For those with auditory processing issues

Page 1 of 2 [ 30 posts ]  Go to page 1, 2  Next

mechanicalgirl39
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 6 Apr 2009
Age: 33
Gender: Female
Posts: 2,340

14 Apr 2010, 8:00 am

I find that, oddly, wearing some cotton wool in my ears helps out with that. What it seems to do it block out a good deal of the quieter sounds that make up background noise, so I can hear closer and louder sounds like people's voices better. I actually hear people way better if I am slightly deafened...go figure. I notice a huge difference if I take them out. All the little everyday noises are cranked up again and it's hard to filter them all out.

Just thought I'd share this in case it's useful to those with auditory issues.


_________________
'You're so cold, but you feel alive
Lay your hands on me, one last time' (Breaking Benjamin)


Aimless
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 1 Apr 2009
Age: 66
Gender: Female
Posts: 8,187

14 Apr 2010, 8:06 am

That's interesting. I guess part of the problem is hearing everything and not being able to adequately sort out what's relevant.



blastoff
Sea Gull
Sea Gull

User avatar

Joined: 16 Aug 2009
Age: 52
Gender: Female
Posts: 211

14 Apr 2010, 8:16 am

I take it a step further: I use an iPod with white noise playing through it. Cram those earbuds in my ears, and I'm good to go. I have to be careful not to turn the volume up too loud, otherwise the white noise itself becomes yet another source of sound to add to the 'overwhelmed-ness.' Instead, I turn it up just loud enough that it masks more distant noises. Unfortunately it does also mask conversations, so I have to take an earbud out if anyone wants to talk to me.



hartzofspace
Supporting Member
Supporting Member

User avatar

Joined: 14 Apr 2005
Gender: Female
Posts: 7,138
Location: On the Road Less Traveled

14 Apr 2010, 10:03 am

I use foam earplugs when I find myself getting overwhelmed with too many sounds. I like the way they expand in my ears, and the sounds magically dwindle down, to a tolerable level. And, I can still hear conversation if directed at me, personally. Right this minute, the maintenance guy is using a power drill in my kitchen, and the outdoors staff are using noisy leaf blowers (this is annual maintenance time.) Thank God for earplugs!


_________________
Dreams are renewable. No matter what our age or condition, there are still untapped possibilities within us and new beauty waiting to be born.
-- Dr. Dale Turner


LadyMacbeth
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 27 May 2007
Age: 36
Gender: Female
Posts: 1,091
Location: In the girls toilets at Hogwarts, washing the blood off my hands.

14 Apr 2010, 11:11 am

hartzofspace wrote:
I use foam earplugs when I find myself getting overwhelmed with too many sounds. I like the way they expand in my ears, and the sounds magically dwindle down, to a tolerable level. And, I can still hear conversation if directed at me, personally. Right this minute, the maintenance guy is using a power drill in my kitchen, and the outdoors staff are using noisy leaf blowers (this is annual maintenance time.) Thank God for earplugs!


I do this too.


_________________
We are the mutant race!! !! Don't look at my eyes, don't look at my face...


Moog
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 25 Feb 2010
Age: 44
Gender: Male
Posts: 17,671
Location: Untied Kingdom

14 Apr 2010, 12:02 pm

Wow, cool tip. A bit like how wearing shades makes things a bit easier.


_________________
Not currently a moderator


Ladarzak
Deinonychus
Deinonychus

User avatar

Joined: 9 Mar 2007
Age: 64
Gender: Female
Posts: 337
Location: Vancouver, Canada

14 Apr 2010, 12:02 pm

> I do this too.

Me three. I wear them everywhere except to events like lectures.



aloneinacrowd
Raven
Raven

User avatar

Joined: 14 Mar 2010
Age: 63
Gender: Male
Posts: 104

14 Apr 2010, 12:51 pm

I sleep with earplugs.



jamesongerbil
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 17 Sep 2009
Age: 37
Gender: Female
Posts: 1,001

14 Apr 2010, 2:07 pm

Me too. I know it's rude, but sometimes if I can't hear, I plug my ears with a finger to remove the high-end noise, then I can hear better. Of course, I must tell them what they are doing, as it's socially unacceptable. When it's really bad, I run around with ear plugs in all the time.



crocus
Deinonychus
Deinonychus

User avatar

Joined: 12 Apr 2010
Age: 62
Gender: Female
Posts: 352
Location: Canada

14 Apr 2010, 3:03 pm

hartzofspace wrote:
I use foam earplugs when I find myself getting overwhelmed with too many sounds. I like the way they expand in my ears, and the sounds magically dwindle down, to a tolerable level. And, I can still hear conversation if directed at me, personally. Right this minute, the maintenance guy is using a power drill in my kitchen, and the outdoors staff are using noisy leaf blowers (this is annual maintenance time.) Thank God for earplugs!


