4 HUGE myths about people who can't speak...

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Ed HillFounder, BrightSign

There are a huge number of myths, misconceptions and misunderstandings about deafness and those who can't speak that non-verbal people encounter every single day.

Spoiler: Most D/deaf people can do everything hearing people can do, except hear properly!

For many people living without the ability to speak, not a day goes by where they don’t come across unrealistic judgements and views on their ability, how they live and how they communicate with others.

Let's get started debunking our 4 biggest myths about non-verbal and D/deaf people:

1 - D/deaf people can’t listen to music

There’s the idea that music can only be heard, and therefore can only be appreciated by people who can hear. It’s often quite a surprise for people to learn that D/deaf people not only enjoy music, singing and playing instruments; many are leading successful careers as composers and performers such as Mandy Harvey.

Let's not forget that Ludwig van Beethoven, one of the greatest composers of all time, was almost completely deaf for much of his life - while he wrote and performed many of his most famous works!

So how do D/deaf people listen to music? The experience of sound is different for so many people – including those with all levels of deafness. Music is a multi-sensory experience and studies show that people with deafness are able to feel music within the vibrations in the same part of the brain that hearing people use when they listen to melodies and lyrics. It’s just a different experience.

2 - All hearing loss is the same

If only it were so simple: one cause, one type and one cure for hearing loss. Unfortunately, this is not the case as hearing loss happens to be one of the most complex health problems with no definitive cure or preventable remedy. There’s actually various levels and types of hearing loss, which fall into two categories (Sensorineural and Conductive), and no specific rights or wrongs about the words used to describe them.

Sensorineural hearing loss – this is when the sensitive hair cells inside the inner ear (cochlea) die, or when damage occurs to the auditory nerve. This can be caused by factors like genetics, a trauma to the head or age.

Conductive hearing loss – this is when sounds are unable to pass from the outer ear to the inner ear, and is often the result of a blockage like ear wax.

Some of the most commonly used terms to describe deafness include:

  • Hard of hearing describes those who have lost some, but not all of their hearing

  • Deaf (with an upper case ‘D’) refers to people who communicate using primarily sign language and consider themselves full members of the deaf community.

  • deaf (with a lower case ‘d’) refers to anyone with hearing loss, whether they have been born deaf or have become deaf during their lives. They mix well in the hearing world and communicate orally, but may also use sign language.

  • Hearing impaired describes anyone with hearing loss

  • Acquired hearing loss describes those who were born with hearing but lost some or all of their ability

  • Acquired profound hearing loss describes those who were born with hearing but lost a significant amount of their hearing.

3 - All non-verbal people are deaf

It is a common misconception that all non-verbal people are unable to hear, whereas quite the opposite is actually true. In fact the majority of people in the world that are unable to speak are able to hear perfectly - the fact that they cannot verbalise is due to a whole range of different reasons including:

  • Autism

  • Cerebral palsy

  • Nonverbal Learning Disability (NLD)

  • Stroke

  • Head injury

  • Migraines

  • Seizures

  • Tumours

  • Infections within the brain

  • Polyps on the vocal cords

  • Vocal cord paralysis

  • Muscle weakness

  • Respiratory weakness

  • Tracheotomy

  • Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)

  • Huntington's disease

and many many more...

4 - All sign language is the same around the world

Just like the variety of spoken languages around the world, such as English, French, Spanish, there are also many forms and dialects of sign languages.

There are several hundred different sign languages worldwide, with almost every country having one or more different versions. For example, there is American Sign Language (ASL), British Sign Language (BSL), Arabic Sign Language and French Sign Language, to name but a few.

All of these sign languages are unique, with only small structural similarities - in fact, there are even local, regional and demographic dialects within each one.

In addition to this, many signers don't use a formal sign language at all, instead opting to use their own gestures - developed to communicate with family and close friends.

Hopefully, this article has cleared up some of the most common myths and misconceptions that you might have about those who are D/deaf or unable to speak for whatever reason.

If you ever experience the wrong end of other people's misunderstanding in this area, we'd love to find out how you are affected! Please let us know by messaging us on our social media @brightsignglove (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram).