What is Auditory Processing Disorder?

[@bagel_person2533]

I was diagnosed about a year ago now, and I have to say that it is really easy to misdiagnose APD. It’s been written off as bad circumstances, bad attentiveness, and most recently, the use of masks with friends and family. I’m very happy that there are more videos to reach a wider audience and inform more people about APD. It makes me so glad to think that these videos could help someone out a lot and make things much easier for them. You’re doing great work.

[@RonnieKaufman1]

I am a speech pathologist, who worked in this field, closely collaborating with Audiologists...helping children and/or adults with APD....please remember to include us in the loop...We offer very important clinical skills, which are critical in treating this disorder. thank you

[@nonamejohnson4809]

Hello I am an SLP student with auditory processing disorder. It's so great to hear from someone like you. Can you tell me more about your work?

[@Ilovefishessses]

​@nonamejohnson4809 I also have APD which I found out recently, by that I mean I found out that it exists and not just a problem I have. I'm only a kid and I struggle everyday in school hearing instructions or just listening to anyone. Hopefully your not struggling bud :D

[@nonamejohnson4809]

@@Ilovefishessses not anymore but I was in a bad place bc of it. My school wanted to kick me out and I didn't know where to turn. I hope you saw an Audiologist or getting treatment. That's what helped me

[@Ilovefishessses]

@nonamejohnson4809 my parents are getting in contact with the doctors tomorrow and good for you :D hopefully I will be fixed!1!

[@SageSbisa]

what's your take on apd being a nutritional deficiency? or coq10 deficiency?

[@tudormiller887]

I'm an adult who was diagnosed with ADHD a few years ago. After watching this video, I probably have APD, I was also born premature, around 32 weeks.

[@robertklund4861]

I can hear a fly buzzing in the next room, but half the time I can't understand what people are saying, especially when there is a jet flying overhead!

[@billhohmann2653]

Was going to contact your firm. I often have that problem... English sounds like a foreign language sometimes. Noisy environments make it impossible to understand others, like a restaurant. Got hearing aids, but sometimes, even 'normal' sound is literally painful. Now, can't even stand to watch/listen to TV. Often wish I couldn't hear at all. And yes, I am exhausted, to the point of tears sometimes.

[@MadMaxToo61]

I tested severe end for APD after years of feeling something wasn't right, even with hearing aids I couldn't understand the TV and relied on subtitles. I've found an amazing and empathetic APD knowledgeable audiologist. I've now got Bluetooth enabled new hearing aids, I'm hooked up to the TV and phone, can understand the TV without subtitles now. Have done round 1 of a 16 week APD listening re-learning course, and will redo it at 1 year. Things are not perfect, but so much better than before. I'm not avoiding phone calls now as well. I hope you look into Bluetooth enabled aids, and find an APD smart audiologist to help you through the next phase of your life. Good luck.

[@ItsJennNotJenny]

I have both bilateral congenital hearing loss, and I was diagnosed in 1st grade in 1993 with APD. I'm just now able to get hearing aids and learning tips and tools to help me learn better in college at age 37 as a freshman. I've been aware of my condition for many years, but had no idea there were actually therapies and tools available. I had poor grades because of the auditory style of teaching without accommodation. I'm grateful for the content out there now to navigate both my hearing loss and APD.

[@greenlilac32]

I’m so happy I came across this video This 100000000% describes me My hearing (for my age) is perfect. I’ve even had tests done and they said nothings wrong But I’m like damn it I can’t understand people, or seriously struggle to, when there’s even just some noise in the background I constantly have to ask people to repeat themselves But omg this explains it so well and makes me realize my audiologists missed it (they even said it’s probably my attention span) I definitely want to ask them about this the next time I make an appointment. Because even just turning down music or turning off the tv and BAM I can understand other people perfectly

[@thanos716]

Great, Keep us Updated!

