Over the past month or so, it occurred to me that if I really want to be more vocal about promoting better misophonia awareness to the public, I needed to rejoin a group where my membership lapsed several years ago... Toastmasters. Although each individual club has its own unique style, in general when I was a member of Toastmasters, my speaking skills dramatically improved (plus it was such a great way to make new friends.)
Over the past three weeks, I visited three different clubs near my office. I noticed that I made a special effort to sit myself at a location very close to the speakers' lecturn, in the hopes of minimizing any visual/audio triggers I might experience. (This is something I realize I've been doing a lot lately when attending conferences or other events with a lot of people.) The first club I visited, the only triggers I noticed were a couple of nervous actions by newbie speakers (jingling coins in their pockets, fidgiting as they spoke) but in general, the members of that club presented very well. They also had a "treatmaster" who brings yummie goodies to the meeting. That's one concern I might have with the club - especially if the treatmaster of the day winds up bringing something in that's really crunchy.
The second club was a different story. There weren't as many people as in the first club (only about 6-8 compared to about 20-24) but there were more people who were creating visual triggers (bouncing legs, tapping fingers on the table), one of whom sat next to me. I found myself positioning my long hair as a "blinder" or trying to position objects near me to block the view. I wasn't very successful though.
The third club, from which I just returned, was great. I think I only saw one person who brought lunch to the meeting and she was at the other end of the table, so if she had made any noise, I didn't hear it. I didn't notice any nervous fidgiting either. I have a feeling, this may be the club I join. I can't believe that I'm allowing my misophonia to influence my decision about which club to visit but with this condition... I guess I've got to do what's be
Over the past three weeks, I visited three different clubs near my office. I noticed that I made a special effort to sit myself at a location very close to the speakers' lecturn, in the hopes of minimizing any visual/audio triggers I might experience. (This is something I realize I've been doing a lot lately when attending conferences or other events with a lot of people.) The first club I visited, the only triggers I noticed were a couple of nervous actions by newbie speakers (jingling coins in their pockets, fidgiting as they spoke) but in general, the members of that club presented very well. They also had a "treatmaster" who brings yummie goodies to the meeting. That's one concern I might have with the club - especially if the treatmaster of the day winds up bringing something in that's really crunchy.
The second club was a different story. There weren't as many people as in the first club (only about 6-8 compared to about 20-24) but there were more people who were creating visual triggers (bouncing legs, tapping fingers on the table), one of whom sat next to me. I found myself positioning my long hair as a "blinder" or trying to position objects near me to block the view. I wasn't very successful though.
The third club, from which I just returned, was great. I think I only saw one person who brought lunch to the meeting and she was at the other end of the table, so if she had made any noise, I didn't hear it. I didn't notice any nervous fidgiting either. I have a feeling, this may be the club I join. I can't believe that I'm allowing my misophonia to influence my decision about which club to visit but with this condition... I guess I've got to do what's be
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