Question about my 10 year old's hearing?

Question

We have suspected our 10 year old daughter of having trouble hearing for about a little more than a year now.

Last year at school she had to take the hearing test twice, but nothing was sent home to me. I have taken her to our Dr. and he says her hearing is fine also.

I thought at first she just wasn't paying attention, because we always have to repeat ourselves, but even if you are looking right at her she always says "what?" Everyone is getting frustrated with repeating themselves. She can hear quiet noises like the beeps on the hearing tests, but is there something with people's voices that make it hard for some people to hear that a Dr. might not recognize? She has trouble hearing her teacher at school too sometimes.

Answer 1

It could be that she is not paying attention, if she can hear the beeps on the hearing tests. Or maybe she needs you to enunciate better. Maybe she can hear you, she just can't understand you.

If you've taken her to the Dr. and he says everything's all right, there's not much you can do from there.

Answer 2

My niece did this - unfortunately, it's a very bad habit which she has developed, and that's truly all it is.

What you and your husband must do is stop repeating yourselves, make sure you set up some situations where she misses doing or having something special because 'she didn't hear you', when she just actually was choosing to not pay attention. If you do this right, this should be fixed really quickly.

She is truly just not paying attention, and she's at an age where she MUST - for school, home peace, and with friends!

Also, she's old enough to understand that this is not acceptable behaviour. Treat this the same as though she were biting her fingernails or twirling/eating her hair.

Wish you luck - it's beatable.

Answer 3

hmm..could this be an habit?

Answer 4

its called puberty. Shes probably jus daydreamin bout hot guys and stuff. I hav the same prob it drives my rentz crazy!

Answer 5

It is possible that her hearing is fine, in that her ear structures are doing there job and the tympanic membrane is vibrating at the right frequency and the problem is with processing what is heard in the brain.  There are 2 disorders that I know of that are such.  One is auditory neuropathy and the other is CAPD central auditory processing disorder, also known as APD auditory processing disorder.  She would need to be screened by a trained audiologist and given particular tests.  My son had an ABR auditory brain response test for auditory neuropathy.  People with auditory neuropathy may have normal hearing, its just the transmission to the brain that is in and out.  Same for auditory processing disorder.  With this the person has difficulty localizing sound, and has difficulty differentiating between foreground and background noise.  Sometimes this is misdx as a language disorder, ADD/ADHD. or an autistic spectrum disorder.

Please look into these two possibilities, it seems to me that one of them is likely to be the cause.

No I think that you are right she would have more apparent difficulties if it were autism/aspergers or ADD/ADHD and that would certainly have come up by doctors, as in my opinion these are overdx.  BUT auditory neuropathy and APD are both little known issues and  I think it warrants getting that checked out.

Answer 6

My brother is 10 years old as well. My parents took him to the Dr. And he had tests at school as well. Nothing is wrong with his hearing. My parents were confused at first. And I was to. I think it might be a habit. My brother says "what"? All the time. then you say. You heard me he says yeah, I know. I think it's just a habit they develop when you repeat yourself, It comes naturally to them to say "what?".

Answer 7

It could be an affect of puberty or it could be a hearing loss.  The only way to find out is to get your doctor to refer her to a Ear Nose and Throat specialist.

FYI kids CAN start puberty at age nine.  The can start earlier than 9...my 8 year old has started puberty, my 11 year old started when she ws 10.  I'm so lucky to be a mom with TWO daughters pmsing during the month.