[@lauramaeda7214]

APD seems like a difficult condition to diagnose as it seems to present itself differently in people. I am curious to know how prevalent this condition is and how often it is misdiagnosed as hearing loss. I would think that one would have to undergo a battery of tests to rule out other conditions. i would think that it would take a skilled practitioner to diagnose and recommend treatment. Finding such a practitioner would be a daunting process. Very interesting and informative video.

[@tudormiller887]

Around 5% have APD. So it's not as common as ADHD.

[@ItsJennNotJenny]

It's not an easy process, but thankfully, I was dx back in 1993 at 6 yo, but I also was dx with hearing loss at age 14 in my left ear. I developed hearing loss in my right ear in my 30s, which is suspected to be from a rare disease I was born with called GACI. We definitely need more research and education on both subjects and the varying cases that we need help identifying in the medical community.

[@sdfjsd]

@@tudormiller887 Correction: around 5% have been DIAGNOSED with APD. Who knows if it's more common then that, especially since most doctors don't even know what it is. I'd say it's more common, but few people actually get diagnosed.

[@FolstrimHori]

I often have to request people to repeat themselves, and I remember several times where I heard something completely different from what was said. Such as hearing "Crystal" when someone said their name was "Diane". Not to mention when I was younger, I had immense difficulty paying attention. I'm 33 now, and had no idea that APD was a thing! Hopefully I can find the time to receive help.

[@InBonesWeTrust]

I'm on my third pair of Oticon hearing aids for APD in a decade. Using Real 2.

[@derf-bg3de]

i have APD and it sucks. Are their any remarkably intelligent people who have it?

[@amynicholson7577]

I have it and I have always struggled in school, but I did work hard and got my college degree. However, I am still struggling in social situations, and especially with lengthy conversations.

[@CHIMARIYABHIMA]

​@@amynicholson7577everyone is same condition 😢

[@angiekratzer426]

Yes! And it can be corrected.

[@nomadak723]

​@@angiekratzer426 Could you please recommend some techniques, or give me an idea of what's approached in treatment?

[@meric12131415]

The roger focus is also a good choice for APD

[@hbanana7]

I have this. Was often told the same thing multiple times. Now as a teacher, I am having to do the same to a clearly (undiagnosed) adhd student. It is frustrating for both of us….just because i know what is causing it…I don’t know how to work around it. I;m not in the position to tell her parents to get her diagnosed.

[@justinforgette11]

Im not disgnosed with anything but i just discovered APD after internet searches for my symptoms. Huge weight lifted off my shoulders to find out that im not the only one this happens to

[@bcsbcs1340]

Can this condition be selective? For instance, a person can hear (and even interact) all conversations taking place in the kitchen while he is playing video games in the living room but this very same person cannot follow or seem to understand directions or understand a lesson at school. Can this issue be selective or only happen when the person has to actually listen, process the information and understand like in school environment?

[@jimmynorton1001]

I have it with hearing aides

[@CypressJune]

This could have helped me a lot if someone would have just explained this to me when I attended school. 😅 l didn’t find out till I graduated and saw it in my paper work.

[@celty5858]

I’ve heard audio issues are common in autistic people 0: I always use cc if it’s available because I just don’t always catch what’s being said. I wish we could have cc irl.

[@MadMaxToo61]

Bluetooth enabled devices that talk to your hearing aids have worked wonders for me. TV and phone in particular. Also PC headphones.

[@CHIMARIYABHIMA]

What is cc I have apd problem and struggling

[@nothereyet]

​@@CHIMARIYABHIMAcc means captions like in this video

[@anureddy6599]

I m having sudden hearing loss after minor spine injury. Gradually can't hear low noises. But so far what i can hear cannot understand properly. With background noise is very tough. Is this everyone facing same ?!!! Please respond guys

[@autumngargus9301]

Have you checked for brain damage? Did you get a concussion when you got the spinal injury?

