Those that
know me even remotely know that my biggest pet peeve is someone chomping/popping
chewing gum. I could listen to someone scrape their fingernails down a chalk
board all day long and it would not phase me in the least. But let me just see
someone chewing gum and I almost have an anxiety attack. Unfortunately, I’ve
had coworkers that were mega gum poppers. I’m not ashamed to admit that it got
on my nerves so bad I dreaded coming to work. Luckily, for the past few years
that I’ve been a department manager, nobody in my department chews gum.
I did some
research, and people like me who cringe at the sounds of gum chewing/popping,
noisy eating, repeated pen-clicking and even loud breathing may suffer from an
actual disorder called misophonia. It’s actually a disorder that affects the
brain’s frontal lobe.
According
to scientists, people with misophonia experience changes in brain activity when
they hear one of those previously mentioned sounds. Some also experience
physical side effects, like an increased heart rate and sweating, when they hear
those noises.
I don’t
think someone’s gum popping has caused me to break out in a sweat or make my
heart beat faster, but I know it sure makes me go crazy.
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