topic Noise anxiety in Anxiety

Noise anxiety

Frogs — Tue, 12 Apr 2022 06:20:13 GMT

Hi~ I'm 32 and 5 years ago came down with sinusitis followed by neck pain, which resulted in my leaving work, I've had 5 surgeries. Being unwell and at home a lot, noisy neighbors really started to grate on me. I guess I've always been a bit noise sensitive, without going in to my past too much, I was neglected as a child and didn't have a sense of safety & security. Have had crippling anxiety before, particularly ages 21-25. Have come a long way in general but noise is something I just can't seem to get over. I think it's largely due to the morality of it. For example, there's no need to play music so loud the whole neighborhood can hear. There's way to have fun without being a nuisance, it's just selfish. Noise that is essential, like construction, doesn't bother me nearly as much nor does it when I'm out.

At our last house it started with a nearby school upgrading their loud speakers. From 8-3 weekdays you'd hear 'ding dong announcement' at least twice an hour. Was so loud, could hear what they'd say clear as day. The street was very busy with parking, which would set off a dog between 8-9 & 3-4. I started using earplugs and sleeping until 4pm just to bypass the noise. Night was the only time you could get peace in that house. Then the house across from us had a group of teens move in who were always in their yard having illegal bonfires. The smoke irritated my sinuses so much I know have a phobia of smoke. I'm cutting it short with the character limit but it was so bad we decided to move.

We chose a solid brick house in a country town, at the end of a dead-end street, opposite a paddock. Should be peaceful right? Soon after, the block next to us started construction. I was worried about them having a dog so politely mentioned it before they moved in. They did and it was fine until they got another dog. It would bark as soon as it heard our door open and would continue relentlessly until we came back in. Goodbye gardening hobby. By this stage, hubby is working at home and I'm sleeping normal hours. After speaking to them many times (nice people actually), they solved the small dog but now their big dog is doing the same thing. They do not walk them. We're also nestled between two people who work on cars and rev their engines. We get a ridiculous amount of traffic for a dead-end. Was woken up at 8 today by the dog and then someone else started blasting music that I yelled at them to turn it down, they called me rude. Feeling sick from anxiety tbh

Noise anxiety

therising — Tue, 12 Apr 2022 17:41:28 GMT

Hi Frogs

I really feel for you so much. People can be so thoughtless and highly triggering, to the point where you just want to scream.

I've been reading up a little lately on the impact of sound and the effect it can have on us, nervous system included. Never thought about it before the research, how sound is generally not all that much of an issue until it triggers emotion. Once it triggers emotion, sound can take you to the brink of insanity. Personally, I'm a gal who loves to feel peace. It's a beautiful feeling 🙂 At times it's hard to not take it personally, the feeling of people taking your sense of peace away from you. There have been several instances in the past where I've wanted to scream at some of the neighbours 'What the hell is wrong with you people? Don't you enjoy peace?!'. From neighbours with almost constantly barking dogs through to the neighbours that feel compelled to turn up the volume of the music and the swearing the drunker they get, it can do my head in at times. It can leave you feeling seriously ripped off at times. Kind of like 'I've literally paid for this space, this piece of property, and the people around me are making it unbearable to live here, in the place I've spent a lot of money on'.

Some people swear by noise cancelling headphones. They say it's changed their life. Wondering if this could be something you could include in your toolbox of sound management, as opposed to earplugs. Another thing might include treating yourself to time away on the odd occasion, even if it's just for a weekend once every few months. Is there some music you can play. If your goal is to drown out the sound your neighbours make and they complain about your music you could tell them you need to have it at this volume to drown out the noise they're making. Could you pick some music that has a positive emotional impact on you? Reporting noise pollution could be another way to go. If a neighbour won't manage the pollution they spew out, the EPA will lead them to manage it. If you have access to a car, leaving the property when things get to much could be another way of managing at times. I've done this myself on occasion, when the noise has been at angering levels.

