as loud as they could. Help!> > >> >>

[Guest guest]

Hi Cat,Please do not withdraw! I don't always agree with everything you post, but that doesn't mean that I don't respect your opinions. I actually have learned a lot from the information you have put forth. I too am a Mathematician and Senior Software Engineer for the last 25 years and I guess I appreciate your logical approach to discussions. Since I am an Aspie, I guess that makes sense LOL!Cheers,JRSent from my iPad

OK. I'll voluntarily withdraw.I am a mathematician and a surgeon - an analytical fellow who (obviously) is not particularly "touchy-feely." I came here to find more about 4S. And after spending hours upon hours meticulously going though some 600 posts line-by-line, I get it. I really get it. There is no question in my mind that you have a very real condition and are truly suffering. This ain't Little League.Along the way I have also shared a thought or two - maybe not as elegantly stated as some might have preferred, but it is what it is. And I am absolutely convinced that you - every single one of you - has much more control than you give yourselves credit for.Allow me to offer a parting thought.When I didn't know where to turn or what to do because of the severe intrusive tinnitus that had literally destroyed stolen my life, I asked my clergyman for advice. Here is what he said to me:Remember when you were a kid and your mommy bought you a jigsaw puzzle? Remember how excited you were? You'd take the top off the box, and set it on its side so that you could see what the "final product" was supposed to look like. Then you'd dump all 375 interlocking pieces on the floor and immediately turn them cardboard-side-down, so you could see the colors and designs. Then what did you do? Right! You assembled the border. Finally you filled in the pieces so that the jigsaw puzzle wound up looking just like the cover of the box. What satisfaction!He continued:The world may be like the jigsaw puzzle mentioned above - - with a few very minor changes. First of all, only God gets to see the cover of the box, not man. God sees the picture side of the pieces; man only sees the cardboard side. Oh yes, two additional minor differences. There is no border, and the number of pieces is infinite. Other than that, it's just like the jigsaw puzzle your mommy bought you long ago.That story has stayed with me all these years. I have managed to solve a tiny piece of my puzzle. My parting wish is that each of you will, in time, be able to solve a tiny piece of yours.Best to all -smn> > >> > > Hello! My name is . I am new to the group and I have been> reading a lot of the posts in an effort to understand what is> "different" about me and what can I do about it. I am an ex-linebacker> and a combat veteran so I am not too proud to sound crazy. I went> through the roof of a car head first in a car accident when I was> younger as well so it is not surprising that my initial doctor's visit> last week had a lot of notes about head trauma and being around> explosions. Maybe they will actually find a root cause for me, but I> had issues that match up with 4S way before any of my head trauma> possibilites. Something that caught my interest is the repetitive> aspect of noises. Although I can't remember this far back, initially I> probably was not intolerant to my parent's and brother's eating and it> was the frequent exposure to it that led to my hatred of it. Ultimately> it led to a "zero tolerance" policy in my mind. The same with chewing> gum and the popping sound people make with it. Over time, a "zero> tolerance" policy resulted from repeated exposure to it. I'm older now,> 43, and over the course of my life other noises have found their way> into the zero tolerance category. It always seems to be noises that> have frequent repetition to them. Besides the eating and gum, my next> worse trigger is dog's toe nails clacking on our hardwood floors. My> wife and daughter managed to collect 9 dogs over the years. The toe> nail noises were already unbearable to me when we had two dogs so you> can imagine what they are doing to me now. One dog walking across the> floor doesn't seem to bother me. If a second dog follows, or the dog> turns around and makes a second pass, it's all over for me. I would get> angry with my wife about even letting a dog in the house. I am very> thankful for this support group because this was beginning to destroy a> 20 year marriage. My wife understands now that when I say you are> torturing me with these dogs I literally mean torture, so we are working> together to try to make things better. There are radio commercials that> are triggers for me also. They play so frequently, or they have someone> typing on a keyboard repeatedly, I can't stand to hear them and> immediately change the station when they come on. Are there CBT> therapy's that put focus on the repetitive aspect? Is my hatred really> a hatred of repetition more so than the actual noise itself? It is> probably a combination of both by now.> > > When I encounter a trigger, the initial encounter makes me> immediately take notice and it's as if I am preparing myself for it to> happen a second time. When it happens again, my reaction escalates. > The repetition results in further escalation. I read that this may be> genetic so I called my sister and she confirmed that she has issues with> people eating also and actually makes noise to distract herself from it.> I experimented this weekend with something else I had read about the> noises not bothering you if you were making the noise. I brought myself> out of hibernation from my home office and fed the dogs myself which> seemed to help with the toe nails as they became part of what I was> working on as opposed to being interrupted by them. I realize this will> only work at feeding time and I still have to figure out a way to deal> with the rest of the time. Same thing with dishes, instead of hearing> the ear piercing noises all the way at the other end of the house while> barricaded in my office because I know my wife is intentionally banging> them together (which I actually thought she was doing until I stumbled> on to the sensitivity info web page), I took over unloading the dish> washer and sure enough it didn't bother me if I was the one making the> noise with them.> > > I know I'm rambling so I will conclude with the general question> about CBT therapy with an emphasis on correcting issues with repetition.> Does such a therapy exist? Or even better, do we already have a> checklist of things I should be doing? From what I read, I think I need> to go through the process of going to the doctor which I started last> week. I have been referred to an ENT and was told they will probably> want to do a scan of my head with my history of head trauma. I guess I> forgot to mention that I also have tinnitus but I never considered it> bad enough to do anything about. That is the reason for my referral to> the ENT not because I told them the sound of my dogs walking across the> floor makes me want to pick one of them up and throw it out the window. > Once I get to the ENT I have articles on 4S I want to share with them so> they are in tune to my issues. This is where I get a bit lost. Will I> be prescribed some type of noise generator in conjunction with a CBT> therapy? I welcome any advice the group has to offer to the new guy. > My gut tells me this is all related to how my mind reacted to the> initial eating problem when I was little and now all sounds that I think> are not necessary and tend to repeat end up as a trigger. Potato chip> bag noise or any plastic bag noise puts me over the edge. I have had to> get up and leave a Mexican Restaurant before because I think I could> hear every single person in the entire restaurant eating their tortilla> chips as loud as they could. Help!> > >> >>

