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Reading with noise

Choc

New Member
Is anyone else here capable of reading with noise surrounding them. My girlfriend is capable of reading in a hurricane it seems.....hehe. The TV could be at a reasonably high level, and it doesn't affect her. It's just the same if there is music playing in the same room, or computer games etc etc..

But I'm the total opposite, I have to turn the tv volume right down to a level which is barely watchable by anyone else, and I can't read whilst music is playing or in a public place with noise nearby. Once I read the words, and they go into my head, they just don't seem to compute. And I find myself constantly going back to read lines that I've just read. Just too annoying!!!

Are there any others here that don't have any troubles reading through noise??
How do you do it??
 
I just tune everything out. I can read with the baby swing playing nature sounds and the TV on and still be so engrossed that I don't notice when someone directly addresses me. I think it is from years of sitting in the car reading while my brothers fought with each other from either side of me.
 
I read everywhere and with all kinds of noise as well. It is from long years, in small places with a large family, I can tune out anything :)
 
Can't do it. If a television is on - I can't read. Even if the sound is completely off, not just low. I read on the bus to and from work. Any conversation on the bus distracts me. I try to tune it out but I can't. I see people reading with an iPod or disc-man on their laps and headphones in their ears. To me, that seems totally bizarre. I can read, or I can listen to music. Each one requires my undivided attention. I can no more do both at the same time as I could...say...read and drive. Don't laugh - I've seen it done. Scared the crap out of me too.
 
I can read with minimal distractions around me; if the radio or t.v. is on, or a conversation is taking place near me. I prefer to have as much as silence as possible. I know people who just can't stand silence and have to have their cell phone with them, lest they (gasp!) are alone in silence for even a minute.:rolleyes:
 
I tend to just tune out the noise. Sometimes I'll be reading a page or two during the commercials of a television show that I'm watching when I get so engrossed in the reading that I'll tune out when the show starts again...

The only thing that I haven't really been able to tune out is when my mother is talking on the phone, but I don't know why.
 
i can read anywhere with anything going on around me.. as someone else said, maybe growing up with three little brothers helped me... sometimes i come to with someone waving a hand in front of my face, i haven't heard them approach or greet me... i don't hear my name called at doctors or dentists.. :D
 
I actually enjoy having a bit of noise when I read; tend to read better when I have a bit of music in the background, not too loud or I can't concentrate.

Sometimes it helps just to have something soft in the background, but I tend to zone out and forget about my surroundings and just focus on the words on the page, especially when I am on a bus or something similar. To each his own.
 
I find that I'm able to concentrate as ong as the noise is consistent. If someone is vacuuming in another room, it's okay as long as it doesn't stop and start. I agree, conversations on the bus are a killer though. No matter how much I try, I listen to everything people say!! It's really frustrating!
 
It seems that quite a few of you can still read whilst having a certain amount of noise. I wish I could be in that vote too. It would be more practical and help me get more reading done per week....
 
I can read in most situations, however loud conversation always distracts me. Occasionally when I'm tired and reading while the TV is on, I will have to re-read over certain sentences a few times in order to fully digest them, but otherwise the TV and radio don't stop me from becoming engrossed in my book.
 
I don't have a problem with minimal noise. If the music/TV/other sounds aren't extremely loud, then I can read without losing concentration. I prefer some background sounds to total silence, truth be told.
 
I can read anywhere, at anytime, and with all and any noises; loud and soft. I seem to tune things out. if I'm into a book, you'd have to hit me to get my attention.
 
Most of the time i have to do my reading with lots going on, TV/music on, Kids rowing. I can block most things out especially if the book is good. If i'm struggling a bit with the book things distract me easier.
 
for me, it depends on the book. for example, if i'm reading something like Jane Austen or Charles Dickens, or something like Shakespeare, i need quite to concentrate(background music is fine, just not anything very loud). however, any book that doesn't contain orld and difficult language i can read anywhere, and do. I carry around a book everywhere and read it. If it's something like harry potter, i'll read it during a hurricane!
 
I prefer reading with no noise, but I can deal with a little. If theres someone talking or a good TV programme in the background, it's just too distracting! But if the daily episode of Eastenders is on I can get by with a little more concentration.
 
actually, I should clarify, I can't read with the TV on; it tends to distract me and I tend to focus more on the TV than the book that I am reading. I have reread whatever I have just read; it's annoying.
 
I prefer a little noise when I'm reading. I usually turn on music or the TV. If it's nonfiction with concepts that I'm having trouble grasping, I absolutely can't read while people are talking. Anything else is fine though.
 
I prefer silence when I am reading. I can read when there is noice, but I find it distracting. Somtimes when I am reading; however, I like to have a little bit of soft music to go along with it.
 
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