You'd like to think that yelling at the neighbours to be more conscious would have some impact. Unfortunately, some people just refuse to wake up. With sound being a form of energy, you can feel when the energy levels get too much for the body to bear.

I feel so much for you.

Noise anxiety

Frogs — Wed, 13 Apr 2022 01:53:30 GMT

Thank you for your understanding. Yep, thoughtless people are everywhere but it's honestly more than just the fact I paid for my house. Security, peace and stability is something I crave on a primal level. Honestly feels like I can't catch a break, there's always some jerk doing the wrong thing. What gets me is it should be OBVIOUS that some actions will disturb others. That's just selfish and doesn't sit well with me, particularly as throughout my life, I've always tried to remain kind and amicable. It's kind of gotten me nowhere and I'm starting to feel like another approach is needed. If people are being selfish jerks, maybe I should just tell them rather than politely putting up with it for months. If they want to play obnoxiously loud music, maybe I should shine a spotlight on their house when they're trying to sleep. Idk but I've well and truly had it with selfish people who are able to do whatever they want whilst good people suffer.

I do have headphones which I use sometimes but it can get uncomfortable. Also have Mute noise filtering earplugs. It's not a long-term solution and also feels like a bandaid solution. I'm not going to play loud music and do the same thing to others who don't deserve it. I do go for hour long walks 1-4 times a week and day trips usually weekly. I'm taking the matter of the dog to the council since we've spoken to them atleast a dozen times now and I kid you not, it's barked and howled hundreds, if not thousands of times in the last 48 hours. I only yelled at the person with the music because they literally couldn't hear me otherwise. They yelled something back which I couldn't hear over the music. I'm also planning to return to work to help us save enough to hopefully buy a big block of land but I've read similar posts on here where people did that and still couldn't escape noise 😆

Thanks again for your reply!

Noise anxiety

therising — Wed, 13 Apr 2022 22:51:49 GMT

Hi Frogs

It's definitely frustrating when you're exercising a level of consciousness that serves those around you but you're not getting the same in return. It can be incredibly triggering. Sometimes I imagine myself retiring in a beautiful not too expensive retirement community where a number of rules apply. No disturbing dogs allowed, no upsetting music/noise levels and a whole stack of other peaceful rules. At 51, this might still be a little ways off. My mum lives somewhere like this, in one of about 50 something little houses/units. It's like a peaceful home base, where you can still adventure out from. Definitely no bonfires there 🙂 The occasional rule breakers are set straight by the body corp.

I'm glad you're looking forward to moving, definitely something to look forward to. I think people have become less conscious over the years and a little more self serving. Just a generalisation of course. Not everyone's like that. I really feel for you, having met so many non conscious neighbours over time. I think neighbours used to be far more conscious than what they are now. I think people have developed this sense of self entitlement when it comes to what they should feel free to do, even if it means upsetting others. The mantra of such people is pretty much 'It's not my problem if others can't tolerate the noise'.

The world is definitely a noisier place, compared to what it used to be like. While I live under the flight path of a pilot training airport, the traffic has increased over time which doesn't bother me all that much but add to that the introduction of whipper snippers into this world, every next door neighbour but one having had a dog or dogs which bark a lot, my husband's love of having the tv up loud in the back yard bungalow/man cave, one of the neighbour's love of loud music and my little backyard sanctuary becomes unbearable when all that comes together at once. I can feel my own nervous system and gradually rising levels of fury.

I get where you're coming from with the dogs next door that you mentioned. I feel like saying to our neighbours 'You do understand your dog's trying to communicate something to you. It's bored out of it's brain, desperate for attention and seriously desperate to get out of the back yard'. I've never known them to walk it. While the dog triggers me, I feel for it. The poor thing's probably depressed and all they seem to do is shut it down by screaming at it 'Shut up!'. Some people are neglectful and insane.

