The Psychological Roots of Misophonia: A New Perspective

In response to a number of unsatisfying theories floated by a variety of institutions concerning misophonia, including a recent study claiming that the act of “…thinking about chewing and anything else at the same time…” will “…simply overwhelm…” the brain (https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/05/210524110143.htm) I have decided to take a close look at the disorder and identify its roots, which is something that, barring the ability to peer into each and every thought process of another’s mind, is an insight that can only be attained through with the full cooperation of sufferers in the context of cognitive-behavioral therapy.

Based upon interviews with 36 adults (18 male and 18 female) self-reporting the condition, I have come to the following conclusion:

Misophonia, although it manifests in adults on an ongoing basis without regard to whether the person experiencing it is currently eating, the condition develops its psychological roots via shared dining experiences during adolescence. The most typical onset is around puberty, when hormones make a rage reaction more likely. During shared dining experiences, a sufferer who is already going through a phase of self-consciousness, irrationally comes to believe, if only subconsciously, that the obnoxious (or seemingly obnoxious) sound of another’s chewing might be blamed on them, based upon the fact that they, themselves, are also eating at the same time and that this plausibility exists. In the mind of the sufferer, there is a belief of sorts that they may be blamed for the chewing noises of another diner, and that negative attention may therefore be drawn to them amidst a phase in life when they are already consumed with insecurity generally.