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- fingertips touching things (pressure doesn't always translate? Weird)
- wind blowing through hedges or bushes (I thought it would be like, some kind of botanical screaming match. Not so!)
- cats walking (they are actually really quiet?)
- water pouring (it makes noise when it hits things, it doesn't itself)
- buttons on the TV remote (may be model specific?)
- that thing that holds flyscreen doors open, with the tube and the longer narrower tube, I always felt like I was announcing myself when the door opened because that thing made noise, and then I found out they were hearing the door ITSELF rattle
- changing the channel on the TV (it looks like it SHOULD make a noise, like FLIP or THWIP or something)
- stretching rubber bands, hair bands, etc (they look and feel like they should, but no? Weird)
- rubbers/erasers don't make noise when you use them?? (I always felt like I was loudly announcing I MADE A MISTAKE when I used one in class, but no!)
- plugging/unplugging things, when I discovered there really was no mechanical sound to indicate you'd successfully connected/seated a powerplug I was infuuuuuriated, how is there not a noise for that??
- similarly, when plugs slipped out of jacks, like back in the modem days, or when my Ethernet slips loose enough to interfere with my connection. How is there no alert or something like 'beep beep check here first'? Baffling
- braiding hair, I thought it would make a lot more noise than it actually did
I'll come back with more as I think of them.
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She's also a jogger. She was very surprised to learn that her breasts *don't* make bouncing noises when she runs.
Losing, or never having, one of your senses isn’t just about what’s missing. In fact, it often means other senses pick up the slack and start showing off. Contrary to what Hollywood would have us believe, losing a sense won’t turn you into a daredevil. Bummer, I know. But luckily, your other senses do sharpen in pretty cool ways.
Suddenly, your eyes are spotting tiny twitches in facial expressions like you’re a human lie detector, and your nose is sniffing out snacks like a trained bloodhound. You may not be leaping off rooftops, but hey, being able to smell when someone opens a bag of chips three rooms away? That’s a superpower in my book.
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Research shows that when someone loses one of their senses, the other senses often grow more active and efficient. That means many deaf folks are better at processing fast-moving visual information or picking up on tiny visual cues most hearing people would miss.
Basically, if you can’t hear, you might be better at reading the room, quite literally. This is why many deaf folks are amazing at reading body language, sign language, and even lipreading. It's like their brains go, “Oh, we’re skipping audio? Cool, let’s go full HD on everything else.”
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However, just the other day, I was fiddling around with a printer's system, and I moved something, I figured it would make noise. I asked if it made noise. It did not. I was so confused.
I enjoy figuring what makes noise, what does not.
The conclusion? Y'all are living in a very noisy world.
For people who’ve grown up deaf, getting hearing aids or cochlear implants can feel like entering a totally new universe, complete with unexpected noises like fridges humming, footsteps creaking, or, much to one person’s surprise, the total lack of noise when yawning.
As one Redditor shared how their deaf friend thought people shouted when they yawned and were surprised to realize they don’t. Well, not in most cases anyway. There’s still that one guy out there.
And then there’s snow. It looks magical, it feels magical, and surely it must sound magical too, right? Nope. Falling snow is famously silent. And my personal fave? That one person who was very surprised to learn that her breasts don't make bouncing noises when she runs. Thank goodness for sports bras.
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There are many causes of hearing loss, some sneakier than others. Genetics can play a big role, but it’s not just about what you inherit from your family. Long-term exposure to loud noises (looking at you, concert speakers and power tools), certain illnesses, ear infections, and even some medications can mess with your ears’ internal wiring.
Oh, and aging? Yep, it’s not just your knees that start creaking. But whether it’s sudden or gradual, permanent or partial, hearing loss affects people in different ways, and often leaves room for a pretty amazing sense of humor.
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I thought “These people are over reacting to a gentle twittering” and then I heard how many types of birds scream, squark, hoot-hoot-ooooooh-WOOOOOOO, quack, sound like they’re laughing, and screech.
The first time I heard two magpies fighting, I thought someone was trying to abduct my daughter. They were screaming at each other!
I apologised to my husband for calling him a “moaning old fart” about the birds.
Edit: This is the opposite of what you asked for; I misread the question. I’ll leave it up for anyone interested in Deaf peoples lives however.
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Growing up deaf often means learning about the world through a totally different lens. So, when someone knocks on the door and your parents always answer, without you ever hearing it? Yeah, that might feel like sorcery.
These stories are funny, sure, but they’re also a great reminder that our assumptions, about sounds, senses, or people, are often shaped by our own experiences.
For those of us who can hear, it’s easy to forget that sound plays such a huge role in how we understand the world. And for those who can’t? Their experiences are just as rich, hilarious, and insightful, just tuned to a different frequency.
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1 of them went deaf when he was 13 from Scarlett fever so he knew the sounds but after 27 years he forgot.
He got bi-lateral cochlear implants after being 97 percent deaf for 27 years .
He didn’t know or forgot that cabinets make noises he opened and closed one squeaky cabinet for 10 mins .
He forgot about the birds chirping , he sit outside one morning in awe of all the sounds being made by the birds .
After getting them put in which is a process it wasn’t instant because they have to be tuned for months and it’s almost too much to take at first . He would wear them for a few hours then take them off . He said it sounded like a speak and spell from the 70s / 80s at first . After about 6 months he gained up to 85 percent word recognition and hearing .
I don’t think he ever said he thought something made a sound that didn’t , but he was able to hear for the first 13 years of his life .
It was more he forgot certain things made sounds because he didn’t have to deal with them for so long .
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