Noise anxiety

Amanda2000 — Thu, 14 Apr 2022 00:57:22 GMT

Hi Frogs,

I have the same issue with noise. It's been really difficult during these past 2 years with the "COVID-stay at home" thing when my family is at home with me all the time. Every little sound they make drives me nuts. Some people say regular exposure to the anxiety-trigger can help you get used to it and then you would become immune to the trigger over time. It's been the contrary for me. My state-of-mind is much worse now compared to the time of the first lockdown. I long to feel some calmness again.

I try to cope by using distraction - eg. watch tv/put up the volume, doing chores. Not easy when I don't feel a sense of peace to be able to fully enjoy the tv show, but every little bit helps me get through the days.

Noise anxiety

therising — Thu, 14 Apr 2022 02:10:08 GMT

Hi Amanda

I think you've hit the nail on the head, when it comes to finding what works to some degree in relation to managing sound or noise. Frustrating thing is you can find what works in one case and then realise it doesn't work for everything else and it only works under certain circumstances. For example, what works to drown out the sound of a barking dog might be using certain music with headphones on but it won't work when you've got a lot of stressful internal dialogue going on. Your thoughts, in this case, drown out the sound of the music playing. Frustrating!

One of the things that helps me manage each day, to some degree, is the couple of hours I have to myself in the morning in my back yard between 4 and 6am. If I don't get my 'time of peace' at the start of each day I'm more easily agitated during the day. For me, for sleep to be the only time out from the everyday noises isn't enough. I need conscious time to experience the lack of noise. To be honest, if I had barking dogs next door to me between 4 and 6am, I'd be knocking on the neighbours door questioning them as to why they can't hear it and why they won't figure out ways to stop it. If anyone or anything was to interrupt my early morning time out, my usual easy going self would disappear. I just couldn't tolerate it, losing that time.

I think I've got most of my sound triggers worked out. I'm sure there's plenty more beyond that although I'm not fully aware of them at this point. I think if we can identify each individual trigger it can help to some degree. The sound of my husband's V8 Commodore triggers me every time he starts that engine. Dripping taps, ticking clocks, barking dogs (repetitive noises drive me crazy). Self serving sounds that reflect thoughtlessness towards others trigger me. Shopping centre food courts trigger me to agitation, where there's a huge combination of sounds all happening at once (a lot of people all speaking at the same time and no carpeting to absorb some of that sound). It's a bit of a list so I won't go on. Yep, I'm a gal who's easily triggered 🙂 Each individual trigger is managed in specific ways. An overload of triggers tends to trigger the fight or flight response - either I'll escape it or suddenly the crazy ranting maniac in me will be channeled to life through that overload.

Have been doing a bit of research on 'Binaural beats' and how sound can alter brainwaves. Research on sound and brainwave activity can be quite a rabbit hole thing 🙂

Noise anxiety

Amanda2000 — Thu, 14 Apr 2022 03:14:17 GMT

Hi therising,

I agree totally!!!!

I also need my 'time of peace' like you. But it's stressful having to live outside of other people's "normal hours". My sleep suffers as a result. It's a trade-off between physical health and mental health that I'm constantly struggling to balance.

Regarding no carpeting, my house is mostly tiled downstairs! Noises from the open-kitchen travel through the hallway and then up the stairs. It's like I have nowhere to hide when my family is at home.

Your words have given me plenty of comfort - thank you. Much needed to get prepared for the long noisy weekend to come, haha.

