Guess who has two thumbs and superpowers? =D
I've had my hearing tested many times during my childhood and teen years, due to problems making out what people are saying. The last time was 20 years ago. They were never able to find anything and always concluded that my hearing was actually very sharp, so I never bothered about it again. However, having determined that my issues are likely neurological, my doctor and I were concerned about that possibly masking hearing issues originating in the ears as I get older (I'm middle aged now), so we booked an appointment with an audiologist in order to establish a baseline. This proved to be fun and informative and quite startling.
I told the audiologist why I wanted the tests and she got very interested. She's tested kids before and of course, kids grow up to become adults and eventually seniors, so the idea struck her as very good and something to keep as a standard practice for spectrum adults entering middle age. But it turns out she has a bunch of tests that were developed for the spectrum that go far beyond the tests of 20 years ago. For one thing, they go outside the range of typical human hearing.
I have super-hearing.
I react to tones just slightly outside the range of typical, on the low side, and a fair bit outside on the high side. She even tested me using the tones, overtone frequencies and volumes of typical fluorescent light ballasts and those awful high-intensity metal-halide lights - it's not my imagination, I really am registering them. At the very limits of my range, I don't so much hear the tones as feel the tones, but I'm registering and reacting to them nevertheless. And the limits of my range are outside the limits of the typical human range. This explains why, although I don't hear dog whistles, I know when they're being blown. It also explains why I can hear a freon leak plain as day while everyone around me is going "huh? I don't hear anything."
She was also able to induce my "I can't make out the words" issue by playing a few tone sets while speaking (they didn't do that 20 years ago!) By measuring the reactions of my ears, she could determine that yes, my ears are functioning fine and hearing the sounds just great, it is most likely my brain is having trouble detangling the sounds and decoding them into understandable language.
I don't think you're supposed to have fun at a medical exam but nevertheless, that's what it was :3 I already get super-speed when deeply hyperfocused, now I have super-hearing as well! Woot!
...okay, guys, name and costume, name and costume
I told the audiologist why I wanted the tests and she got very interested. She's tested kids before and of course, kids grow up to become adults and eventually seniors, so the idea struck her as very good and something to keep as a standard practice for spectrum adults entering middle age. But it turns out she has a bunch of tests that were developed for the spectrum that go far beyond the tests of 20 years ago. For one thing, they go outside the range of typical human hearing.
I have super-hearing.
I react to tones just slightly outside the range of typical, on the low side, and a fair bit outside on the high side. She even tested me using the tones, overtone frequencies and volumes of typical fluorescent light ballasts and those awful high-intensity metal-halide lights - it's not my imagination, I really am registering them. At the very limits of my range, I don't so much hear the tones as feel the tones, but I'm registering and reacting to them nevertheless. And the limits of my range are outside the limits of the typical human range. This explains why, although I don't hear dog whistles, I know when they're being blown. It also explains why I can hear a freon leak plain as day while everyone around me is going "huh? I don't hear anything."
She was also able to induce my "I can't make out the words" issue by playing a few tone sets while speaking (they didn't do that 20 years ago!) By measuring the reactions of my ears, she could determine that yes, my ears are functioning fine and hearing the sounds just great, it is most likely my brain is having trouble detangling the sounds and decoding them into understandable language.
I don't think you're supposed to have fun at a medical exam but nevertheless, that's what it was :3 I already get super-speed when deeply hyperfocused, now I have super-hearing as well! Woot!
...okay, guys, name and costume, name and costume