Numbness of soul, also Bark deafness called, is the slang term for auditory agnosia or acoustic agnosia. It is characteristic of this disease that those affected hear noises or spoken words, but cannot assign them or understand their meaning.
What is numbness of the soul?
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Agnosia is a disorder of cognition. The processing of perceptions is disturbed, although the sense organs themselves are completely intact. The damage affects the respective brain area, in the case of a auditory agnosia the hearing center. Different types of Numbness of soul differentiated:
- Who under verbal auditory agnosia (Word deafness) suffers, cannot understand spoken words or only with great difficulty. Those affected perceive speech only as noise. They therefore lack the ability to grasp the meaning of the words. Your own language skills are not restricted.
- People with Noise Diagnosis cannot assign everyday or environmental noises, whereas their speech understanding is unimpaired. For example, you can no longer recognize engine noises or the clink of a bunch of keys. This also applies to the direction and distance from which the noises come.
- The affective auditory agnosia concerns the perception of the age, gender or the mood of the interlocutor. Only the factual content of a message is recorded. Patients who are affected by general numbness of the soul or generalized acoustic agnosia are completely unable to identify and understand sounds and spoken words.
causes
Deafness of the soul can either be congenital or the result of a skull injury or disease. In the case of innate soul deafness, there is a risk of misjudgment: a child who suffers from acoustic agnosia from birth does not learn to speak, read and write sufficiently or not at all. It is also often unable to follow instructions because it does not understand the meaning of them. These limitations may result in the child being classified as hard of hearing, deaf, or even mentally disabled.
Older children or adults may bleed into the brain as a result of an accident. High blood pressure and arteriosclerosis can also lead to a ruptured brain aneurysm, that is, to a ruptured vasodilatation in the brain. Other possible causes are meningitis, a stroke, a brain tumor or a serious mental illness.
The damage to the auditory cortex (= auditory center) located in the two posterior temporal lobes, just about the size of a thumbnail, leads to the fact that the brain is unable to interpret the acoustic stimuli arriving there, or only inadequately.
Symptoms, ailments & signs
Speech disorders in children such as stammering, rumbling or stuttering, but also hyperactivity, lack of contact or an attention deficit can be signs of a congenital auditory agnosia. If an adult, whose hearing and ability to react were previously completely normal, suddenly no longer or no longer reacts appropriately to speech or noises, this indicates a deafness of the soul.
People close to you may notice a change in behavior after an accident or serious brain disease. The person concerned no longer sings along when their favorite song can be heard on the radio. He may find himself suddenly unable to perceive music. He is no longer able to recognize known people by their voice. Or he has lost the ability to infer the well-being of his counterpart from the sound of his voice.
Diagnosis & course of disease
Deafness of the soul can be diagnosed with the help of a pure tone audiogram or a speech audiogram. In the tone audiogram, the conduction of sound via the outer and middle ear to the inner ear (= air conduction) and the transmission of sound waves via the skull bone (= bone conduction) are examined. The speech audiogram is about understanding words and numbers and reproducing what you hear.
Complications
Deafness of the soul can have various complications. The complication triggers are lesions in the brain, which cause irreparable functional damage on several levels. The severity and cause of the damage are decisive for the question of possible complications.
Often there is a disorder of the motor skills, as well as a disorder of the processing of sensory impressions in the brain. A disturbed sense of balance can lead to serious falls with corresponding injuries. The eyesight can be weakened or no longer present. That makes the other symptoms seem even more severe. The agnostics can no longer cope without help in society. Their intellectual abilities are severely impaired due to agnosia.
Another complication lies in the possible consequential damage caused by agnosia. Autotopagnosia prevents many people from pinpointing physical pain or injuries that they have suffered. Existing clinical pictures such as a diabetic foot can worsen as a result.
A second complication factor in deafness is the emotional state of those affected by agnosia. A person affected by agnosia suffers from severe mental or physical disabilities. This can lead to depression and selic stress. Most of the complications mentioned represent permanent damage, the effects of which can at best be alleviated.
When should you go to the doctor?
