Misophonia [mee-so-fo-nee-uh], literally ‘hatred of sound,’ is a rarely diagnosed neuropsychiatric disorder in which negative emotions (anger, flight, hatred, disgust) are triggered by specific sounds. The sounds can be loud or soft. The term was coined by American neuroscientists Pawel Jastreboff and Margaret Jastreboff and is sometimes referred to as ‘selective sound sensitivity syndrome.’
A 2013 review of neurological studies and fMRI studies of the brain as it relates to the disorder postulated that abnormal or dysfunctional assessment of neural signals occurs in the anterior cingulate cortex and insular cortex. These cortices are also implicated in Tourette Syndrome, and are the hub for processing anger, pain, and sensory information. Other researchers concur that the dysfunction is in central nervous system structures. It has been speculated that the anatomical location may be more central than that involved in hyperacusis (over-sensitivity to certain frequency and volume ranges of sound). An alternate view, by two misophonia treatment providers, is that misophonia is a Pavlovian conditioned reflex.
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The Daily Omnivore 