Just because you're reliant on words to think doesn't mean others are. Language certainly helps shape thoughts, even to the extent that, certainly for older ki

Just because you're reliant on words to think doesn't mean others are. Language certainly helps shape thoughts, even to the extent that, certainly for older kids and adults, different languages influence and constrain thought in different ways. But consider dreams. These are adjacent to thoughts, and don't require language. Some dreamers are even able to express will not only on their actions, but over the dream itself. And if proof were needed of a conscious agent, it's there even in an apparently unconscious being.