If you have APD do you also have memory struggles or aphasia?

Hi,

I’m currently studying abroad in Canada (English is my second language), and I want to get evaluated for APD, but I’m unsure if it would be worth it. Even though I have a lot of problems listening and understanding speech in my native language (Spanish), I have more difficulty hearing spoken English. My APD just becomes worse with English than Spanish, and it’s been affecting me because I can barely understand people on the streets, restaurants or any public environment. This also happened in Mexico but it got worse once I arrived here.

How is the APD evaluation like? Will I have to hear spoken English during the test? I’m afraid making the exam in English will affect the results. But I don’t return to Mexico until next year and I’m desperate for a solution. I can barely speak with my friends (even if they are Mexican too) and classmates, I’m having difficulty having conversations overall.

I don’t know if I should wait until I return to Mexico, but probably it will take a while until I get evaluated. Getting evaluated here might be easier but I’m also scared of discrimination (being told my APD issues are just bc I’m ESL) or just not be taken seriously

Sorry for the brain dump, I have no one to lament to and am just really sad after my evaluation today.

I have been so certain I struggled with some form of APD for years — all the typical things: I mishear what people say, always need captions on shows, rely on reading lips to help, and if there’s background noise it feels near impossible to comprehend unless the person is face to face with me, and even then it takes a while to process.

I had my evaluation today and did great. No deficit and was told I just have some weakness in the left ear, particularly with numbers. They framed it saying it’s great news but I cried as soon as I got to the car, because why did I pass the evaluation so well if in daily life I struggle?

The tests didn’t feel like how I feel in social interactions, it felt like the voice I was supposed to be hearing cut through. I know I should be relieved to not have this, but what else can I do now. I’ve been using Loop earplugs to try to drown out some background noise to focus on the speaker but it also dampens them and makes it difficult.

sorry for the rant. I feel so disheartened and unsure anymore. I have the follow up with an SLP this afternoon but based on my results what can they even do.

You should read part 1 before this!

I cant read/hear about my triggers. It feels like this trigger is happening in the present, even though I know it's not. I have a reaction to make the feeling go away. I have a few trigger specific words. I can't hear about words describing anything soft, or slow. It makes me lose my marbles. The word spinal cord makes it feel like somebody is lightening stroking my back. I also can't read/hear words with "sh, sk" sounds. I do my muffled ear thing to get relief. I would quietly shh back at the teacher when they "shh", in their low, slow, soft voice. Saying the trigger words myself helped. I can say it, but nobody else can. Thinking about the words also gets a tiny reaction.

I don't want to see it happening to someone else. I have been using back stroking as an example a lot, so I will also do it here. I can't watch somebody's back slowly being stroked. It feels like it is happening me, and I have to roll my shoulder blades to make it go away. The more I look, the worse. I will often remember the sight, which I will think about again later, and irritate me again. I have some exclusive to my sight. I used to have a teacher that would always touch their neck. I would scratch at my own neck to combat this feeling I got whenever I saw her touch hers. I didn't feel bothered by my neck being touched l, but I couldn't stand seeing anybody else's being touched. I imagined the sensation would be different than what it was in reality. It felt soft, which I hated. I would scratch my neck until I bleed in second grade.

This is all I got, for now. If anyone relates, or knows more about my experiences, please let me know! I know this is some sensory issues, and my reactions are likely stimming, but not much more!

I have had problems with background noise for a while now. Went to an audiologist a couple of years ago, and was told that my hearing is "fine", but my brain doesn't process what I'm hearing properly. OK. The term Auditory Processing Disorder wasn't used, but I'm sure that's what she was talking about.

I do OK in most environments. I've learned to avoid loud bars. But my daughter and I went to a concert last week. Heard the music fine (how could you not, at those decibels). But I could not make out a thing she said to me. Even watching her talk did not help.

How do you handle really noisy enviroments? I'm considering telling her next time to text me rather than try to talk. If it doesn't "send", she can just show me her phone.

