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ladycaissa

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I am 23 years old, was born hard of hearing and worn hearing aid on both ears since I was four. I just found out that I am losing what little hearing I have left in my right ear and I should consider getting a cochlear implant. I am actually slightly scared.

I was wondering if you could tell me the pros and cons about it. What does it sound like compared to a hearing aid (if you do know the difference)? Have you or have you not regretted getting it?

Thank you.
 
ladycaissa said:
I am 23 years old, was born hard of hearing and worn hearing aid on both ears since I was four. I just found out that I am losing what little hearing I have left in my right ear and I should consider getting a cochlear implant. I am actually slightly scared.

I was wondering if you could tell me the pros and cons about it. What does it sound like compared to a hearing aid (if you do know the difference)? Have you or have you not regretted getting it?

Thank you.
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Hi, there and welcome to Alldeaf! Look thru this forum because there are absolutely gobs and gobs of topics which you seek and more.
 
Hi there,

For me, my cochlear implant has the edge over the hearing aid even before my hearing suddenly decreased without warning. I can now use the phone, rely less on lipreading and just hear more sounds overall. It's also more clear and not quite as hard work to listen.
However, that is me and not everyone will get the same results. There is a small chance that you won't get any benefit from a cochlear implant. Generally, those who did well with hearing aids and managed to develop speech and speech perception before the implant tend to do well with it because you are transferring what you've already learned.
The other thing is that you can't just decide to get an implant. You have to go through a series of tests to see if you will qualify. Those who qualify are those who do not get much benefit from hearing aids currently and you will be tested with hearing aids on to ascertain this.

Cons:
Surgery and the risks that go with it (e.g. infection)
You cannot go back to hearing aids as the nerve hairs are destroyed
You will be completely deaf in that ear
A small chance that it may not work for you
If you are very active within the Deaf culture, you may get mixed reactions from your friends

Pros: (note these are my results)
More energy when dealing with the hearing world
Less reliance on lipreading
Greater clarity
No ear molds - save money on that!
Flexible programs for dealing with different situations e.g. noise, quiet, etc.
May avoid development of tinnitus if you have a progressive loss
You don't have to worry about losing more of your hearing
Ability to upgrade software and programs
Less costly overall if the user is insured compared to buying hearing aids

I hope that was helpful! If you have any other questions let us know.
 
Welcome to AllDeaf...

There are quite members here that can relate to your situation, so I'm sure you'll get good info here..

Looking forward to hear more from you.
 
Yeah, what Artoo and Cloggy said. Jumping ahead, should you get an implant, keep in mind the following: Surgeon 3%......audiologist 10%......yourself, the remainder. Those were my numbers pulled out of the air just to emphasize the amount of consistent work and dedication needed from you. I wish you well on this journey should you decide to go for it.
 
just found out that I am losing what little hearing I have left in my right ear and I should consider getting a cochlear implant.
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Are you audilogically hoh, or more "severe/profound hoh?" Just a little confused here. Can you clarify your hearing sittuion a little? Can you hear decently with an HA in the other ear?
CIs are awesome for those who have progressive loss. They don't do as well as late deafened folks, but they do have a good base for sucess, since they were able to hear with a HA. (they're not starting over from scratch the way someone with profound loss and very little benifit from HAs would)
 
Welcome to Alldeaf. I just had surgery on the 19th of July for bilateral implants. All the points that R2D2 made fit me as well. You can't go by others to see how well you will adapt to CIs. I went in with the goal of just having about the same hearing as with my HAs. I must say my quality of life and hearing has improved 100%. Each situation is different as is each hearing loss.

