Title
Misophonia, maladaptive schemas and personality disorders: a report of three cases
Reference
Natalini, E., Dimaggio, G., Varakliotis, T., Fioretti, A., & Eibenstein, A. (2020). Misophonia, maladaptive schemas and personality disorders: a report of three cases. Journal of Contemporary Psychotherapy, 50(1), 29-35.
Abstract
Misophonia is a chronic condition in which specifc sounds cause intense negative emotions and autonomic arousal. Misophonia is considered a psychological disorder without any relationship with specifc alterations of hearing receptors and
independent from physical characteristics of the sound. Moreover if misophonia can be defned as a specifc psychiatric
disorder or a correlate of other conditions is still under debate. The patients were two women and one man. In this case series
we frst identifed the presence of triggers sounds inducing misophonia as reported during the psychotherapy sessions. At a
qualitative level all the three patients perceived that the others were intentionally acting with the purpose of underline their
maladaptive interpersonal schemas. All the patients were evaluated with the use of questionnaires. Regarding personality disorders (PD) all three patients sufered from at least one PD. As regard depression, one had moderate depression and one had
severe depression. Two patients had moderate/severe anxiety. All the three patients can be considered as highly problematic
in the interpersonal domain. Our fndings have clinical implications for the treatment of misophonia because it seems to be
sustained by underlying PD or maladaptive interpersonal schemas. The qualitative analysis of these cases has highlighted
how patients with misophonia tended to ascribe intentionality to the people who emit the sounds that trigger their negative
emotional reactions. Further studies are necessary to evaluate which kind of interpersonal patterns occur in these patients.
independent from physical characteristics of the sound. Moreover if misophonia can be defned as a specifc psychiatric
disorder or a correlate of other conditions is still under debate. The patients were two women and one man. In this case series
we frst identifed the presence of triggers sounds inducing misophonia as reported during the psychotherapy sessions. At a
qualitative level all the three patients perceived that the others were intentionally acting with the purpose of underline their
maladaptive interpersonal schemas. All the patients were evaluated with the use of questionnaires. Regarding personality disorders (PD) all three patients sufered from at least one PD. As regard depression, one had moderate depression and one had
severe depression. Two patients had moderate/severe anxiety. All the three patients can be considered as highly problematic
in the interpersonal domain. Our fndings have clinical implications for the treatment of misophonia because it seems to be
sustained by underlying PD or maladaptive interpersonal schemas. The qualitative analysis of these cases has highlighted
how patients with misophonia tended to ascribe intentionality to the people who emit the sounds that trigger their negative
emotional reactions. Further studies are necessary to evaluate which kind of interpersonal patterns occur in these patients.
Keywords
Misophonia · Maladaptive schema · Personality disorder · Obsessive–compulsive personality disorder · Anger ·
Disgust
Disgust
Country
Italy
Study focus
Schema therapy effectiveness
Study design
Case study