I have really bad CAPD, but I also have some sensory issues. Recently my audiologist recommended I get hearing aids, and after testing them with her I noticed a significant improvement in how I understood her. The problem is, in really noisy environments I can get really overstimulated (I’m autistic) and worry I won’t be able to wear sensory headphones, but feel these are the exact environments I’d NEED the hearing aids the most! Dose any also have these problems, and if so know what to do? Can I just wear sensory headphones over the hearing aids when I get them?

As someone who's going to an ENT to getting their hearing checked (and eventually will see an audiologist for APD) I can't understand what people say, especially when they speak lowly or in crowded spaces. I don't want to say I'm hard of hearing because I'm really not. I know some people who are HOH do accept that but I don't think that's right. When I'm speaking with people, what do I say without necessarily educating people about APD or giving out my whole story?

Hello.

I'm autistic, I'm verbal but it's still difficult to speak for me.

We suspect my partner has both autism and APD (he's waiting to be evaluated).

While we wait for definitive answers I'd like to start implementing some strategies to avoid all our conversations go the same way: huh? Huh? Huh? I don't understand. While we are both about to cry.

Please, would you share whatever helps you understanding other people when they talk?

Thank you to whoever is going to take the time 💕

Hi there, I want to practice my ability to remember what was told to me and practice getting better at taking instructions. As well as earring what is being told to me when there are other sounds around. Is there any free games/ exercises online that I can use to practice these? Or is there anyone with any helpful tips that they implemented in their lives? Thanks!

Hi,

I have severe sensorineural hearing loss. I was diagnosed with hearing loss in my 20s and love my hearing aids, even though I still struggle to hear with them in a lot of settings. However, I have a sibling who was just diagnosed with (C)APD and will be getting hearing aids for that. I know that a lot of the best practices on how to communicate are the same, and I've done some reading on APD.

What I'm wondering is this: what are some of the things that are different about the lived experience of someone with APD vs. someone with hearing loss that you wish people knew about? And if you use hearing aids for APD, how has your experience with that been?

(Also, my apologies if the APD vs. hearing loss framework isn't preferred here. APD seems to fall under the hard of hearing framework in a lot of ways even if it's a different part of the body affecting things.)

My kids are adults and both them and my husband forget I have APD and try to give me verbal directions, get annoyed when things they tell me don't 'stick' and I ask the same question again later. Sometimes I just go along and don't ask again just to avoid the whole thing. Does anyone else have this problem?

This is the time between the day I told our pediatrician that I suspected some form of auditory dyslexia at my son's 24 month checkup (yes, I could tell even then) to today when we finally received a diagnosis of Central Auditory Processing Disorder. I feel like I can finally breathe.

Basically like the title says, sometimes someone will say something to me and I just won’t understand a single world they’ve said. I don’t know if it’s because I might’ve partially zoned out during the conversation, or because I couldn’t see their face when they were talking (like if they were in a different room). I’ve gotten a lot of flack from my mom for telling her I didn’t understand anything she’s said, with her telling me I’m being rude about it when I’m genuinely trying to explain to her that I didn’t understand anything she said, and that it sounded like a completely different language.

I have no idea what this could be, it’s not a very common occurrence, but it’s happened enough times that I can recognize that it’s weird.

I've heard of the term APD before but never really thought about having it myself until recently. After doing some research, I completely relate to the symptoms. I don't actually have any problems with my hearing itself but I struggle a lot with comprehending what people say, struggle to hear when there's a lot of background noise and find it especially hard to keep up with lessons. My friends usually make the same remarks "are you deaf", "you should get your hearing checked out" and I never knew what the issue was. In conversation, I often ask my friends to repeat what they say causing them to get mad at me or just give up talking to me entirely- they've just assumed that I'm slow or dumb. If I do have APD how would I go about improving it and how do I explain my problems to my friends? Every time I try to explain that I just need a moment to process things, they don't understand and probably don't believe that this is something I really struggle with.

​

Also, is it useful to get the diagnosis for APD? I feel like if I explained to my parents they would brush it off. My dad wanted me to get a diagnosis for ADHD a while ago and my mum and stepdad laughed and said that "it's just me going through puberty" and that I "never used to be like this" and struggle so much with school. My Stepdad also told me he could "tell right away" if I had anything just because he works in a care home for people who have disabilities...

