I Couldn’t Bear the Sound of Chewing

Dear Delyara, No one was doing anything wrong. No one was being rude. It was just a normal family meal with normal sounds. Forks, chewing, water glasses, one child talking with too much enthusiasm, somebody asking for more ketchup, a chair scraping the floor. And my whole nervous system was done. I sat there trying to look like a loving adult while internally feeling like every ordinary sound was landing directly on exposed wires. That scared me a little. Not because sound bothers people sometimes. Because I know this version of myself now — the one who has had too much input for too many hours and is trying to keep kindness alive through sheer discipline. I managed. Barely. That matters too.