Anxiety and overreacting to noise

maryrose54 you’re very welcome for the advice about Misophonia. It made my DIL’s life a misery until a community community nurse gave her some sound advice. Exercises might ease that condition for you but the issue with the neighbours dogs needs resolving. It’s not fair on the poor dogs either.

Look into breathing techniques for anxiety And also vagus nerve toning exercises (YouTube is for these). I don't react as much as I also sleep a lot better.

so agree, barking dog is like chinese torture, especially when it goes on and on, we live quite near a hospital and whenever an ambulance goes by with the sirens on several dogs howl like mad, , I think your only option is to speak to your neighbours, doesnt have to be confrontational , maybe they are not really aware of whats going on,,,, good luck

I went through a stage where noises really got to me. Even the sound the microwave made when it was finished made me anxious. I remember once a waitresses high pitched voice almost pushed me over the edge, and she kept coming back to our table to ask us how it was going. See if you need some magnesium or B vitamins. It helped me.

Also anxiety can make us hyper-vigilant. Always on the look out for danger.

Apart from other recommendations, taking vitamin B complex really helps me to lower anxiety and stress.

Maybe they have double glazing, or maybe you could suggest, if it's a small dog of course, that they put in a cat flap, large size, for their dog.
If it's been going on for a couple of years, I guess it won't be easy to stop, but if it's recent maybe the dog will learn to stay quiet for his 10 minute pee pee outing! With a bit of luck...
I'm lucky in that I have a big garden and no neighbours for hundreds of yards, but I also let my dogs in when they ask...
Try talking to your neighbour if you can. I'm not too good at it personally.

Many years ago I had a similar problem. The young couple behind us had a dog. It was fine while they were home at weekends and evenings, but as soon as they left for work, the poor thing started barking and whining. This carried on all day until they came home. Apart from it wrecking our lives, the poor dog must have been in a dreadful state too. We eventually had a word with them and they promised to do something about it. It didn’t happen. Eventually we had to contact environmental health who sent them a warning letter. They still refused to accept it was making our lives a misery, so reluctantly we contacted EH again. The couple came to see us and verbally abused us. It was really distressing. They sold their house and moved on. I can’t tell you what a relief it was.
Please don’t suffer in silence, but more importantly the little dog shouldn’t be pushed outside and left. It’s so important to make your dog part of the family, not just leave them to their own devices. It makes for a very unhappy dog.

For ten years we had two yapping dogs next door who were never walked and just left in the garden for up to an hour, non stop barking. It drove us crazy. I went round and politely asked them to let the dogs in. The wife was understanding but had recently had a baby and said she was too busy to see to the dogs. It improved for a while. After a few weeks it was bad again. I wrote a letter saying please respect your neighbours. I popped it through their door leaving my name . The husband came round that evening banging on the door saying ‘I’m not happy about this’ My letter in his hand and Continued to shout on my doorstep. Not long after, the couple split up and moved. What bliss! Apparently he was a nasty bit of work a d other neighbours had called the police.
Life is peaceful once again. Thank God.! It can really ruin your life so I completely understand OP feeling so anxious. Try getting the other neighbours on board and definitely have a word with next door. They are probably unaware of your feelings.

I ended up moving house because my neighbours went out every weekend, even some weekdays boozing& then had ones back til maybe 4am partying. The whole time they were out their dog howled and barked, only stopped when they came back. I was up at 5am to be in work for 6am at weekends. My anxiety was through the roof, I lost weight, I was a mess. I spoke to them about it & they stopped speaking to me, so it made it all worse. I really feel for you, I dread to think if I hadn't of moved what I'd be like now.

Parents get used to the noise their children make when playing, and dog owners do tend to do the same when their dogs bark or whine.

The trouble is knowing when to mention that these sounds of everyday living are unpleasant to you, and when not to, as mentioning the subject can lead to trouble with the neighbours,

I would try to meet the neighbour when he or she is out with the dog, greet them, then say directly to the dog, "Oh, you are a big softy, aren't you? I hear you whining go get in, as if you had been out for hours."

