Why do some sounds bother us so much?
For the past five years, my husband and our younger kids have participated in an annual Pinewood Derby. Each year there’s a different theme and he and whichever child is participating brainstorm about what the car should look like–and then they spend way too much time and money and effort trying to achieve their vision. No creative project in our house is accomplished without some tears of frustration, although I’m proud to say that my husband holds it together much better than he used to.
So I expected to hear the requisite muttered curses and occasional muffled screams emerging from our dining room (which took over the role of “work room” after I lost patience with sandpaper, paint, and plaster covering the kitchen table where we eat dinner every night). What I didn’t expect to hear was a sound that made me moan in agony and almost throw up from discomfort.
The sound of styrofoam being sawed.
My husband was simply trying to make Egyptian pyramids out of styrofoam blocks so it would be unfair to accuse him of deliberately trying to drive me certifiably insane, thereby freeing him to inherit the family fortune and marry the maid and spend all my money (oh, wait, that’s “Gaslight,” not my life). But if he had wanted to drive me insane, he had hit on just the right way to do it.
All my life, the sound of styrofoam rubbing against itself has made me crazy. I have no idea why. When we were little, we used to use these small styrofoam kickboards to paddle around the lake. I could lie on top of one happily and kick all day. But if my board scraped slightly against another one when I was picking it up, I would reel in agony. And I’ve always hated going to parties where they use styrofoam plates because if someone happened to scrape a knife across his plate . . . unbearable. It’s like nails on chalkboard to me.
And speaking of nails on chalkboard–what about that ? It’s kind of like styrofoam rubbing against itself, right? (Or styrofoam being cut with a steel knife, which I’ve now discovered is even worse than the rubbing.) Why are these sounds so horrifying to us?
I realized I couldn’t think of a single biological reason for the physical reaction I (and many others) have to these sounds, so I called up my brother who’s a biology teacher in New York and asked him. He said, “Huh. I’ve never thought about it.” One possibility, he suggested, was that there was once some kind of predatory bird or animal that had a screech similar to those sounds and an instinctive reaction of aversion might have given an evolutionary benefit to those who had it. (My son, who loves biology, came up with the exact same theory when I asked him.)
Of course, a lot of human traits are useless, conferring no benefit but also no detriment. So there may never have been any point at all to this weird horror of a sound that for now, at least, doesn’t warn of any danger, unless you count how bad styrofoam is for the environment.
I also know people with similar, non-sound-related aversions. My sister, for example, can’t stand the feel of raw wood. She won’t even eat a popsicle. (Not that she necessarily would anyway–but she REALLY won’t if it’s on a wooden stick.) I don’t have that but I get it–raw wood’s a little like styrofoam to me. Which also seems weird. Why do they feel similar when I think about them?
This makes me wonder if the physical shuddering reaction she has to raw wood is in any way related to my physical shuddering reaction to styrofoam being rubbed or cut. Do you or anyone you know have a similar issue? I’m really curious about this now. Or if you have any theories as to why these responses exist, please let me know.
As a funny coda to all this styrofoam business (oh, and by the way, I had to close the door on my husband and hide in the opposite side of the house when he was doing his styrofoam cutting work), I was using a sharp knife to cut vegetables on my plate at dinner last night, and I accidentally pressed too hard and grated the edge of the knife against the ceramic plate. My 11-year-old daughter shrieked in agony and begged me not to make that noise again.
Oddly enough, it hadn’t bothered me at all. But she had my sympathy.
I was just searching on this subject, and found another article that I think has a plausible explanation: it’s a defense mechanism designed to keep us from hurting our teeth. http://amasci.com/amateur/screet.html
Makes sense to me, as I know when I hear this, or metal-on-metal (who designed steakhouse plates made of metal anyway? Uggh!)… my teeth feel funny!
Just a thought, as this was surprisingly difficult to research. I would think more people would be curious!
Oh, that does make sense! Thanks so much for telling me.
YESSSSSSSSS I hate the noise and feeling of stupid Styrofoam too!!!!! Along with cotton balls, velvet, chalk, so many things I wish I could get out of my life completely!
Oh god yes. The whole “fingernails on a chalkboard” thing doesn’t bother me at all, but styrofoam is like torture. Good post, I’d never wondered *why* the sound was so annoying.
I hate Styrofoam rubbing together too. especially when you have to cut a styrofoam square in half with a plastic knife. just thinking about it sends a shiver through my body. >_<
Im so glad to hear that I’m not the only one. As long as I can remember the sounds of cardboard, construction paper, (or any form of paper rubbed on a rough surface in that case) and worst of all styrofoam have tormented me. It’s a relief to know that there could be a reason.
My husband just helped our son make a model of an atom, cutting circles out of styrofoam. I couldn’t be in the same room with them. What’s funny is my son was fine with THAT, but if I squeak my fork across my plate, he jumps five feet in the air and begs me to stop. This stuff is weird.
OMG! I have the EXACT same issues! my husband actually sent met his article. Everyone I know thinks I am crazy (and gets pure amusement out of torturing me with this) but I have never been able to explain it! FINALLY, someone else in the world! It’s AWFUL to me..I gag, make noises, run away…..just terrible!
It’s good to have company!
I have the SAME EXACT thing. Thinking about it gives me shivers. Also chewing on an itchy sweater. yikes!
OMG, i’m so happy i’ve found people who feel me on this! I knew I wasn’t the only one! My sister thinks I have a styrafoam phobia and she really jokes me about it because she asked me if I would run from a styrafoam monster and I said yes. Of course I would because his styrafoam arms and legs would probably be rubbing together. lol
Same here, I always get a wierd feeling when I hear the sound of styrofoam being cracked, rubbed, etc.
I just want to let you know that you’re not the only one with a styrofoam issue. my best friend’s mother has the exact same problem, and she’s why I even came across this article. Anytime someone rubs styrofoam against styrofoam, she yells at them and begs them to stop. It mostly occurs when she takes home leftovers from a restaurant and the boxes stacked on top of each other slide and squeak. She shrieks in agony. I, too, despise this sound, but not anything like her. My most unbearable thing is touching paper with my hands when my hands are dry. I can’t stand it! Chills run down my spine. I have no idea why. It’s really weird, but the funny thing is my brother has the exact same issue. I didn’t even know this until last week. So I got to thinking that maybe some portion of it has to do with genetics. That’s a wild guess, but really, what are the odds that me and my brother BOTH can’t stand the feel of paper with dry hands? It’s definitely a mystery, and I’m glad I’m not the only one so intrigued and curious by it.
Yeah, same here. Merely thinking about it sends chills up my spine. Strangely, fingernails on chalkboard doesn’t phase me in the slightest. According to an Ask Metafilter thread, someone did a study on this, and they found out that it was the middle frequencies of the sound that apparently bothered people.
Why did I wait this long before checking the internet to make sure I’m not completely insane? I feel better now. I’ll feel even better if I never see styrofoam again, but I still feel better.
It just happened to me the other day–we got something in the mail and my husband was unpacking it from its styrofoam packing and I had to curl up in a fetal position until he was done!
I too, share your pain…..i wonder if it is a disability
I too, share you pain…I was chased from the cafeteria in 9th grade when the boys found out…..
I have that same problem styrofoam drives me crazy even when I think about the sound its like just happened and it stays in my head for a long period of time that sound doesn’t go away its horrible I will hurt somebody if they around me with that stuff and people thinks its funny ass holes