Noise anxiety

Frogs — Fri, 15 Apr 2022 03:00:20 GMT

Hi therising! That sounds peaceful where your Mum lives. Funnily enough, when we were moving, we were considering a house on a pristine cul-de-sac. The listing didn't say anything about it being a retirement community but the real estate agent mentioned it. I'm only 32 but thought that might not be so bad, being surrounded by older people haha. I also often imagine myself somewhere with lots of rules. Japan comes to mind. There it's considered rude to talk loudly on public transport for example. I do think Australia has a bit of a party culture and societies sense of entitlement has shifted, as you said. The world is definitely a busier place. I remember going for Sunday drives with my Dad, back when there was no weekend trading and there'd be hardly any cars on the road. May be the worlds growing population crisis has something do with it. Have you heard of the global hum phenomenon? At my last house you could hear a loud hum of presumably traffic starting around 5am but at that time of morning, there's not that many cars on the road, was strange.

I'm glad you've found a way to get a couple hours peace in the morning in your yard, that's a good coping mechanism in order to tackle the day. I understand being protective of that time. For me, it's sleep. If I'm woken multiple days in a row by neighbours, that's when I start to get really frustrated about it. My sound triggers are similar to yours but particularly noises that are inconsistent because it causes anticipation anxiety. Humorously, classical music can also do this because of all the highs and lows.

I know the dogs are just desperately bored but that doesn't make me feel better in the moment tbh. I worked with animals and irresponsible owners is something that just irks me in general. I think people should need a license in order to own pets. There could be a test, even just to make people think about the decision.

Noise anxiety

therising — Fri, 15 Apr 2022 03:59:49 GMT

Hi Frogs

Yay! Someone else who's heard the hum in one of it's various forms. I heard it for a number of months before I suddenly stopped hearing it. Sitting outside in quietness in the morning, that's when I'd hear it. It's a hard sound to explain to people. The kind of hum I heard was like a very deep stretched out humming whirring type sound. I couldn't help but research it and was relieved to find it wasn't just me. So many theories when it comes to what it's all about. It's fascinating to get everyone's take on it.

I agree with you about the level of scrutiny when it comes to people desiring animals to be a part of their household. There should be a full on questionnaire with questions that cover serving an animal's sensitivity, emotional intelligence and natural intelligence or instinct etc. While a parent's tested to understand all the different cries and physical behaviours of their non verbal baby (from the 'I have poop in my nappy' cry through to 'I'm hungry' or 'I'm under stimulated'), same should go for understanding the communication of pets. Some pet owners have so much respect for their little friends and work so hard on the relationship, others simply buy a pet as a form of personal amusement to stave off boredom or because it leads them to feel good. So, for self serving reasons, kind of like 'As long as it does what it's told and doesn't upset me, I'm good'. Btw, some parents can be like that too. When I listen to the dude next door who I've heard scream 'Shut up!' at his dog so many times, he's the same guy who I hear often saying to his kids 'I don't care. You'll do as you're told!'. Dude, 'I don't care', really? I feel like saying to him 'You know if you say that often enough to your kids, they'll eventually come to believe it. Be careful with that'.

Classical music can definitely be triggering. Being designed to conjure emotional response, those composers were masters at triggering people. You can feel their ability throughout your body. While I was raised through classical music through my dad's love of it, my mum was more into high vibey old style rock and roll as well as folk like Niel Diamond, The Platters and an emotional mix of other stuff. Music's definitely a powerful thing, therapeutic at times. Raising more of music's energy through volume is powerful. Highly triggering when your neighbours are doing it often and you don't want to experience the same type of energy they do. A lot of bass tends to send me insane 🙂

Noise anxiety

Frogs — Fri, 15 Apr 2022 04:10:00 GMT

Hi Amanda! Is Usagi your favorite senshi? Sailor Saturn fan here 😉 It's strange isn't it; You'd think that you'd get use to it after a while but it's certainly gotten worse for me too because it feels like a cumulative effect. I've also found distraction to be the best coping mechanism. I don't know what I'd do if I didn't have my hobbies that I can sink hours in to. Without something to keep us engaged, we'd have nothing to do but sit around and overthink, which I've actually witnessed with a couple families members whose generalized anxiety has gotten really bad.