The owner might just take the hint.

One of our neighbours had a yapping dog in the garden all day long. I started barking back and I think she got the message.

Thankyou all for your advice. I will definitely take note of how often and for how long the dog whines, and then if necessary have a tactful word. I'm sure that some of the problem is my hyper sensitivity to some sounds, worse since lockdown and being at home a lot. After reading up about misophonia, as suggested by one of you, I do seem to have the symptoms. Nevertheless, if the dog continues to be left outside to whine I will talk to the neighbours.

I empathise, a whining dog is not pleasant to hear.
My neighbour had a dog for seventeen years and it howled every single day even if she just left the room.
I was climbing the wall and my blood pressure was sky high. One day a friend was visiting me and she was all for going round and telling the neighbour to get the dog some separation anxiety treatment.

I would have to point out to neighbours their behaviour allowing dog to whine for so long. Do you have any other neighbours who hear it too, perhaps they would approach the owners with you, safety in numbers! Keep a diary to help identify times etc. to justify your approach.

I would have a word with the neighbour otherwise things won't change that is if she seems like a nice woman..she may not realise if she is in another part of the house.

We had two dogs left outside all day in a neighbour’s garden for months. They howled and whined as well as continuously barking.

I called the council and reported it, in confidence, saying it was really getting me down. They sent a noise nuisance letter to the owners of the house and the dogs were sent to live with his parents who were home all day and could look after them, unlike him. You could try that route.

We have recently moved to a lovely house in the country and our neighbours have a dog that every time it's left alone which is Mon to Friday barks and whines for at least half hour. Drives me crazy! After a couple of days of barking for over a hour, I went next door and told them. It's not acceptable. It's actually against the law for a dog to bark for longer than 10 mins with a £5000 fine. We don't want to fall out with our new neighbours so am hoping it's due to lockdown and not being left alone. Time will tell

We had a barking dog behind us I eventually lost the rag and banged on the fence , When someone came over I told them to shut their dog up . Not exactly polite but it sure worked. Another neighbour had a troblesome dog and someone contacted the dog warden . They were issued with a notice that they would have to give up their dog if this continued.

maryrose54 - if the dog is out for 10-15 minutes you can hardly complain - in the grand scheme of things it's no time at all. However, if the dog is out for 10 minutes every hour then you should bring it up with the owners/neighbours. You might also try talking to the dog over the fence, this might calm you down as well as the dog, and finally, if you recognise that you have suffered with anxiety for a long time why don't you see a counsellor/psychotherapist who will help you find the cause of this underlying condition and develop some strategies for coping. You will have a better life if you can reduce it.

So sorry to hear this, unfortunately you become super sensitive to sounds, waiting for them which makes you on edge all the time.

I had a problem with a new pup at a neighbours house. It was put out at 6.30am for half an hour every morning.... barked and barked. I wrote a note to the owners to point out the problem who came round to say it was only a pup BUT they accepted the time was too early. I used a chart to monitor times when the dog was barking as Environmental Health need details if you make a complaint. As the dog got older it settled down so I didn’t complain in the end. Don’t put up with this: someone is making your life difficult, causing you an anxiety.

you need to tell your neighbour, they need to know their dog whines for 15mins when it's outside. You don't need to look up 'your problem.' the problem is the neighbours. This would cause a nuisance to any one

This should not cause a problem if told in an okay way. they may be unaware as you say their living room is the other side of house.

Maybe get some noise-cancelling headphones.

maryrose I think whether a person has anxiety or not, listening to this dog would make anyone upset and anxious. The owners are inconsiderate.

I looked at misophonia and it does describe the reaction I have, although misophonia seems to be most commonly associated with eating sounds. Just reading about people having the reactions I have has helped me. I don't want to cause upset with the neighbours but will keep note of how long and how often, even if just to show myself that it isn't as often as I feel it is. Thankyou all for your supportive comments.