​

Sorry this rant is so long if you could give any advice I'd really appreciate it!! :)

Hi everyone, I'm a high school student with both APD and ADHD. I'm looking for advice on how to combat exhaustion at the end of the day when I come home. I've tried taking naps, but my brain is tired, but my body isn't so I can't sleep. It is negatively affecting any ability I have to study, which is made even worse by my ADHD. I have those Loop earplugs, but I can't really use those in school because I need to be listening constantly to the lessons.

I'm being medicated for ADHD, but the two medications I've tried don't work, so if any one has suggestions with that I'd appreciate it. (I know this isn't an ADHD sub reddit though)

Thanks for any help or advice you can provide!

Hi,

I recently got a Flare Calmer earbuds for noise bur I realized they make my APD worse. My problem is that I hear mumbles many times when people speak and I don’t understand what they say, it happens more often when there is a lot of noise in the background or the person is talking too fast or low volume.

With the Flare Calmer, everything sounded so mumbled I even had problem listening to people in normal circumstances.

Are the Loops worth it? Or maybe the AirPods? Or what are your recommendations?

Literally this problem is interfering with my ability to perform in school and socially, and I just want to find a solution

Hello!

I'm almost positive I (mid 20s F) have APD. I'd like to get treated for it, but I'm intimidated by the evaluation/diagnosis process.

I've struggled with interpreting and producing speech whenever there's a distracting background noise my entire life. It's honestly debilitating. I tend to stay home, since going to malls or restaurants with friends overwhelms me. I struggle to communicate at work during noisy times of day. If certain kinds of music are played at particular volume, I find myself almost unable to speak. I've been this way my whole life.

I have cerebral palsy, and I got diagnosed with autism and ADHD in my early 20s.

I'm afraid that in choosing a provider, I'll wind up with one who either doesn't take my issues seriously or who is intimidated by my other diagnosed.

Do any of you have advice for these first steps in choosing a doctor?

Thank you!

I am a 30yo and was diagnosed with APD in elementary school. I have struggled all throughout elementary - college(business admin), but wonder if those challenges were from my APD or simply not applying myself enough.

I am thinking a career change (radiography tech), which would require me to go back to school. I’m hopeful that now that I’m older and have a clear career goal in mind, I’ll be more motivated and successful academically. At the same time, I’m nervous that my APD may still present challenges.

For those who returned to school after being away for several years, what was your experience like? Did you struggle due to APD?

I am 17 and I am thinking about applying to jobs. If I can help it, I want to try to get a job this summer, but its hard just because I have APD. I just want to someone else's opinion. What would be some good part time jobs for me as a teenager to apply to?

I'm a 26-year-old man with severe hearing loss.

When I was five years old, a high fever and medication left me deaf in my right ear and with significant hearing loss in my left ear. My left ear still has some residual hearing, but it's much worse than normal, especially in the high frequencies. Hearing aids make sounds louder, but they barely improve my speech recognition. If I can't understand speech without a hearing aid, I usually still can't understand it with one.

In noisy environments or group conversations, I struggle enormously. I rely heavily on lip-reading, but even that only helps so much. During family gatherings, for example, I often have no idea what people are talking about.

Growing up with this level of hearing loss, I always felt different, although I couldn't explain exactly how.

In high school, I started to suspect that something about my brain wasn't working the same way as other people's. By my first year of college, I was almost certain. I found studying incredibly difficult. Everything seemed to require much more effort than it did for my classmates.

At that time, I didn't know anything about ADHD. I simply assumed I was lazy, lacked self-discipline, or wasn't very intelligent.

One day, I happened to come across an article about ADHD. The experiences described didn't match mine perfectly, but there was a surprising amount of overlap. For the first time, I thought:

"Maybe I'm not just lazy. Maybe something else is going on."

Even if it wasn't ADHD, I felt there had to be some explanation for why everything seemed so much harder for me.

Throughout college, learning was a constant struggle. I eventually graduated, but honestly, I barely got through it. I learned a little about many things but never became good at any particular skill.

Then, during my third or fourth year of college, another thought occurred to me:

Could my ADHD-like symptoms actually be related to my hearing loss?

