Posted: May 06, 2012 6:24 am
r.c wrote:How is she able to understand and talk? Isn't she hearing the words for the first time?
She's not deaf in the complete deaf sense - she was 'clinically deaf' in that she had some hearing, but well below what is necessary for functioning hearing. She used hearing aids and similar devices for most of her life, which allowed her to learn how to speak etc, but hearing through hearing aids and being able to hear are two completely different things. It's like wondering why someone is impressed with seeing a sunset for the first time, when they've spent their whole life looking at a black and white picture of the sunset taken with a pinhole camera.
Also, not all deaf people have noticeable speech impediments, or any at all for some people.