Speech/Accent in HOH Late Deafened/born deaf

M

mimimama

New Member
Joined
Jun 17, 2011
Messages
86
Reaction score
0
Hello, as a late deafie I get the comment alot that I "don't talk like I am deaf" lol I am wondering if anyone could fill me in on what to expect with my speech. Will I eventually "forget" how to form words right? Sorry if I am offending anyone, not meaning to. Or is there a difference between being born deaf and never actually learning and talking forming the words and being a late deafie and already having years of speech. I know I am fortunate enough to have lost my hearing over the last ten years or so compared to being born deaf or just waking up deaf, so that I am an excellent lip reader from years of being HOH. If anyone could shed some light on this to educate me so I can pass it on to those who ask this annoying question I would appreciate it.



Deaf in right ear
Severe to profound in left
Researching and testing for cochlear
 
Just say, "You don't look like an idjit. Ainnuh!"
 
When you cannot hear yourself 100%, then it's hard to tell when you are not speaking as clearly so if it really matters to you not to sound "deaf", you have to be conscientious of how you pronounce every word and this does require practice. And if you want, sit down with someone and read paragraphs from a book or a magazine and ask them for their honest feedback on your speech. So, if they say you tend to slur certain letters then that helps you be aware of what areas of your speech you need to pay particular attention to.
 
It doesn't really matter to me if I sound deaf or not was just wondering how all this works. I have had people ask me if I was from another country before. They claim I have an accent but I just laugh at them, whatever! At first I thought it was funny then I started wondering if maybe it wasn't from my hearing loss and my family just doesn't notice cause they are around me all the time. For some reason the country is always Norway??/ I find that funny that all these people ask if I am Norwegian and I couldn't even tell you what the hell a Norwegian accent sounds like. lol

Thanks, that makes sense because I can still kinda hear myself talk especially when I have my aids in and that must be it. Also, Deaf Caroline, thanks for not being a smartass!
 
I was asked if I was British, German, Swedish, Irish, etc. Now, when people ask me where my accent is from, I say Luxembourg :) They always believe me because no one knows ANYTHING about that country and just take my word for it. It's hilarious.
 
mimimama said:
Hello, as a late deafie I get the comment alot that I "don't talk like I am deaf" lol
Click to expand...
An option would be to just tell them that you weren't born deaf and that you had lost your hearing when you got older.
 
DeafCaroline said:
I was asked if I was British, German, Swedish, Irish, etc. Now, when people ask me where my accent is from, I say Luxembourg :) They always believe me because no one knows ANYTHING about that country and just take my word for it. It's hilarious.
Click to expand...

When I lived in Calf. I hitchhiked a lot and one time I was picked up by a Hispanic couple and when the guy was dropping me off he said I had a beautiful Mexican accent!! LOL! I said thank you , I did not have the hearts to tell the guy I had speech effect from being HOH!!
 
I'd love to be able to answer your question. I've met a few people who lost their hearing later on in life and they have normal speech. I was born Deaf and I have a Deaf accent-although not horribly strong due to years of speech therapy from the age of 3 until I was 19 most know I'm Deaf when I speak.

Be happy you don't have a Deaf accent and accept the compliment-I've been told that myself but brush off the compliment because I know it's not true. The only issue you will have is convincing people are are HOH though, and it will be annoying because they won't believe you unless you show them your hearing aid :).

do you find that talking is a tad more difficult though? I'm curious myself to know if any late deafened/HOH people here have issues after losing hearing.
 
whatdidyousay! said:
When I lived in Calf. I hitchhiked a lot and one time I was picked up by a Hispanic couple and when the guy was dropping me off he said I had a beautiful Mexican accent!! LOL! I said thank you , I did not have the hearts to tell the guy I had speech effect from being HOH!!
Click to expand...

hehe, I've been asked if I'm from London or New York...I'm a southern Belle.
People from other countries ask me where I'm from too...
it's rather akward to explain that uh, ya know..I'm D E A F!

