#auditory processing
My NT friend: doesn’t this silence bother u
Me, autistic: are u telling me u can’t hear this incredibly loud fridge
The lights have sound
Electronics have sound
Appliances have sound
If electricity runs through it, it has sound.
Rarely is there actual silence (and that does bother me due to lack of sensory input).
This is why the barn uses me when they think the horses are reacting to a noise they can’t hear. I’ll likely find it (it’s usually the heating or the electrical box in the indoor).
I also know when the electric fences are on.
For years I was convinced that I was either hallucinating or had hearing damage, because electronics always made this high-pitched whine that was closer to being felt than heard, and nobody else knew what I was talking about.
Then I met other autistic people.I wonder if it’s an adhd thing too.
I always just assumed it was something to do with my migraines making me really sensitive to sounds other people couldn’t hear, because I can definitely hear things other people can’t seem to. Like the fridge or the tv (remember the old box tube tvs? Those things were loud on standby.) Hell I can hear my phone when it’s plugged in but for some reason not when it’s on a wireless charger. My brother is the same way, but he also gets migraines so we never thought much of it.
Huh. Neat.
Other…people…can’t hear that?
You’re fucking with me, everyone can’t hear the fridge?No, I can hear all of those things. They just don’t bother me that much, so I’m not always forced to pay attention like someone with sensory issues would be.
Hearing also degrades with age, especially for high pitched sounds, and it’s not one of those retirement age vs. everyone else things: it degrades slowly over your whole life. It’s completely standard for any kid to hear a high-pitched electronic whine and their parent to not notice anything.
• *someone says something* “what?” *repeats themselves* “sorry?” *repeats themselves again* “pardon?”
•"hey, y'see the red thing at the top of the shelf, will you get it?“ “Sorry, what?” “On the sh-” “oh yeah sure, I’ll get it.”
•*doesn’t hear teacher because someone’s pen is making a scratchy sound at the back of the room*
•*replays video 10 ten times to figure out what they’re saying*
•teachers asking, “why do you always stop writing in the middle of a sentence, just write down whatever I’m saying,” followed by the response, “I’m just processing it,” rebuked by, “we’ll stop processing it and just write.”
•*gets really focused on staring out the window and goes through four songs without hearing a single on*
someone is whispering to their friends in the library, you don’t even know who this person is but you know their major, what state they grew up in, and their hobbies during high school. you just wanted to find a quiet spot to do your chemistry homework.
wanting to chime in on other people’s conversations all the time, but don’t, because you’re not suppose to be “listening” to them.
being the only person in the house that can hear that awful buzzing sound certain electronics make
hiding in your room because everything is too loud.
motorcycles were invented by satan
being told that you have dog-like hearing by friends and family
being yelled at for “not listening” by friends and family.
God. God. God. God.
This entire post is so fucking relatable it hurts
If someone says something that you only partially understand:
DON’T ask for clarification with a generic “What?” or “I’m sorry?” (In my experience, people will repeat the phrase the exact same way without helping you to understand).
Example:
Them: “Hey, do you like pahganabasa?”
Autistic Person: “What?”
Them: “Do you like pahganabasa?”
Autistic Person: “I’m sorry, what?”
Them (annoyed): “Do you like pahganabasa?”Instead, DO repeat the part that you did understand, and substitute a “What?” for the unintelligable part.
Example:
Them: “Hey, do you like pahganabasa?”
Autistic Person: “Do I like what?”
Them: “Pineapple pizza?”
Autistic Person: (Understands the words!)I’ve also had successes with “I’m sorry, I only heard the first half of that sentence,” or actually verbalizing my interpretation of the part I heard incorrectly as a question: “Pahgana… basa?”.
Sometimes that makes the speaker think that they might be mumbling, or verbalizing in a way that makes them difficult to understand (because there are times it’s really not your brain–it’s their mouth).
This is also a lifesaver if you have Auditory Processing Disorder. It stopped the amount of annoyed sighs because ppl thought I was deliberately ignoring them or them saying the same thing but louder (which does not help when volume isn’t the problem)
Jess and I have always joked that me getting through high school was a God damn miracle. Mostly because I don’t talk to people and I have trouble following directions and I don’t tend to participate.
When we began to prep for me being back on a college campus for first time in 12 years, it started to become less of a joke, as we struggled with accommodations and my inability to follow written…
Not sure if it’s like a problem but every time someone talks to me, there’s a 50% chance that I don’t hear them properly and instead of words I just hear gibberish
Look up “auditory discrimination” and “auditory processing disorder.” Whether or not they apply to you, it’ll be interesting and even useful.
I have average or better hearing in every area except auditory discrimination, where I have difficulty. If there’s background noise, people are too far away or facing away from me, or the full moon is in the 348th house of whatever, their voice is loud, but it sounds like gibberish, as you describe. I can compensate by using context to figure out missing words here or there, but when over half the sentence has to be filled in, or I lack context, my brain just gives up and goes “here, have some gibberish.’
If that’s not causing you problems, awesome!
^
