Does Anyone Else Tell People You Are Hard of Hearing?

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I'm not actually hard of hearing, at least I don't think I am, but in loud environments I have to bend down and put my ear right next to the person trying to speak to me and focus really hard to understand them. I tell people I have a hearing problem when I do this (it doesn't make them speak up or anything though so idk why I bother). I don't have this problem if the room is quiet but if there is background noise and ESPECIALLY if there is background talking like news on the tv or music with lyrics I can't focus on what people are trying to tell me nor can I formulate my own thoughts properly. It's like a spear that scatters my thoughts. This is why I hate parties and could never do clubs. Why do people insist on trying to talk to you with loud music or a tv blaring in the background?

I'm the type who can't hear people in loud rooms, either.

All the time, it's easier than explaining I can't discern them from the background (I have medical tests due to my job, my hearing always comes back as extremely good)!

I'm trying to train my kids that if they want to talk to me near a road they must look straight at me so I can part lip read. I was the same in my youth, everyone would be chatting in the pub and I couldn't make head not tail of it so just sat and got very drunk so I had an excuse to not interact.

This is one of our differences. We can do well in ONE ON ONE CONVERSATIONS, but we become overloaded in GROUP TALK.

So what is the solution. Well there are a variety of hearing aids. Some can minimize background noise and chatter. You can limit the problem by avoiding places filled with group think. Load noises, many people communicating at once.

Your situation describes me perfectly. Audiologist says my hearing is great. But I can't distinguish what someone is saying when there is other background noise, whether it is talking or other noise.

I just say, "I'm sorry, I can't hear you." Or, "Sorry, could you say that again?" and I wil present my ear toward them, or maybe tap my ear.

i believe many of us are beset with auditory processing disorder which can mean that although the ears work, the brain's hearing center and/or things upstream are not working as well.

no, I don't think it'd help. and it's not true. and it'd feel weird to lie? my real big issue is that I have ADHD and my brain goes nyoom and it's real embarrassing when I forget what someone said to me mere seconds ago, but that's just how it goes. sometimes I truly cannot hear people because a failure to filter out the background noise or whatever, but it's pretty rare. I suppose I'm lucky in that regard.

Mostly my mother. She is very soft spoken and tends to mumble. I think I have auditory processing disorder because I can hear just fine, I just can't make out what people are saying. English is my first language but sometimes it feels like people are speaking gibberish or another language when they are speaking English. I think I would still have this same problem if I grew up speaking Chinese or Arabic or anything. Most of the time people will repeat themselves if you ask them. But sometimes people WON'T. My ex boyfriend got so offended if I asked him to repeat himself and teachers would be like "I already explained it. It isn't my fault if you weren't listening the first time." My mother wants me to get a hearing aid but I've done some research and hearing aids don't help this issue.