[Guest guest]

I would prefer to have the Cat around personally!JRSent from my iPad

No more cat.

[Guest guest]

Thanks. Did Darlene send me this? Still getting used tot he layout of this madness.... ;)Subject: Re: Introduction and Question on CBT therapyTo: Soundsensitivity Date: Wednesday, February 16, 2011, 6:21 PM

Lindsey, that is hurtful. I've been there too, as have many others here. I understand that doctors are just not familiar with this condition but it upsets me that some of them (not all) just assume that they automatically know the answer as to what is wrong with us... it's all in our heads. Well its not, its completely real and the 1500+ of us here are proof of that as far as I'm concerned.

Don't give up on finding a doctor that will listen to you. It took me 4 before I found one that wouldn't laugh at me and would actually listen. He may not have the answers, but at least he doesn't write me off as a nut job like the ones before him did. I think its going to be up to us to educate doctors about this condition (as funny as that sounds). I used both the terms 4S and Misophonia when discussing things with doctors, just in case they actually look into it.

>

> Hi, I'm also a combat veteran and a female so I have two things going against me when trying to seek help for my anxiety problems. It's pretty hurtful when a doctor, with their Ph D. hanging on the wall behind them, tells you that they do not believe that your problem is even REAL.

>

[Guest guest]

I am just AMAZED to hear any person describe this.... all these years I thought I was strange and queer and defective and deformed inside...... ***tears of joy and amazement***Subject: Re: Introduction and Question on CBT therapyTo: Soundsensitivity Date: Wednesday, February 16, 2011, 4:22 PM