People's desire for respite is a primal need. When I was working and didn't have much noise anxiety, I still had such a deep desire for rest. I actually use to sleep all day on my days off, to the point I'd often feel sick from oversleeping but it did recharge me. The struggle of living outside most peoples 'normal hours' is real. There are jobs with afternoon or night shifts but good luck sleeping during the day. I do think the world is easier for not only extroverts but morning people.

Can you get a giant, dense rug to cover your room? I've also been looking at noise reducing curtains. Don't expect them to work but there's some at Ikea for only $99. Sharing a house is difficult. When my anxiety was at its worst, I lived my my bf and two of his adult step-children (strange, I know). The daughter nagged us constantly. When we were cooking, she'd always follow us out and just stand there, starting angrily. If we didn't do the dishes right away, literally before eating, she'd throw a tantrum. The toilet was next to the kitchen and every time I went, she'd follow me out and stand in the kitchen. It made me so anxious to go to the toilet that I actually ended up with a bowel obstruction which was the most painful thing I've ever experienced. Looking back, I can't believe I let her treat me that way and may be it had an impact on how noise conscientious I am now. Anyways, I know that feeling like you have nowhere to hide in your own home. Recently, I moved my entertainment set up to the spare room, still get noise but less so sometimes we just have to try to accept what is 'good enough', I suppose. May be you might feel more in control if you can do some things to sound-proof your room, even if just a little?

Noise anxiety

Frogs — Fri, 15 Apr 2022 05:11:51 GMT

That's so interesting that you've heard it too! 100%, it was a humming whirring type sound. A lot like traffic in the distance but with no break in the sound, almost like what I'd imagine a wind farm to sound like. There were some days it wouldn't happen. Very interesting if not a little disturbing lol. Do you have a personal theory on it?

Yes, even if only for the wellbeing on the animals, there should be regulations. It also upsets me when people get pets and treat them like statues, just there to make them happy and it's feelings are insignificant. Oh boy, that's sad about that Father and his kids. My Mother was exactly the same, "the parent is always right, children should do as they're told". To this day she still claims that she didn't know better, that's how she was raised and she was doing her best. I suffered serious neglect and abuse from her and to top it off, she treated me like a problem child, she even regularly called the police on me for verbal arguments (starting from 10), playing the victim and they often believed her, in fact I think she believed herself. In reality, she was an alcoholic who took away everything I loved and enjoyed. We're on speaking terms but to this day, she still has a 'the parent is always right' attitude and doesn't admit wrong doing, even occasionally accusing me of making things up when she can't remember. I asked her once, if she were to witness a child she didn't know being abused by their parents, would she still think that the kid should just do as they're told? She didn't answer that. You are absolutely right that the children can come to believe that. It always seems to go one of two ways, they either grow up to repeat their parents mistakes or like myself, they learn everything that they do not want to be. Sorry for the ramble and don't worry, that part of my life no long upsets me much but it does have a lasting impact on people's life, even just the opportunities they missed out on.

Bass sucks :< I know I've made a big deal out of noise but I can actually differentiate between what's ok and what's crossing a line. Even if someone is crossing a line, if it's a rare occurrence, you have to ride it out, right? The problem lies with how often. When should you stop putting up with bs and stick up for not only yourself but others? There are noises that for sure have to be upsetting more than one person so why does it feel like no one does anything? The answer can't always be do nothing or drown it out.

Noise anxiety

therising — Fri, 15 Apr 2022 11:28:04 GMT

Hi Frogs

That sound is an interesting one. Some have referred to it as a natural sound we can hear in the atmosphere, whereas other say it's mechanically generated. To me, it's got more of a natural feel to it. Where that sound's coming from or how it's generated who knows.