In the case of mental numbness, medical treatment should generally always be carried out to prevent further complications and complaints. First and foremost, an early diagnosis with early treatment is necessary in order to avoid further psychological upsets. Therefore, a doctor should be consulted with the first symptoms of mental numbness.
A doctor should be consulted in the case of mental numbness if the person concerned suffers from severe sleep problems or if there is disturbance of attention or severe stuttering. Hearing problems or slow reactions can also indicate deafness and should be examined by a doctor. A doctor should also be consulted if the person concerned can no longer correctly recognize or assign known persons or voices.
In the case of mental deafness, the family doctor can be consulted. Treatment of the disease itself is usually carried out by a psychologist. The course of the disease cannot be universally predicted.
Therapy & Treatment
Dealing with people who suffer from mental deafness requires a lot of patience and sensitivity. This includes speaking slowly, clearly, making eye contact and possibly repeating what has been said several times. In the case of congenital auditory agnosia, the affected child should receive hearing and speech training as early as possible. It is recommended to learn certain methods of teaching the deaf in a language therapy school, especially lip reading.
Linking acoustic and visual or tactile stimuli, i.e. simultaneous hearing and seeing or touching, is also helpful. A combination of several sensory stimuli is more memorable than a single stimulus. With music therapy, rhythmic exercises, play and sports therapy, considerable success can also be achieved. For adults who suffer from acoustic agnosia after a stroke, for example, it is advisable to record a CD or a CD with known sounds and their respective names. The person concerned should listen to this frequently, but only for a short time.
The company AUDIVA has developed the so-called DichoTrainer to train dichotic hearing. This is a portable device that uses headphones to play different syllables or sequences of sounds simultaneously or at different times. The DichoTrainer is suitable for patients of all ages. The exercises can be individually tailored to the hearing impairment of the patient and enable a step-by-step increase in requirements. A practice session usually lasts four minutes. The best method for treating mental deafness is a combination of independent training and speech therapy.
prevention
Acoustic agnosia, if not congenital, is a consequence of an injury or disease of the brain. It is therefore important to minimize the risk factors through a healthy diet, sufficient exercise, the timely treatment of high blood pressure and avoiding nicotine and alcohol.
Aftercare
As a rule, the possibilities and measures of direct follow-up care for mental deafness are clearly limited and are often not available to the person affected. An examination and treatment should be initiated at a very early stage so that the occurrence of other complaints and complications can be prevented.
As a rule, self-healing cannot occur in the case of mental numbness, so that the person affected with this disease is always dependent on medical treatment. A direct therapy for mental deafness is not always possible, so that many of those affected depend on the help and support of their own family in their everyday life in order to limit the symptoms.
Psychological support is often very useful. Furthermore, various exercises can increase the mobility of those affected and thus also improve the quality of life. It is not uncommon for people to have contact with other sick people with numbness, as this can lead to an exchange of information that can make everyday life easier for the patient. However, the further course cannot generally be predicted, and the disease generally does not reduce the life expectancy of the patient.
You can do that yourself
This form of perception disorder must be taken very seriously, as it can lead to serious consequential damage and illnesses. Therefore, the main focus of self-help is to prevent depression and mobilize resources so that the affected patient can learn to deal with their mental numbness. Psychotherapeutic therapy, which may also include relatives, is therefore urgently recommended.
In addition, other measures are recommended that can prevent depression, such as exercise or individual sports therapy. Exercise in the fresh air also promotes mental balance. Sport and exercise also create stimulating sensory impressions. A healthy lifestyle can also prevent illness-related depression and stabilize the mind and body. This includes a regulated sleep / wake rhythm and the avoidance of nicotine, alcohol and other poisons. A healthy diet with freshly prepared foods made from fruit, vegetables and wholesome products supports the healing process. Fast food, unhealthy fats and sugar confectionery should be replaced by meals cooked with natural foods.
Patients suffering from mental deafness, especially children, are generally treated by a speech therapist who conducts listening and speaking training with them. The exercises performed there should be repeated at home often, but only briefly, so that long-term therapeutic success can be achieved.
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