:) :giggle:
 
Today, I went to a convenience store to pick up some sodas and get some gas....there is a glass partition seperating the clerk from the customers...and all I did was say (speak)..."$40 on #5 please"....she rang up the purchases...and I casually asked her. "Did you understand what I said?"...She said "Yes"....I've been deaf for 50 years this year...and yes, I do have the accent...So, keep on talking, practice a lot.
 
rockin'robin said:
Today, I went to a convenience store to pick up some sodas and get some gas....there is a glass partition seperating the clerk from the customers...and all I did was say (speak)..."$40 on #5 please"....she rang up the purchases...and I casually asked her. "Did you understand what I said?"...She said "Yes"....I've been deaf for 50 years this year...and yes, I do have the accent...So, keep on talking, practice a lot.
Click to expand...

Yep, the "deaf accent" generally does not make people less understandable. It is just a pattern that indicates deafness, kind of like a drawl indicates someone is from the south.
 
Jaspheth said:
do you find that talking is a tad more difficult though? I'm curious myself to know if any late deafened/HOH people here have issues after losing hearing.
Click to expand...

I've worn hearing aids for almost 31 years now. According to my husband, I don't have a "deaf" accent. I have a mixed Midwestern/East coast sort of accent, with a little bit of an overlay of the British accent that I've picked up from living with him.

In North Carolina, people ask me where I'm from sometimes, as my accent clearly is not southern.

I have not found that talking is more difficult at all.
 
I've been told I have no deaf accent. I am leaning more and more toward being "voice off" since I am forgetting how to say some words that are not used a lot. Also, people around here really push the fact that if you can speak then you can hear and will not listen when I tell them I an D/deaf. (can never remember which I am supposed to use).
 
:wave: Kristina, I do the same thing. I do not normally speak to strangers (outside work) because they have the same misconception.

I have been told that I have an accent, that my voice is a bit flat or that my consonants are flat. My family says that its fine... who cares? I have been deaf since about 1990. Really, I dont like to voice because I dont hear it clearly or at all in crowds or noise. What a bother.
 
KristinaB said:
I've been told I have no deaf accent. I am leaning more and more toward being "voice off" since I am forgetting how to say some words that are not used a lot. Also, people around here really push the fact that if you can speak then you can hear and will not listen when I tell them I an D/deaf. (can never remember which I am supposed to use).
Click to expand...

Yep, there is that "mixed blessing" again. They push you to voice, and then punish you when you do.
 
KristinaB said:
I've been told I have no deaf accent. I am leaning more and more toward being "voice off" since I am forgetting how to say some words that are not used a lot. Also, people around here really push the fact that if you can speak then you can hear and will not listen when I tell them I an D/deaf. (can never remember which I am supposed to use).
Click to expand...

yeah... i could not for the life of me remember how to say quieter yesterday... and when I said more quite... my karate instructor looked at me like i was crazy... :giggle:

I have been HoH since birth, and i have a really hard time pronouncing words... even with aids there are just some things I can't hear... and the sounds of the words are just unintelligible babble (another thing my karate instructor laughed at yesterday) so they don't really help me understand what is being said... or how to say it... i've been told i have a very strong deaf accent. which is why I would rather not speak if i didn't have to...
 
ash345 said:
yeah... i could not for the life of me remember how to say quieter yesterday... and when I said more quite... my karate instructor looked at me like i was crazy... :giggle:

I have been HoH since birth, and i have a really hard time pronouncing words... even with aids there are just some things I can't hear... and the sounds of the words are just unintelligible babble (another thing my karate instructor laughed at yesterday) so they don't really help me understand what is being said... or how to say it... i've been told i have a very strong deaf accent. which is why I would rather not speak if i didn't have to...
Click to expand...

So much for that "effortless" use of spoken English, huh?:lol:
 
jillio said:
So much for that "effortless" use of spoken English, huh?:lol:
Click to expand...

yeah... though i've never claimed to have "effortless" use of spoken english... its always been really hard for me... i didn't say my first word until i was 3... i would just point at things that i wanted or were wrong... i was in speech therapy from the time i was 2 1/2 until i was 16, when i told i parents i was never going back. speaking has always been harder for me... and people understanding me... thats even been worse... something my parents and sisters don't understand is why ASL is easier for me to communicate in than speech, even though i'm not close to fluent in ASL. And i'm just starting to be involved in the Deaf Culture, which is an amazing eye opener, and I'm feeling more at home in the Deaf culture than I ever did in the hearing world... I'm just finding my way home i guess :D
 
Back
Top