I'm so glad you've been able to make sense of your past and the way your relationship with your mum truly played out. I think most families have what they label as their 'problem child'. I was my parents' and my daughter was mine, until I learned she'd always been my 'challenging' child not my 'problem' child. She's 19 now and my son's 16. Before I woke up to her as being one of my teachers in life, I realised how many challenges I'd never consciously risen to. When asking 'Why can't I do that?', she'd get the typical response of 'You just can't'. When asking 'Why are you so mean?', I never gave her a valid answer, instead I'd just shut the conversation down to suit myself. In reality, I was disrespectful, inconsiderate, unreasonable, fairly thoughtless etc. And what did I get in return? Exactly what I gave. Yep, you can inherit a lot of your parents' mantras and behaviours without fully realising, until you suddenly wake up to it all. I can recall the day she fully woke me up. It was on a Sunday, when she was about 11. Her friend and her friend's mum were off to the local pool and they'd have my daughter back by 7pm. I said 'No. You have school tomorrow'. Her response was something along the lines of 'But we'll be having dinner there and I'll be back in plenty of time before I have to go to bed'. Her father agreed, 'I wasn't allowed to stay out that late before a school day either'. She was angry, 'That's ridiculous! It doesn't make sense'. Then it suddenly hit me, she was right. What the heck were our parents thinking?! The plan was logical, reasonable and fun. She ended up going while I spent time reflecting on all the times I'd expressed a lack of reason for my choices other than pretty much 'I wasn't allowed to do that when I was your age'. That was the day I learned - when your child questions you, they're challenging you to raise your consciousness, not shut it down. Kids can be truly brilliant teachers. They can teach us to become more open minded, more reason-able and respectful.

I'm glad reflecting on your childhood now offers you lessons and wisdom rather than great pain. Must have taken a huge amount of work to reach that point. Gotta be proud of that kind of hard work.

Noise anxiety

Britabroad87 — Mon, 20 Jun 2022 01:03:41 GMT

It is so reassuring to read that other people feel like this, though I'm sorry you do.

My issue is with our neighbours dog. It's an old lady across the road who's deaf and can't hear that it yaps in her backyard. It's never been walked and never comes inside. About 18 months ago she went to hospital and left it in the back yard where it barked 24/7 for a week. I wrote a note to put through her door before I knew she was in hospital and just got abuse by text and on social media by her family. Old lady went somewhere else last November and it did it again. My husband knocked on the door and the video camera on her front door links up to her daughters who verbally abused him. They know it barked non stop but no one cared.

Since then, it has just been regularly yappy at people at the bus stop and walking past, as well as sometimes at night, but by then my anxiety was triggered and I spend the entire time waiting for it to bark. The thing is that it's not actually that loud. My husband doesn't notice it really but i'm so sensitive to it I just focus on it and can't relax.

I always have to have something on, the TV, music, a fan, white noise, air conditioning, just in case it barks. I don't like spending time in the front rooms in the house, don't read books in the silence of the house without headphones in and never feel relaxed in the house. Every time I'm out and I come home I have a feeling of dread and expectation that it will go again and it won't stop like it has done before. I do not have this when i'm away at someone elses house or out in the world. just at home.

At the moment old lady is back in hospital and so dog is back in the back yard and barking 24/7. I'm 6 months pregnant and feel like i'm on the verge of tears or a panic attack knowing i'm powerless to do anything about it.

We are moving soon because we need a bigger house so that should give me some comfort, but i know that my anxiety will just follow me.

Has anyone successfully managed this? I know that for 99% of the time my anxiety is unjustified and in anticipation of the 1% of the time where it genuinely is excessive. It also makes me feel like a crazy person that my husband barely notices it.

Noise anxiety

Sophie_M — Mon, 20 Jun 2022 01:49:10 GMT

Hi Britabroad87

Thank you for sharing your experience and for joining this community of open and caring people. We can hear that you are having lots of feelings of anxiety with the noise of your neighbours dog. That does sound really difficult. We can also see that you have tried to share your concerns with your neighbour and this hasn’t been a good experience.

