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Sound Anxiety?

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Posted 9/21/2012 5:01 PM (GMT 0)
Hello all!

I have an issue that I am curious about...I am wondering if this is a problem that is just a pet peeve to me, or if others have experienced it.

We live on a cul de sac off of a fairly busy street that is being re-paved.  There are big work trucks currently doing the job, including bull dozers, earth movers, ect... (I don't know what-all they are, but they are big!)

There is a constant low tone rumble coming from these trucks, and it is kicking up my anxiety.  Not the panic acute fear type of anxiety, but the "Boy am I nervous, keyed up and annoyed!." type.

I have started to put on the t.v. or music for ambient 'white noise' in an attempt to cover it up, but I can still 'feel' the sound in my chest, like a vibration and it is driving me nuts!

The signs say that the project is going to be for the next several weeks...it's gonna be a rough go of it if I can't find a way to cope!

Anybody relate to this, or any suggestions?

Thanks guys!;)

S.C.

Posted 9/21/2012 5:43 PM (GMT 0)
Hi SC,

If you google noise stress you'll get a lot of hits, so I'm guessing it's a common response.

When I bought the place where I live now, it was one building surrounded by fields. I saw the development plans for the area and knew I was moving into what would essentially be a construction site for 4 years. Work kept getting interrupted by financial problems, and I'm now at year 16 with two lots still to be built.

I know what you mean about not being able to block it out. Even with headphones, I can hear it and feel the vibrations. It doesn't make me anxious, though. For me it's more of an aggravation. When it's really getting on my nerves I leave for a few hours. For a couple of years I was at a job where I was allowed to telecommute three days a week, but I still went into the office every day. The noise made it hard to concentrate, and worse, I couldn't hear people on the phone.

As for suggestions, take a break by getting out of the house, remind yourself that it's only a couple of weeks of annoyance, and be grateful you don't live here. :)
Posted 9/21/2012 9:44 PM (GMT 0)
hi, sc. noise is a common trigger for my anxiety. usually ambient or background noise helps me. i have a fish tank in my office, and sometimes the buzzzzzz of the filter is so much that i have to get out and take a break for a little while or crank up the tunes on my pandora. but i've never experienced the kind of body-jarring noise for weeks on end. i can imagine that it would be torture for me. :( with my health anxiety, i get very "tuned in" to bodily sensations, and it helps me to meditate on just my breath or on parts of my body where i'm NOT feeling the sensation.

i hope you can find a way to cope...several weeks is a long time to deal with body-jarring noise! maybe it's a good time to take a vacation you've been putting off, LOL!
Posted 9/22/2012 2:11 AM (GMT 0)
Hey Scaredy Cat. Having lived around noise I can tell you it definitely adds to the tension. Even when you get used to it and you're not consciously thinking about it, it's something that's there in the background and I can't imagine people not getting keyed up from it. I've seen those noise cancelling headphones on tv and in catalogs and have thought about getting them. Maybe you could next day order one of these? :) When the noise is a low bass rumble that vibrates things that's hard to avoid.

So no, it's not just your pet peeve. Hoping the roadwork gets completed quickly.

TroubleFree
Posted 9/22/2012 3:51 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks guys, I was starting to think that I was just being too sensitive. I mean if something as simple as a sound can make me feel disturbed...sheesh!

But knowing that it is not just me helps a lot!:)

I am going to give the headphones a try...we have a high-end set...not sound cancelling, but worth a shot.

Thanks again!

S.C.
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