ABSTRACT

For most people, “deaf ” begins at the moment of identification, when hearing differences are reported. The reactions to this process carry the baggage of typical cultural perceptions of what it means to be deaf. Essentially, these perceptions involve the concept that “beyond sound are no human relationships, no government, no equality of existence, no inkling of knowledge” (Brueggemann, 1999, p. 106). In the eyes of those who rarely encounter deaf people, sound is life, and the lack of sound is the death of human connection. For this reason,

Figure 3.1 Photo of audiology session

many parents grieve when they realize their child has been identified as deaf and adults who used to be able to hear grieve as they experience the diminishing of their ability to hear. There is a full life after the identification of hearing differences, but it takes time for parents and others to realize this.