Auditory Processing Disorder (APD) is a brain-based condition that affects how the brain interprets and organizes sound. Individuals with APD usually have normal hearing ability, but their brain struggles to process auditory information—especially in noisy environments, group settings, or when instructions are fast or complex.
They may hear sounds clearly but still find it difficult to understand what is being said. This is not a problem with the ears—it’s a problem with how the brain processes sound. That’s why APD is often referred to as a “hidden” disorder. The hearing is intact. The processing is not.
Hearing begins in the ears, but it’s the brain that must decode, filter, sequence, and assign meaning to what we hear. This is known as auditory processing.
In people with APD, sound information reaches the brain but is not processed efficiently. Words may be distorted, misordered, or partially lost. In everyday life, this causes breakdowns in understanding, listening fatigue, and delayed responses to spoken language.
Many individuals with APD perform well in quiet, one-on-one conversations but begin to struggle in more complex environments like classrooms, meetings, or group discussions. They may:
These difficulties often lead to confusion, frustration, and misinterpretation of the root problem.
APD is frequently misdiagnosed as ADHD, speech delay, or a general learning disorder. A key reason is how most evaluations are conducted.
Most neuropsychological and school-based assessments are done in quiet, one-on-one settings—the very situation where individuals with APD tend to perform best. These controlled conditions do not reflect real-life environments where APD symptoms are triggered: noisy classrooms, rapid speech, or multitalker situations.
Without simulating real-world listening challenges, traditional testing often misses auditory processing deficits. As a result, secondary symptoms like distractibility or incomplete work may be incorrectly attributed to attention or behavioral disorders.
Although reading may seem like a visual activity, it relies on auditory processing. When we read, the brain must convert written letters into sounds and link those sounds to meaning—a task that heavily involves the auditory cortex. This is even true for people who cannot see and use braille to read.
For individuals with APD, this decoding process is often impaired. They may struggle with phonics, confuse similar-sounding words, or read slowly and laboriously. Comprehension may also suffer, not because of poor reasoning, but because the brain cannot efficiently process the incoming information.
Gifted and intelligent students may compensate by relying on logic or visual cues, but as reading volume increases with grade level, this strategy eventually fails. These students often experience frustration, fatigue, and declining confidence as academic demands surpass their brain’s ability to process text through sound.
73% Of our clients see one grade or more improvements in their reading comprehension in less than 60 days. This is a call-out maybe photo of a 10 years old kid reading
Symptoms vary but often involve a combination of difficulties with listening, learning, attention, and communication. These can include:
Many students with APD are placed in speech therapy early in life due to language delays. While speech therapy can improve articulation and expressive language, it does not target how the brain receives and processes sound.
Speech-language therapy addresses output—how the child speaks. APD is a disorder of input—how the brain hears and makes sense of sound.
As a result, even after years of speech therapy, many individuals with APD continue to struggle with comprehension, classroom listening, and reading. Without addressing the brain’s auditory decoding system, progress remains limited.
At Brain Wellness Center, we identify and treat APD using objective, scientific tools that target the neurological source of the problem. Our approach is personalized, drug-free, and grounded in decades of brain research.
We begin with a functional brain scan using quantitative EEG (qEEG) to identify how the brain processes auditory information. This non-invasive assessment allows us to:
A Proprietary Program Unmatched in Its Precision, Effectiveness, and Convenience
Auditory Processing Training™ (APT™) is a proprietary, neuroscience-based intervention developed exclusively by Brain Wellness Center under the direction of Dr. Hashemian. APT™ is designed to restore and enhance the brain’s ability to accurately receive, filter, and interpret sound—core functions that are impaired in conditions such as Central Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD), ADHD, autism, sensory processing difficulties, and language delays.
What makes APT™ truly unique is that it is not a replication or variation of existing programs—it is a wholly original system, refined over 35 years of clinical experience and built upon training with both Dr. Alfred Tomatis and Dr. Guy Berard, the founders of auditory integration therapy.
While Tomatis and Berard laid the foundation, Brain Wellness Center has taken the science significantly further by engineering a modern, high-impact program that:
Each client receives a fully configured APT™ system, including:
This at-home model ensures that the therapy evolves with the client’s progress, making it as dynamic as it is effective.
94% Of our clients report positive improvements and (73%) of our patients double their auditory processing skills in less than 90 days.( based on objective, pre- and post-treatment measures.)
APT™ is not a franchise or repackaged system. It is a proprietary, results-driven program available only at Brain Wellness Center—representing the most advanced form of auditory training available today.
These are some of the improvements observed by the parents and patients within 30-90 days after starting with us:
Retrains the brain to process speech sounds with greater speed and accuracy
APT is appropriate for children and adults experiencing:
1. Frequency Filtering and Gating
2. Bone Conduction for Direct Auditory Stimulation
3. Middle Ear Muscle Activation
4. Vestibular System Engagement
5. Cortical Activation and Brain Network Connectivity
Neurofeedback uses real-time brainwave monitoring to improve self-regulation in the brain’s auditory and sensory pathways. It enhances timing, reduces overload, and improves processing efficiency.
qpTMS™ uses phase-specific magnetic stimulation to activate underperforming auditory and language-processing areas of the brain. It helps improve decoding, attention, and language clarity.
Answer: Audio Processing Training™ (APT™) by Brain Wellness Center is an advanced, science-based program designed to improve auditory processing in individuals with Central Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD). Inspired by the foundational work of Dr. Alfred Tomatis and Dr. Guy Berard, APT™ integrates bone conduction technology, filtered sound, and therapeutic modulation to retrain the brain’s ability to process sound effectively.
Answer: APT™ helps individuals with auditory processing disorder, ADHD, dyslexia, autism spectrum disorders, learning disabilities, sensory processing challenges, coordination issues, and difficulties with emotional regulation, balance, and motor control.
Answer: APT™ delivers specially modulated music through bone-conduction headphones, which stimulate the auditory and sensory processing centers of the brain. These audio signals are embedded in music and systematically structured to improve neural communication, attention, and sound discrimination.
Answer: Yes, APT™ is completely safe, non-invasive, and free from side effects. It is a gentle yet powerful therapy monitored by trained professionals.
Answer: Most programs involve 30 to 90 hours of therapeutic listening, based on individual assessment. Sessions are typically 30 minutes twice per day (with a 3-hour break for children under 11) or 60 minutes once daily for older clients.
Answer: Filtered and modulated sound targets specific auditory pathways and neural circuits, helping reorganize and strengthen the brain’s auditory processing functions.
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