Auditory Processing Disorder

Auditory processing disorder (APD) is one of Ryan’s comorbidities. We noticed early on that sometimes he would take a long time to answer a question, or sometimes had a puzzled look on his face when asked a question, or would answer a question with a response that made you scratch your head and say that his answer had nothing to do with the question you were asking. Bottom line, he just wasn’t hearing what we were saying.

The definition of APD is generally when someone has a hard time hearing small sound differences in words. It is not hearing loss and it is not a learning disorder. You may say to someone “Please raise your hand.” But they might hear “Please haze your plan.” Boys are more likely to have it than girls, it usually manifests itself in childhood, and it can cause learning delays. Those with APD have a more likely chance of having dyslexia, and sometimes children are misdiagnosed with ADHD. Ryan has both.

Ryan was diagnosed with APD when he was 6. Like ADHD, one does not outgrow it, but can learn skills to help manage it. Some of the symptoms Ryan has are:

– Difficulty in following conversations especially when in a group

– Difficulty in remembering spoken instructions, especially if there are numerous steps

– Understanding what people say, especially when more than 1 person is talking or in a large loud gathering.

Socially, this is a real problem for kids with APD. Many times they are not included in larger friend groups, because they don’t fit in, because they say things that seem to be “off” or have nothing to do with a conversation. Or they may even seem self centered, as they try to fit in and join the conversation but say something only about themselves or on a completely different topic. Worse, they have no idea that they’re doing this. And they don’t understand when they’re laughed at or lose friends. We saw this a lot with Ryan.

So – what to do?

Get support in the classroom. Ryan sits close to the front. The teacher should try to limit background noise. When asking a question to the person with APD, the teacher should allow more time to answer the question and be patient and be willing to ask the question again, or change the question to make it simpler.

Find what your child’s other strengths are, or help to make other skills stronger. Through testing, not only are difficulties and problems found, but strengths are also found. An IEP should include how to use these strengths. Some of these skills could be memory and problem solving.

Therapy. Speech therapy is a must. It will help with helping the child recognize sounds and improve conversational skills. And of course a social skills group so that the child can learn how to recognize social queues.

Help your child find friends that can accept them for who they are. Talk to the parents of your child’s friends and explain to them about APD. I found that being open with people was much better than not saying anything at all. Yes, we want out kids to appear “normal”, but why do we want our kids to be ostracized, and thought of as weird and then have no friends because of it. Be an advocate for your child. And if there’s no compassion or kindness shown, then they’re not worth having as friends. I can promise you, that it will be difficult, and painful even, but the real friends they end up finding will love them and accept them for who they are. That’s just golden when it happens.

Ryan still struggles with his APD. Sometimes he’s aware of it and other times he’s not. He’s been in some very embarrassing situations. I’ve seen him get frustrated and I’ve seen others get truly upset with him. Again, showing compassion for him is really important. Helping and teaching others in his life is vital in order to have a meaningful relationship. And not throwing it back in his face – not telling him to spit it out, or to hurry up, or to yell at him. Remembering and showing patience is vital. I even have to remind myself on occasion!