Being deaf

Every young person adapts to their deafness in different ways. They may do what they can to make the most of what hearing they have. Very few deaf people can hear no sounds whatsoever. An operation can help some deaf children to hear better. Many others wear hearing aids – devices that make sounds louder or easier to hear.

Some deaf children learn to communicate in the same way most people do – by spending time talking with other people. Some children learn to speak with the help of different kinds of equipment and teaching. Other children may prefer to use sign language and finger spelling to communicate. In finger spelling the fingers are used to spell out words or names. Many people also lip-read. They watch the shapes that people’s mouths make as they speak to work out what they are saying. This is tricky – it often involves a lot of guesswork. Lots of young people choose to use one or a combination of these methods.

Being deaf