Auditory Processing Disorder

[thailien]

Have you ever had a dream like this?

You are in a group of people, maybe at a party or a meeting.  People are talking, speaking your language.  You can hear them, but somehow you cannot understand what they are saying.    

Someone speaks to you, throwing you into a panic.  He is looking at you and expecting a response to what he just said…. whatever it was…?

Everybody else is talking, smiling, joking, enjoying normal human company.  Only you are not included.  You strain to listen to their conversation, but it’s hopeless.  The sound of their voices is just noise.

What do you do then?   You could do like what I have to do every day:  Smile, pretend to understand, and hope for the best.  Misunderstandings, embarrassments, problems and dangers loom when I cannot understand what people are saying.  It’s a weird new old-age problem.

Auditory Processing Disorder is a hidden handicap that nobody understands.  Hearing aids don’t help much.  

APD has wreaked havoc on my will to live.  

I don’t enjoy fearing people possibly talking to me.