Misophonia and Creativity: What is the Connection?
If you spend any amount of time following #misophonia online, you may notice something about the people who are posting and commenting about misophonia: many, if not most, are creatives of some kind.
Based on the people who are posting in communities about misophonia online, it would be understandable to draw a correlation between creators and the sensory-sensitivity disorder. Certainly, not everyone with misophonia is artistic, but there is a connection between the two that is presently unrecognized and unstudied.
The connection between creativity and misophonia really hit home for me with the introduction of the MisoList, a site listing businesses which are owned by or cater to people with misophonia. MisoList, which was recently launched by Misophonia Podcast creator, Adeel Ahmad, is comprised almost entirely of creative businesses: designers, photographers, screen printers, and so on.
So, what is going on here?
Misophonia and Creativity: Potential Explanations
Though there has been no research on this connection*, yet, I have a few hypotheses. I reached out to some artistic people who have misophonia to get their thoughts on the questions this raised.
Creative work is naturally solitary. Misophones seek solitude.
Perhaps the most-obvious reason misophones might be drawn to artistic endeavors is that art is created in solitude, away from potential triggers [i.e. other people]. Art happens with the door closed, to paraphrase novelist Stephen King.
Solitude is one of the clearest ways of coping with misophonia, so finding work that includes it is an understandable option.
Ben Tillman, a misophone who operates Old School Screen Printing in Lyons, Kansas, agrees that one reason he started his own creative business was that it allowed him to have his own workspace which not only blocked out misophonic activator noises, but also allows him to focus on his creative work:
I was always artistic at a young age. I picked up drawing really young; my dad liked to draw…I realized that when you get into that mode, that hyper-focused mode, when you are drawing and creating whatever you are doing in your art world, a lot of the time…I’ll forget to put on music and there will just be dead silence for however long, until it’s interrupted.
Having our own space to work in provides us with some control over the things that happen within it and allows us some serene respite from the outside world.
Heidi Bennett, creator and host of the Vibrant Visionaries podcast and a misophonia sufferer, adds:
I love creating art in tranquil solitude. A Stitch-n-bitch or other group art gathering is often chaotic and distracting. Creating a podcast gives me a lot of control. I conduct the interview in a quiet studio (at home or in the field.) I have chosen lively yet soothing music, edit out triggering sounds, and level the audio…I can now look back on my life and see how I’ve made decisions to create safe, cozy, friendly spaces for myself and for others. This is certainly because I can think and create much better in these environments.
Adeel Ahmad, who not only crafts the Misophonia Podcast, but is also a musician, says that creating music helps him manage his misophonia:
…it’s been a great way to connect with myself in solitude, which is the best medicine for me in a world of triggers.
Terry Wratten of F.ield of Vision Photography uses the solitary aspect of his creative work as a photographer to help him cope with misophonia:
I’ve always enjoyed creative pursuits, but particularly enjoy photography. My Misophonia has influenced the style and direction of my photography in that I have avoided the regular path of shooting weddings etc…I have recently started shooting street photography, also because it is a lone activity. I’m able to be an observer rather than a director. […] The nature of photography also means I avoid trigger sounds too, because people don’t like to be photographed when they’re eating, snoring or sniffling etc. instead we just capture the best parts.
One of the problematic parts of having misophonia is how isolating it can be. We misophones naturally fall back on avoidance in many facets of our lives. If art allows us a way to turn that alone time into productive and therapeutic activity, then even better. Making this coping method into a career is a life-altering way of flipping a downside into an opportunity.
Misophones are constantly conflicted sensorily and need to process that through art.
For nearly twenty years, misophonia has been considered an auditory disorder. However, current research findings from several ongoing studies into causes and treatments have found that it’s more than that. Misophonia is now considered a “multi-sensory disorder,” according to misophonia researchers, Drs. Nicolas Davidenko and Patrawat Samermit.
