Symptoms of Central Auditory Processing Disorders in Adults

The impact of a central auditory processing disorder (CAPD) on job performance, social interactions, and classroom learning is enormous! Although it is more common to be diagnosed with a (central) auditory processing disorder as a child, sometimes symptoms develop as we age or result following a stroke or head injury. Many adults with CAPD report that speech sounds ‘garbled’. Symptoms that adults with auditory processing disorders often report include: 

  • Sensitivity to sound
  • Inability to detect changes in pitch
  • Difficulty following multistep directions
  • Being a poor speller
  • Difficulty recalling lists of information, such as a grocery list left at home
  • Difficulty following conversations with friends and colleagues when more than one person is speaking
  • Difficulty understanding speech in noise
  • Difficulty with reading comprehension
Adult with CAPD