[@anureddy6599]

@@autumngargus9301 no concussion. Brain MRI I have taken. It was normal

[@salembookworm]

I am literally going insane: So I am partially deaf on my left ear (hearing loss is around 50 percent). But nobody has figured out why my hearing on the left ear suddenly stops entirely and then comes back a few seconds or minutes later and then sounds like an out of tune radio? This can happen like 5 times per day or more or less. It varies a lot. Some days I don't have it at all and then on other days it's really bad. If anyone has maybe any idea what this might be, I'd be very grateful.

[@lindsaywendl7878]

I don’t know what to do me and boyfriend of 3 years argue all the time because I struggle to comprehend conversation and recently was diagnosed with APD and he doesn’t believe my diagnosis and just thinks I have a poor attention span.

[@KiswanaNoelle89]

Same it’s frustrating

[@chirukouchiha]

I have the last part of my neuro psychological testing tomorrow. I'm going to ask about this

[@kathysmith4026]

I have trouble understanding what people say and have tinnitus

[@MadMaxToo61]

Look for an APD knowledgeable audiologist, who will do a proper and long and thorough test. Be careful of ones that do a short test though, like my first attempt, who say they can do APD tests and don't know much about APD.

[@bluesapphire7548]

Started working in a call center as side hustle (thank God its not the primary work). I think you get the picture.

[@samwyz69]

There are different types of hearing loss. I was born with a hearing loss, discovered when I was about 8 years old. Hearing aid were given to me, but they did no good. Nowadays there are better aids that comes custom made to the individual hearing loss. Even with those, I can hear a little better, but I still often times cannot process what is being said and still ask to repeat often, even more than once. I now do not bother with hearing aids as they are very expensive, and I still cannot understand.

[@MrSting21]

My phonemic and phonological awareness is compramised and my auditiv short term memory is aswell. Is this typical for APD people? If so, why have I been diagnosed with having dyslexia in that case? Last but not least, is there any kind of treatment for adults who have phonemic and phonological awareness problems?

[@Amber-rq7kf]

So I’ve gone my whole life not being diagnosed. I am 💯 sure I have this. Got Diagnosed with A.D.H.D at age 3 before most people knew what it was. I’m always told I talk too loud. I say what a lot, and auditory hearing test say nothing is wrong. I hear all the beeps and raise my hand. But I can’t understand words sometimes. And I prefer sub titles since I can’t lip read people on T.V 😂 So now what?! Sometimes I hate being different lol

[@nothereyet]

When this condition started,i was in 5th grade and everyone thought i have hearing loss but today i am 19 years old and very tired. Today i understood i have APD. I want to get better. What do i do. i can't even understand anything on call . Please tell me how to cure this condition or atleast get better.

[@LubaLuba1]

Is there any test or MRI that can determine brain damage etc ?

[@shilpap.5446]

Please include low gain hearing aids.

[@AmyOsborne-fk2yq]

Very helpful for my studies thank you

[@maryannlamb5695]

Could you or Dr. Cliff do a video on hidden hearing loss, audio processing disorder that starts later in life?

[@MadMaxToo61]

I am diagnosed just recently at 62, but that doesn't mean I recently acquired it. It's been a silent and frustrating disorder for a long, long time.

[@maryannlamb5695]

@MadMaxToo61 I used to be able to distinguish speech VERY well, until I was in my 40s, and then I slowly started NOT being able to understand words. I went to a couple different hearing clinics where they told me my hearing (of tones) was "within normal parameters." It wasn't until I saw my audiologist that they diagnosed and could treat the problem.

[@clairejoness11]

I knew it's something with my brain and not my hearing. When people talk clear and with good pronounciation I can understand them. But when there's a little noise, they talk with mutter and especially people talking on TV, I'm cooked .My brain fill in the most nonsense word that just sounds similar. We make fun of it with my husband cause he's muttering and I hear the most nonsensical things. For example he says:"Give me the cup, please." I hear:"Bill me the dot, please." Nonsense. With my ADD, autism spectrum and this condition...I run around like a confused squirrel.

