Auditory Processing 101

       So it’s been a while since I’ve made a real post (my rant a couple weeks ago doesn’t count) because February was a busy month for me, I had two presentations and my qualifying exam, but now that is all over with so I can get back to updating you on my…journey, for lack of a better word. 

       I had a bit of a rough time early last week because my learning disabilities showed their ugly faces during my exam and it really frustrates me that I can’t show people how much I know and that I usually end up looking incompetent. My examiners recommended that I do a few presentations each semester so that I can work on my communication skills which I will gladly do, I mean getting some practice in that area can only help. However, I think that they expect miracles and when your brain isn’t wired properly, practice makes perfect really doesn’t apply. I can practice presenting day in and day out but that’s not going to help when my brain doesn’t process a question properly, I’m still going to end up looking incompetent. Now I realise that auditory processing disorders aren’t common learning disabilities that everyone has a bit of knowledge on so I’m going to quote a few things from the audiologist’s report just to give you an idea of what I’m dealing with:

-She may have difficulty absorbing even simple language information.

-When in a noisy location (cafeteria, pub, bar), [she] will have more difficulties making out what is being said than the average listener.

-When listening to someone who mumbles, speaks rapidly or has a heavy accent, [she] will be at a great disadvantage as compared to normal listening peers.

-Rapid speech poses a difficulty, as it is the language which is hard to interpret.

-[Her] results indicate a slight memory deficit, at least in the auditory realm, and a more significant deficit for working memory.

-Stress can worsen the ability to take in information.

Sounds like fun eh? Now if I had known all this during my undergrad, I would have actually been able to benefit from the accommodations available to me (ie. note takers so I don’t have to rely on my listening skills to get the information). Grad school however is a whole different story as everything is a lot more verbal: you have to give presentations and answer questions, any exams are done orally, and at the end of it all you have to do an oral defence. And unfortunately there aren’t many accommodations that can be put into place in these situations. There are resources available that can teach me how to cope with my disability but these cost money, something I don’t really have in excess. My therapist is having me go to the centre for student’s with disabilities though so maybe they’ll be able to help out.