You are welcome . Yes, preparing myself really helps me. I know that going to a Mexican restaurant will most likely tick me off so instead of staying home, and missing out on life, I just accept that possibility. But, its also important to tell yourself that 'who knows... it just might NOT tick me off'. Then reassure yourself that you will survive the dinner no matter what happens. The thing with this condition is that often times the anticipatory anxiety of "not wanting" to hear a sound can sometimes be worse than hearing the trigger itself. We get ourselves all worked up 'before' we even hear it, which for me anyway made things worse. Good luck and just remember that it doesn't happen overnight. It takes work and lots of rides on the roller coaster... such is life right? > > >> > > Hello! My name is . I am new to the group and I have been reading a lot of the posts in an effort to understand what is "different" about me and what can I do about it. I am an ex-linebacker and a combat veteran so I am not too proud to sound crazy. I went through the roof of a car head first in a car accident when I was younger as well so it is not surprising that my initial doctor's visit last week had a lot of notes about head trauma and being around explosions. Maybe they will actually find a root

cause for me, but I had issues that match up with 4S way before any of my head trauma possibilites. Something that caught my interest is the repetitive aspect of noises. Although I can't remember this far back, initially I probably was not intolerant to my parent's and brother's eating and it was the frequent exposure to it that led to my hatred of it. Ultimately it led to a "zero tolerance" policy in my mind. The same with chewing gum and the popping sound people make with it. Over time, a "zero tolerance" policy resulted from repeated exposure to it. I'm older now, 43, and over the course of my life other noises have found their way into the zero tolerance category. It always seems to be noises that have frequent repetition to them. Besides the eating and gum, my next worse trigger is dog's toe nails clacking on our hardwood floors. My wife and daughter managed to collect 9 dogs over the years. The toe nail noises were already unbearable to

me when we had two dogs so you can imagine what they are doing to me now. One dog walking across the floor doesn't !

seem to bother me. If a second dog follows, or the dog turns around and makes a second pass, it's all over for me. I would get angry with my wife about even letting a dog in the house. I am very thankful for this support group because this was beginning to destroy a 20 year marriage. My wife understands now that when I say you are torturing me with these dogs I literally mean torture, so we are working together to try to make things better. There are radio commercials that are triggers for me also. They play so frequently, or they have someone typing on a keyboard repeatedly, I can't stand to hear them and immediately change the station when they come on. Are there CBT therapy's that put focus on the repetitive aspect? Is my hatred really a hatred of repetition more so than the actual noise itself? It is probably a combination of both by now.> > > When I encounter a trigger, the initial encounter makes me immediately take notice

and it's as if I am preparing myself for it to happen a second time. When it happens again, my reaction escalates. The repetition results in further escalation. I read that this may be genetic so I called my sister and she confirmed that she has issues with people eating also and actually makes noise to distract herself from it. I experimented this weekend with something else I had read about the noises not bothering you if you were making the noise. I brought myself out of hibernation from my home office and fed the dogs myself which seemed to help with the toe nails as they became part of what I was working on as opposed to being interrupted by them. I realize this will only work at feeding time and I still have to figure out a way to deal with the rest of the time. Same thing with dishes, instead of hearing the ear piercing noises all the way at the other end of the house while barricaded in my office because I know my wife is intentionally

banging them together (which I actually thought she was doing until I stumbled on to the sensitivity info web page),!

I took over unloading the dish washer and sure enough it didn't bother me if I was the one making the noise with them.> > > I know I'm rambling so I will conclude with the general question about CBT therapy with an emphasis on correcting issues with repetition. Does such a therapy exist? Or even better, do we already have a checklist of things I should be doing? From what I read, I think I need to go through the process of going to the doctor which I started last week. I have been referred to an ENT and was told they will probably want to do a scan of my head with my history of head trauma. I guess I forgot to mention that I also have tinnitus but I never considered it bad enough to do anything about. That is the reason for my referral to the ENT not because I told them the sound of my dogs walking across the floor makes me want to pick one of them up and throw it out the window. Once I get to the ENT I have articles on 4S I want

to share with them so they are in tune to my issues. This is where I get a bit lost. Will I be prescribed some type of noise generator in conjunction with a CBT therapy? I welcome any advice the group has to offer to the new guy. My gut tells me this is all related to how my mind reacted to the initial eating problem when I was little and now all sounds that I think are not necessary and tend to repeat end up as a trigger. Potato chip bag noise or any plastic bag noise puts me over the edge. I have had to get up and leave a Mexican Restaurant before because I think I could hear every single person in the entire restaurant eating their tortilla chips as loud as they could. Help!> > >> >>