[@amysievertokeefe8268]

As I review the Applied Hearing website - it does not look like you are even doing APD assessments. Correct?

[@Catherine4673-h2h]

Does APD also go with autism sometimes?

[@ACD1994]

Sometimes, yes. Can also happen from a head injury (trauma)

[@sachinnaidoo1559]

I swear that when I used to smoke weed I had this and I have bounced back once I stopped... this needs to be looked into as a side effect

[@kiwirabbit8874]

Does this sound like an APD symptom? Some people are harder to understand than others? Words just become one big word soup.

[@Eryniell]

can be. of course when already having a hard time understanding language, then any speech quirks, impairments or accents will affect how well you can interpret what is being said, because a usual effect of living with APD, is that we try to "guess" what is being said and are getting pretty good at it, but if there are additional differences that we aren't familiar with in speech patterns, it's harder.

[@kiwirabbit8874]

@Eryniell Ok. For example I had this one volleyball coach and my classmate I had very hard time understanding them. They speak "normally" but it feels like sometimes they speak gibberish. I'm not saying I have APD but it sounds so familiar when people are talking about it. I have tested my hearing multiple times(not recently though) and have pretty average hearing. I'm guessing a lot of the words and sentences people say daily. Working at a cash register kind of sucks because there are all sorts of noises going on and it is hard to interpret what people are saying. And daily I have difficulties especially with first words of sentences if somebody starts speaking to me. All lyrics are usually gibberish to me in English if they aren't very "clear" and sometime in my native language finnish, lyrics can be so hard to hear between all the instruments. I'm not sure if I'm making any sense😂 vocal instructions are more difficult than visual or both at the same time. I'm not self diagnosing myself or anything but I have always thought I can hear what people are saying but I do not understand the words/somehow it is just noise/I hear different words.

[@Eryniell]

@@kiwirabbit8874 that does indeed sound like APD. like it's not uncommon for people to have those experiences occasionally...like in a very loud and busy bar, to not understand what the bartender says or at a concert...and of course heavy metal lyrics, but it's when this happens on a more or less daily basis, constantly having to ask people to repeat themselves, missunderstanding verbal instructions regularly, difficulties understanding people on phone or voice calls especially if someone has a bad mic. and it's generally worse in noisy environments...like when driving in a car (and there is rocks or snow) when walking on gravel, snow, ice, dry leaves, when being in an echoy environment etc. those are all situations that would increase symptoms and make it at times impossible to understand what someone else is saying. Also accents and any speech differences in others will be much harder to deal with

[@ACD1994]

Probably. There are several different types of auditory processing disorder.

[@Eryniell]

@@ACD1994 what types are you talking about?

[@simplydee2567]

Do I asked doctor for referrals to audiologist?

[@DrCliffAuD]

@@simplydee2567 no need for a referral. Just schedule an appointment

[@MrSting21]

Sorry, is this the same thing as auditory dyslexia?

[@Eryniell]

yes, APD is the official name for it

[@martinlutherkingjr.5582]

Will APD show up on an EEG?

[@MadMaxToo61]

I'm not sure what an EEG is, but it took around 3 hours of various hearing tests and analysis to diagnose mine, not one simple test.

[@martinlutherkingjr.5582]

@@MadMaxToo61 Electroencephalography

[@georgeton4991]

Hi, does EXCESS sleeping making hearing and circulation worse?

[@alina1548]

Can I have APD with bilateral Cochlear implants?

[@MadMaxToo61]

I have APD with expensive Bluetooth hearing aids, so I don't see why not. That question sounds a bit like, will have still have Dyslexia if I wear glasses? APD is a functioning of the brain not quite working, is it not? So whilst having better and better devices will help a little better, the brain is still having issues processing correctly. So it is more about the retraining of the brain and listening. p.s. I am not a audiologist. I have APD. I may be wrong.

[@NibNa5ty]

Yeah im pretty sure my girlfriend just whispers because she has zero control of the volume of her voice.