Is it like a rough inference of what’s being said based on mouth movements, or is it more precise somehow? Would it be a mistake to think you knew exactly what was said by reading lips (even if you were good at it)?

    • MrShankles@reddthat.com
      8·
      2 years ago

      Your experience seems very much like my own. I don’t have hearing loss, but what I assume is an auditory processing issue with speech.

      It’s much easier for me to understand what someone is saying when I can see their mouth and microexpressions. If my back is turned, I don’t always catch everything. Sometimes I keep hearing the “wrong thing” no matter how much I ask for them to repeat it… so I just learned to repeat back whatever non-sensical thing I “heard”; and that either helps me process what they were trying to say, or they will repeat it back slower and more clearly. It’s frustrating sometimes, especially in noisier environments with a lot of other stimulus… that’s when seeing someone’s lips will help the most for me

      And of course, I love subtitles. Otherwise I have to blast the TV, and still will miss things. The subtitles just clarify what I’m pretty sure I heard, or what I missed. I’m not just reading my way through everything, unless it’s in another language… which than does feel like a switch in the way I “see subtitles”

    • Punkie@lemmy.world
      6·
      2 years ago

      Similar for me: when my hearing started to go in my 30s, the doctor said “you already know how to lip read.” I didn’t believe him until he showed me “am I saying ‘top’ or ‘cup’?” and if he had his mouth covered, I couldn’t tell which one he was saying.

    • AnalogyAddict@lemmy.world
      4·
      2 years ago

      This, completely. I didn’t even know how much I depended on reading lips until everyone worth listening to was wearing a mask.

        • rosymind@leminal.space
          1·
          2 years ago

          Same. My mind makes up random words to sounds all the time, so if I dont have context or lips to read, the sentences I hear people say are just wild.

          I repeat things back to people wearing masks so that I can be sure that I understand them. It annoys some of them, but whatever

    • OneWomanCreamTeam@sh.itjust.works
      3·
      2 years ago

      As far as being similar to others’ experiences: I don’t have any significant hearing loss, but you basically just described my subjective experience reading lips (and subtitles).

    • ALostInquirer@lemm.eeOP
      2·
      2 years ago

      Thanks! I appreciate the perspective on this, as lip-reading is kinda like “eye-reading” to me in that I’ve struggled to understand what’s involved.

      To put my experience into perspective, which might work for at least a few people: subtitles. I mean… I’ve never asked anyone else but yall arent just reading them, right? To me they just clarify the speech subconsciously (for the most part), rather than me reading them off the screen when I need them. Subtitles are weird… Who knows if this is accurate to my experience or similar to others.

      This also helps me understand, as I often do watch stuff with subtitles to help better follow dialogue, and I’m usually not closely reading them all throughout.

    • Mouselemming@sh.itjust.works
      2·
      2 years ago

      When you say subtitles do you mean closed captions? Because I agree those are a boost for me to follow what I’m also seeing and hearing the person say. But with subtitles they’re speaking a different language so lip-reading isn’t helpful and hearing just adds tone of voice.