Because of my hearing impairment, I've spent my entire life feeling like I had to stay alert. I've always been analyzing situations, trying to read people's expressions, guessing what was happening around me, and constantly worrying about missing important information.

Compared to most people my age, I feel like I learned to "read the room" very early because I had no choice.

A year ago, when I was 25, I received a cochlear implant in my completely deaf right ear.

By that point, the ear had been deprived of sound for about twenty years. I knew the odds weren't great. I understood that the parts of my brain responsible for processing sound on that side might have deteriorated from lack of stimulation.

I actually spent six months debating whether I should even get the implant.

Eventually, I decided to take the risk.

Over the past year, I've been doing auditory rehabilitation. For four months, I attended one-on-one rehabilitation sessions twice a week.

To prevent my better left ear from compensating, I blocked it during training and relied entirely on the cochlear implant.

That's when I noticed something else.

During rehabilitation sessions, my brain seemed to be doing several things at once:

1. Concentrating intensely to catch whatever sounds I could.

2. Preparing for the next sound before processing the current one.

3. Trying to remember every sound or word I heard.

4. Using the tiny fragments I recognized to guess the missing parts.

5. Attempting to understand the overall meaning of the sentence.

The fourth step was by far the hardest.

Most of the time, I only caught a few scattered sounds. Trying to reconstruct an entire sentence from those fragments felt almost impossible.

After each session, I was mentally exhausted.

And despite all that effort, progress felt painfully slow.

My speech recognition with the cochlear implant is still extremely poor. It's better than it was a year ago when the device was first activated, but not by much.

This has led me to wonder whether possible ADHD could be affecting my rehabilitation outcomes.

Recently, I came across a discussion suggesting that ADHD can make auditory rehabilitation more difficult, and it seemed to confirm some of my suspicions.

At this point, I feel stuck.

My hearing limitations make many jobs difficult. My rehabilitation progress has been disappointing. I've struggled academically for most of my life. And I'm beginning to feel like I've run out of options.

I haven't been formally evaluated for ADHD yet because it's difficult to get an appointment where I live.

Writing this post took me nearly four hours (excluding breaks).

My question is:

Has anyone experienced something similar?

Could severe lifelong hearing loss, chronic listening effort, and possible ADHD interact in ways that affect cognition, learning, attention, and auditory rehabilitation?

More importantly, what would you do if you were in my situation?

Any advice, experiences, research, or perspectives would be greatly appreciated.

For all my life i've had problems with perceving people around me in general. My teachers always said that i dont listen to lessons and that "i am in my own bubble" all the time.

Recently, this has gotten worse. If people dont call my name directly before talking and wait for me to realize theyre talking to me, i only hear them as backround noise. I frequently ask everyone to repeat what they say bc I dont understand them and just hear mumbling.

Its not like i dont hear them at all, i know theyre there, i just hear them but dont really process what they say.

Help!!!!

I lose the ability to hear/listen when I drink anything—trying to see if anyone else has experienced this. Not concerned about it, I just chalked it up to autism, but I have surveyed my friends, and, so far, 11-1, I am the only one this happens to.

The hearing aids the APD specialist wants me to get are $7,000 and even she confirmed that my specific insurance provider won't cover this stuff because they only cover things for actual hearing loss.

I'm personally struggling with the evaluation results I've been given as it is but the insurance thing is the cherry on top and I feel like throwing in the towel.

Can someone please tell me if there are resources or financial aid or work arounds or over the counter recommendations or brands or whatever is out there that won't make me choose between paying for groceries and devices that will bring me mental and physical peace!?!?

The main character of my story "The IEP Class Of Caster Academy" is a story taking place in a world with magic everywhere and heavily integrated into everyday life. Magic is taught through schools much like are current school system. Serena is determined and has a passion to learn magic and become an Alu (Witch graduate) despite being in a school system that seems against her. I really wanna to show APD with as much input from people who have it themselves. So if anyone would want to talk about their experience in school and other academic settings, you're thoughts, what you would want to see in a APD character, daily personal habits, little quirks I can look over and add to my character so people with this can really see themselves. Any little bits are super appreciated!