A father-to-be had such a fear of noise that he may have thrown himself to his death in front of a tube train.
An inquest heard that IT consultant Neil Carter, 37, suffered from a rare and incurable neurological disease called Misophonia, which literally means 'hatred of sound'.
He 'felt like there was no way out' due to his fear of certain sounds, the hearing was told.
The illness means specific sounds - such as walking or chewing - can trigger 'negative experiences' in the brain, and meant he had a heightened sensitivity to noise, the inquest heard.
His psychiatrist, Dr Elise Stephen, said she had referred Mr Carter to the Priory Clinic in Roehampton, west London, the last time she saw him, less than a fortnight before his death in November last year.
She told West London Coroner's Court: "He told me that he had been at his brother's party recently and the noise had been too much. He felt like there was no way out and feared he could not be a provider for his family because of his illness.
"He said he struggled to cope. I tried to allay his fears that he could better manage his thoughts."
Mr Carter, of East Ewell in Surrey, died when he was hit by a train at Turnham Green tube station in west London on November 20 last year after going missing from The Priory.
He was a voluntary in-patient after he had been made redundant from his job as an IT consultant, the inquest heard.
Dr Rose Scott, who used to work at The Priory, read a report to the inquest which looked at Mr Carter's state of mind in October last year.
She said: "He felt like there was no way out. "The noise and fear of noise is an intrusion into his life. He has suicidal thoughts, but no plan to carry it out."
Priory Psychiatrist Dr Campbell told the inquest he thought Mr Carter's situation could improve with the right treatment.
The inquest continues.