When our baby was diagnosed, we knew very little about hearing loss—let alone infant hearing loss! We came up to speed out of necessity.

As we look back over the past 14 months, we realize we learned some pretty interesting and surprising things.

#1 - Most Deaf Babies Can Hear Something

There is a misconception that deaf or hard of hearing babies cannot hear anything. While it's true that some profoundly deaf individuals cannot detect any sound, it's more often the case that a baby with hearing loss can hear something.

That's because hearing loss falls along a spectrum. It ranges from mild to profound.

Sounds we hear in daily life vary across frequencies and decibel (dB) levels. Rustling leaves are 0-10 dB. Vacuuming is around 60 dB. Jack hammers and firecrackers weigh in around 120 dB. Most spoken language falls between 20 to 60 dB.

A hard of hearing baby may hear loud sounds or even speech sounds—but not at sufficient levels to learn language. It depends on her unique case.

And that's why some hard of hearing babies learn language using hearing aids. But others may need cochlear implants to access sound. And others may not be able to access sound with either, and may communicate using sign language.

People are very accommodating when we tell them our daughter has hearing loss. They want to help!

#2 - You Don't Need to Talk Louder to Deaf Babies

People are very accommodating when we tell them our daughter has hearing loss. They want to help!

One challenge: people sometimes think it will help to talk louder. It's intuitive, right? If someone hears less, more volume should help.

Well, not exactly.

With gratitude, we gently explain why that's not the case. Her hearing aids amplify sound much, much better than someone yelling.

We explain how babies who use assistive technologies—such as hearing aids or cochlear implants—have their hearing devices checked and adjusted often. We excitedly report the new technologies are amazing. Did you know audiologists program a baby's digital hearing aids to amplify the specific frequency ranges of her hearing loss?

We compare it to a giant stereo EQ—but more expensive and probably with better sound quality!

So no, you don't need to talk louder to deaf babies. But getting closer can be helpful. Finding a quiet place to talk and reducing background noise can also be helpful.

And it's fine to just ask parents, "Is there anything I can do to make it easier for her to hear me?"

You may be surprised at the answer!

#3 - Not All Deaf Babies Are Learning ASL

"Do you sign?"

People ask us this quite often. So much so that we wrote a whole article about it!

It's a reasonable question.

As we wrote, we focus on LSL because it's working so well for our daughter. Time's limited, and our daughter gaining fluency requires a huge familial commitment.

Early hearing loss detection opens up more opportunities for babies to take the LSL path through Early Intervention and early amplification.

We're not alone. Many, many other parents are choosing the LSL path for their babies these days. With the advent of Universal Newborn Hearing Screening, infant hearing loss is detected earlier than ever. Early hearing loss detection opens up more opportunities for babies to take the LSL path through Early Intervention and early amplification.

While some of these babies are also learning sign language, many are not. They're learning to listen and talk using incredible technologies and strategies.

#4 - Deaf Babies' Educations Start Early

Parents of babies with hearing loss have a lot on their plate.

One of the reasons there's so much going on is that deaf babies' educations start early! In the U.S., federal law provides for Early Intervention for ages 0-3.

In New York City, Early Intervention uses a coaching model. Speech Therapists teach parents LSL strategies and help monitor baby's hearing. Sessions provide learning opportunities through reading, play, and other activities.

Deaf babies' educations start early! In the U.S., federal law provides for Early Intervention services for ages 0-3.

In the United States, the Federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (the IDEA Act) "is a law that makes available a free appropriate public education to eligible children with disabilities throughout the nation and ensures special education and related services to those children."

The act provides for Early Intervention (EI) services for infants and toddlers (birth through age 2) and special education and related services for children and youth ages 3 through 21. EI services are run at the state level.

Once our baby was diagnosed with hearing loss, she was referred to our state's Early Intervention program. Things happened fast. After lots of paperwork and assessments, she was provided with services such as Assistive Technology (i.e., hearing aids, earmolds, audiology) and Speech Therapy classes.

So while most kids begin their educations with preschool or kindergarten, our daughter began at around 2 months of age. We think that's pretty cool!

#5 - Assistive Technologies Have Come a Long Way

Our baby's hearing aids are amazing!

They're digital, and can be configured by her audiologists for her unique condition of hearing loss. They can be updated if and when her hearing loss changes. The changes can be done remotely. They have programming to manage feedback noise and track wear time to make sure baby meets her sound exposure goals.

They're lightweight, but powerful enough to provide the high levels of amplification she needs to access sound.

We can magically stream our voice to her using a wireless microphone. Once she's a bit older, she can stream music and telephone calls into her hearing aids.

On top of all that, pediatric hearing aids are quite stylish—especially when we customize her earmolds with new colors and designs.

And, once she gets a bit older, the possibilities to further personalize hearing aids and cochlear implants are endless!