Here, the directive was to "make a face showing how you feel about therapy." Annie HATED it, but we made it work, and it did end up helping in that she could manage the misphonia afterwards. That made ME happy!
Misphonia is "A strong, negative reaction to specific sounds. Misophonia may cause a reaction to sounds such as dripping water, chewing, snapping gum, or repetitive noises, such as pencil tapping."
Chewing, pen clicking, music in English, singing, ... these are all Annie's triggers that will often initiate a fairly violent reaction from Annie.
There were 2 main issues with therapy: 1. Annie HATED it, just like she usually dislikes other extracurricular activities. Some of that probably had to do with the social interaction therapy involved. 2. Each weekly session cost $50 which really begins to add up.
BUT, we really wanted to help Annie, so after we learned about Bone Conduction Therapy (originally from Shana), we purchased the $2000 system ourselves. And although Annie never really did the physical balance activities she was supposed to, ... or used the music playlist she was supposed to, ... she did listen to lots of music with the bone conducting headphones. The whole experience, although short-lived, did help Annie manage her issues better.
And here is another really good example of how Annie feels in regards to sounds, it is called her "I Am" poem:
I Am Poem [Annie's Misphonia Poem]
I am annoyed and optimistic.
I wonder if bells are ringing somewhere.
I hear taps, chimes and hums.
I see tapping on the walls and tables.
I want it to stop.
I am annoyed and optimistic.
I pretend I don't hear it.
I don't care.
I feel anger building up inside my head.
I touch my imaginary stress ball inside my hand.
I worry that Ethan will keep tapping his foot.
I am annoyed and optimistic.
I understand it will never stop.
I say you can put in effort, though.
I dream of bunnies to make me happy
I try to keep my calm
I hope I can stay intact emotionally, but
I snap.
I am annoyed and optimistic.
By Annie, 2019, 6th grade