While we can’t necessarily help with the barking dog, we do think that we may be able to support the feelings that it is generating for you. If you do feel like you would be interested in learning some strategies to work with these feelings in the moment our team are always available on 1300 22 4636. If you prefer, you can also check our webchat.

We are really sorry that you have been dealing with this and want to congratulate you on being so proactive in looking for a solution. This thread has been a bit quiet for a while so please feel free to have a look around for other conversations you might relate to, or to start your own thread if you like.

Thanks again for joining us and please feel free to update us on how you are feeling if you are comfortable.

Kind regards,

Sophie M

Noise anxiety

therising — Mon, 20 Jun 2022 02:59:13 GMT

Hi Britabroad87

I feel for you so very much, I really do. Grrr, it ticks me off when it's us who's left to manage other people's mismanagement. I bet, if you recorded the dog and then played that recording outside the house of your neighbour's children it would drive them to the brink of insanity. Of course, they'd simply demand you turn the recording off until you did. So, how to turn the sound off becomes the question in your case.

Britabroad87, one of the biggest challenges I face in life is the challenge of upsetting people. A lot of the time I can't bring myself to do it, much to my own detriment. Being 'a feeler' or 'a sensitive' can be a major challenge at times. 1) You can feel through your imagination the possible stress you may cause, 2) You can feel, ahead of time, the abuse you're most likely going to cop, 3) You feel for the person or people involved (or animal/s) you're going to impact, (4 You feel a sense of guilt that may come with your actions, 5) You feel your own nervous system and how it's impacting your heart rate, lung function, vascular system (including the blood pressure in that system) etc. So much to feel when you're a feeler. As a feeler, I try my best to manage the facts and nothing but the facts in some cases. Bit of emotional detachment involved here. Easier said than done.

The facts

No one is managing the barking, outside of your husbands efforts. I bet some of your neighbours (especially those sensitive to sound) are wishing, like you, someone would. I can't imagine others aren't agitated. Constantly barking dogs do my head in
You want to hear no barking or, as a compromise, very little barking. Perfectly fair in my opinion
The family blatantly refuse to manage
You can't reason with the family, as they've proven themselves to be unreasonable and abusive. They just won't listen to reason
The local council will give them good reason/s to act responsibly, especially if it's going to cost the family time and money

The dog sounds possibly stressed, sad and lonely. Maybe explaining to the council 'The dog sounds stressed, sad and lonely and barks for hours based on the family neglecting it and there being no one on the property for long periods of time' might get their attention.

If you want to kind of flip the script a little on the family, could say to them something along the lines of 'That poor dog sounds regularly upset to the point where I just wanted someone to give it the attention it's so incredibly desperate for'.

Noise anxiety

nexttime — Mon, 20 Jun 2022 05:58:48 GMT

I totally agree that it is reassuring to read that others have this issue with neighbor noise, although it saddens me too, and I wish I had a solution. I have quite severe anxiety attacks when I can hear party / drunken socializing noise from neighbors - part of complex PTSD from abusive childhood. I am hyper vigilant about it, so can be fully triggered by just hearing certain kinds of voices, even if nothing more happens. Once triggered, the anxiety is impossible to turn off, and I just have to wait for the noise to stop. I have moved house a few times on account of it, and am currently living next to awful, nasty, selfish, angry people with whom I have had several disputes about noise and other issues. I am seeking support to deal with the complex PTSD, hoping that I can dial down the anxiety response to noise as a result. I agree with other posts re the rise in selfishness and the reflex attack response that you get if you even politely raise a issue with neighbors. I doubt you can ever really sort this stuff out amicably - people just will not accept that they live in a community. I simply would not dream of doing anything deliberately that might annoy those close by, so I just don’t understand it. Plus I hate living in an atmosphere of hostility. So much for Covid bringing neighbors and community together. I am trying to focus on the people I know who are not like that, and trying to feel compassion for all the people who are so angry and negative, so they don’t hijack my equilibrium.