Misophonia sufferers exist in a state of internal conflict where wanting to do something while also wanting to avoid it exist in tandem. We want to be assertive while also having pervasive self doubt. We want to be a part of our social lives while also needing to be apart from them at the same time.
Likewise, our senses are heightened as we stay hyper-vigilant in everything we do. We naturally anticipate unwelcome sensory input everywhere we go. Every room we enter, every person we interact with, every situation we encounter can become a problematic, activating experience. Our awareness is on alert when we are away from our places of serenity.
Art provides multi-sensory soothing to counteract this.
Heidi Bennett, who interviews creative people for her podcast, speaks to this:
For a long time I didn’t know I had a neuro difference that impacted how I experience sound and visuals as well.
Screen printing misophone, Ben Tillman, also thinks there is much more to misophonia than mere aversion to sounds:
I personally think that the more studies they do, the more they’re going to show that there is something being overstimulated in [both] the auditory and the visual region of the brain.
Terry Wratten brings up another aspect that is being researched regarding misophonia and its overwhelming of the brain: memory.
Whatever the cause, photography helps me to remember moments.[E]very time I look at a photo I’ve taken, I remember taking it and the reasons why I took it, so photography is helping me to keep my memories, which brings me comfort for the future, knowing that as long as I keep capturing moments, I’ll keep remembering them.
Getting to the bottom of what misophonia even is has proven to be a deep dive into how our brains process all sensory input. It’s very common for misophones to not only experience the expected auditory activators, but to also have a misophonic reaction to visual, olfactory [smells], and even tactile input.
There is something different about how our brains triage what our senses are telling us. This heightened awareness of the world around us leads to a maelstrom internally as we are not only conflicted on how to react, but also how our reactions seem proper to ourselves and not to those around us. There is an incessant voice in our heads that teeters between anger and guilt, anxiety and despondency.
This constant mental conflict among dualities is the stuff that causes people to seek out ways of making sense of it. Historically, that has included art making.
Art has long been known for its therapeutic nature, and misophones live lives that need reprieve and serenity on a regular basis in order to function and be content. Creating artistically is a kind of magical shortcut to making sense of very confusing and contradictory thoughts and emotions.
We Need More Research
At first, I thought my observation about the prevalence of creative people in misophonia forums was a kind of confirmation bias. Maybe I’m subconsciously looking for patterns that suit my life experience. I have had misophonia for around 35 years and my background is in the arts; I went to grad school to study theatre and I work as a graphic designer and writer. Creative work is what I have always done.
Like most of us, I unconsciously seek out others like myself.
Dr. Zach Rosenthal, who has studied many misophones in his work as the Director of the Center for Misophonia and Emotion Regulation at Duke University had this to say:
I cannot say I have observed any relationship between creativity in general and severity of misophonia symptoms. I have seen many people with misophonia who appeared to be creative thinkers, and many who did not. However, here is something to consider… Many with misophonia report being highly sensitive to sounds (and other senses, often touch, visual and smell) in general. I suspect that having generally heightened sensory capabilities might lead to a higher probability of…becoming involved in creative endeavors related to their sensory processing functioning. A concrete example is that I have observed anecdotally a correlation between those with misophonia and the ability to perform musically. If you can hear especially well and are highly attuned to sounds, you just might be that much more likely to become a musician.
There is also a real possibility that creative people are more likely to post about misophonia on social media when compared to people with the disorder who don’t tend to be drawn to artistic work. This would create a skewed impression of the prevalence of creative people with misophonia.
Maybe we need more data to see if my hunch is correct or an illusion.
But, I am not the first to notice this predominance of misophones who are driven to create.
*Addendum Forthcoming…
10/17/20 :: Shortly after hitting the “Publish” button on this article, I happened across a published study [perhaps two] that is relevant to this topic. This coincided with the 2020 Misophonia Convention and, well, there is much more to misophonia and creativity to talk about, so I will be working on a followup article and posting it soon! Stay tuned!
What do you think? Comment or drop me an email via the contact form for soQuiet.org, my misophonia advocacy organization.
