I've just realized this is a lot of text for someone who has just told me they don't process a lot of text very well. I'm really sorry, and I will do my best to clarify or simplify anything that gives you trouble. I tried to be short and simple, but I'm bad at that.

So, real quick, to be 100% clear: I am neither a professional nor a Professional within the field. Please check the crazy opinions I have both for yourself and if it feels appropriate with a relevant professional. Equally, please don't self-diagnose without consulting a professional.

I find myself thinking of two possible explanations for what you've described - either an aphasia of some sort that makes processing specific facets of information exceptionally challenging, a particularly severe Attention Deficit Disorder, or minor problems, hugely amplified by anxiety related to communication.

Not the "LOL I HAEV ADD" that many college kids self-diagnose themselves with to explain why they prefer to party and procrastinate rather than do their work, but a legitimate medical problem that hijacks or disrupts your ability to focus.

If you have an aphasia, I have no clue. They are very complicated and wildly inconsistent - coping mechanisms and treatment would vary depending on the specifics.

If you have ADD, medication can control a lot of that racing-thoughts sensation, but many ADD suffers find medication uncomfortable. You can learn coping mechanisms and strategies that would make communication and processing information far easier, and many ADD suffers use medication to moderate symptoms to a controllable level while learning to cope, but eventually are able to rely entirely on learned tools rather than pharms.

If you have a minor problem made worse by anxiety, you can break the anxiety cycle with practice and determination, at which point the relatively minor problem can be worked around at your own pace. Working to improve how your organize and express your thoughts and feeling like you are taking control will go huge steps towards reducing the anxiety response when confronted by a challenging situation.

If it is the latter case, I would recommend "active listening" strategies when someone is talking to you. If they're new to you, simply explain that you have a hearing problem and need them to go slow and allow you time to keep up, then, as they complete ideas, repeat what they said back to them in your own words. Don't hesitate to ask specific questions to clarify points you worry you've missed.

If you're reading, break text into small chunks - a single paragraph or sentence at a time, say, and work at actively processing that information before you move on to the next chunk. There is nothing to be ashamed of needing extra time to read something, or needing to go back and work through it again to make sure you have the content right.

If you are writing, I recommend treating everything like an essay - outline it first. Make sure the "thesis" or one-line summary of your point is clear in your head and on the page. Then, fill in how you plan to express that idea: do you need to argue the point? List the arguments. Do you need to dispute something? List your objections. Do you need to tell a story? List the parts in chronological order. Don't worry about your list being ugly, incomplete, over-complete, or poorly phrased - all you're doing is organizing your thoughts, in all odds no one will ever see this part of the process. Then, last of all, fill in detail, edit phrasing, and get the structure and delivery however you want it. This is how I write everything, everywhere, be they reddit comments, emails, or college essays.

As far as speaking: practice. Lots. Focus on stalling for time, preferably without using stalling words like "um" or "uh" or "like", silence does fine and "Hm, gimme a sec to think about that." is perfectly acceptable if it's going to take a bit. Work on finding your point first, then how you want to express it, and then speaking. A lot of people who see themselves as having severe trouble with verbal communication don't take the time to plan ahead. You might benefit greatly from having someone act as a "speech coach", almost, to work you through forming those habits in a non-threatening environment.

If you're that latter case - racing thoughts, disorganized internal monologue, and minor attention problems all amplified by bad anxiety, you and I are likely rather similar.

Regardless, I'd recommend trying to build coping strategies to organize your thoughts before expressing them, and if diligent effort shows that futile or inadequite, seeking the attentions of a doctor or psychologist (psychiatrist? I can never keep them separate.) to seek deeper causes.

As I said above, I'm sorry this was a clusterfuck of words, let me know if there's something I should simplify or elaborate on if it's giving you trouble.