This is a very helpful tip. I've never tried that. I didn't realize there were foam plugs. When I'm out and about on errands and such I often use an ipod to drown out all the irritating noises.

I will be going back to work within the next couple of months, after being off on stress leave since last summer and I'm dreading, absolutely dreading, the usual issues cropping up again in the workplace environment. One of them is my hyper sensitivity to noise and inability to block it out. Sometimes it's unbearable. We live in nightmarishly noisy time. On top of all of the non-human generated noise, there are some people who are so loud, not only in their voice, but in their movements, being around them is torture. It's like they have one volume setting - LOUD!! !



Aimless
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 1 Apr 2009
Age: 66
Gender: Female
Posts: 8,187

14 Apr 2010, 3:22 pm

On the subject of earplugs, the times I've used them to buffer out noise that was keeping me awake, I noticed I slept deeper and more soundly. I think it's because I could hear the rhythm of my own body, i.e. my breathing and my heartbeat.



hartzofspace
Supporting Member
Supporting Member

User avatar

Joined: 14 Apr 2005
Gender: Female
Posts: 7,138
Location: On the Road Less Traveled

14 Apr 2010, 10:45 pm

crocus wrote:
hartzofspace wrote:
I use foam earplugs when I find myself getting overwhelmed with too many sounds. I like the way they expand in my ears, and the sounds magically dwindle down, to a tolerable level. And, I can still hear conversation if directed at me, personally. Right this minute, the maintenance guy is using a power drill in my kitchen, and the outdoors staff are using noisy leaf blowers (this is annual maintenance time.) Thank God for earplugs!


This is a very helpful tip. I've never tried that. I didn't realize there were foam plugs. When I'm out and about on errands and such I often use an ipod to drown out all the irritating noises.

Yes, the foam ones are very comfortable. The brand that I use is called "Quiet Please." Since I sleep in them, that is definitely a good feature about them.


_________________
Dreams are renewable. No matter what our age or condition, there are still untapped possibilities within us and new beauty waiting to be born.
-- Dr. Dale Turner


Last edited by hartzofspace on 15 Apr 2010, 8:15 am, edited 1 time in total.

auntblabby
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 12 Feb 2010
Gender: Male
Posts: 113,605
Location: the island of defective toy santas

14 Apr 2010, 11:38 pm

putting cotton or musicians' noise suppressing plugs into my ears hurts after a while so i use those techniques strictly short-term, like in mowing the lawn or using a chainsaw. for sleeping i need to turn on a fan or two, to generate a special thick-density background noise to block out my noisy neighbors and the sound of my own heart beating which keeps me awake.



crocus
Deinonychus
Deinonychus

User avatar

Joined: 12 Apr 2010
Age: 62
Gender: Female
Posts: 352
Location: Canada

14 Apr 2010, 11:45 pm

hartzofspace wrote:
Yes, the foam ones are very comfortable. The brand that I use is called "Quite Please." Since I sleep in them, that is definitely a good feature about them.


Thanks for that info, hartzofspace :)

I would try them out for daytime use. I can't sleep with my ears plugged.



pensieve
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 18 Nov 2008
Age: 38
Gender: Female
Posts: 8,204
Location: Sydney, Australia

15 Apr 2010, 2:18 am

I've always had hypersensitivity to sound but now, since damaging my left ear drum, I can hear far away sounds very loudly in my left ear. I sometimes jump from these unseen sounds.
So now I have auditory processing issues and hyperacusis. Brilliant.
Oh yeah, sleeping with ear plugs caused the problem.


_________________
My band photography blog - http://lostthroughthelens.wordpress.com/
My personal blog - http://helptheywantmetosocialise.wordpress.com/


aspartame
Snowy Owl
Snowy Owl

User avatar

Joined: 2 Jun 2006
Age: 36
Gender: Female
Posts: 128

15 Apr 2010, 3:31 am

I used to sleep with foam earplugs, but stopped because they made my ear canals really sore. I also worried that I wouldn't hear the fire alarm or something similarly important in my sleep. I do still wear earplugs when I study, because I need something to filter out background noise but I find music too intrusive.