I would spend a lot of time reviewing blogs, company information, try and meet other CI users, and research. It takes awhile to get all the testing and insurance paperwork done. I also recommend to follow what you think is best for you! I knew in my heart that CIs were the best route for me, and I love my choice.
 
deafdyke said:
Are you audilogically hoh, or more "severe/profound hoh?" Just a little confused here. Can you clarify your hearing sittuion a little? Can you hear decently with an HA in the other ear?
CIs are awesome for those who have progressive loss. They don't do as well as late deafened folks, but they do have a good base for sucess, since they were able to hear with a HA. (they're not starting over from scratch the way someone with profound loss and very little benifit from HAs would)
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I have moderate hearing on my left and severe hearing on my right. The hearing I am losing hearing on the right side. The left ear is doing perfectly well, no changes so far. Hopefully it stays that way for a while *crosses fingers*.

I've worn hearing aids since I was 4 years old. I have adjusted quite well over the years, enough as to being able to hear on the phone without a telecoil. I am even able to understand music and hear things that people claim that they can hear on the cochlear implant.

I am only asking the question as to what's the difference between the sounds because my audiologist says that the chances of me getting the CI is very high. Since the chances are high...I do get a choice as to wheither or not I get the CI.
 
ladycaissa said:
I
I am only asking the question as to what's the difference between the sounds because my audiologist says that the chances of me getting the CI is very high. Since the chances are high...I do get a choice as to wheither or not I get the CI.
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The Ci sounds clearer without the distortion assosiated with the amplyfied sound from the HA.

Having said that just not having hearin in one ear would not necessarily qualify you for a CI. The testing includes word recognition and sentence comprehension in addition to the tone tests. The sentence recognition is to be under 60%, at least that's what my audiologists at the ci center told me.

Testing can be done to determine if you would qualify if you chose to try. I think the final decision is based on the percentage from both ears simultaniously and amplyfied. Which is why I'm not sure if you would qualilfy.
Technically I did not and my hearing loss was severe bi lateral. But I rarely used the phone and in noise I struggled alot. Tests showed in noise I repeated 11%. I had insurance from my job and was not using a gov. program which is why I was able to request and get an implant. I heard more then the 60% . but life is not quiet like the sound booth.

After the adjustment period the brain hears sounds as you remember them. (if you have an auditory memory) of course there are sounds that you may never remember hearing and it may take a few minutes to figure out what all the noise is. I was taking a walk one day when there was a light drizzle and it took me a few minutes to realize that all the noise was the rain drops hitting the leaves of the corn, really neat I don't recall ever hearing that before. I really did not realize the world was so noisy. :)

The cons include everything from the risks associated from surgery to the possiblity that you may not be able to understand as well. It's one reason I think that they are very cautious about how much hearing a person has, one can never really get back up to the level of hearing one had if there is a problem and the implant is removed. So damage to residule hearing is on thing that needs to be concidered.

By all means take time to look into the CI and see if it is something you might like to persue, either now or in the future.
 
OK thanks for clarifying!
Are you a good HA user on your moderate side?
It does sound like you're an ambigious canidiate. Is your audi pushing it b/c of bilateral benifit? Have you noticed any downsides to not having bilateral hearing abilty?
I would wait a bit to get implanted, and see how the loss progresses. Severe losses can be helped by hearing aids. (even with CI, there are still many severe and profounders getting along just fine with just HAs)
Besides, even if the HA on the worse side, doesn't give you as much benifit as it used to, it still might give you a few words here and there, to help with speech understanding.
I definitly think that folks who have NO aided benifit in one ear should be able to get implanted............Not being anti-CI. Just trying to help you outline your options.
Since your sitution is ambigious, I'd definitly look into getting a second opionon. Is your audi familiar with working with young dhh folks?
 
Hi there Ladycaissa

I am actually slightly scared.
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I wonder what are you scared of, is there anything specific that you could address? It helps if we can verbalize what bothers us.

From my standpoint - is being able to hear important to you? would like to be able hear better if there is such possibility? if it is, maybe the CI is for you. But you should be aware (if you are not) that it might be a lot of work to learn to hear with CI.

Fuzzy
 
Ladycaissa,

It sounds like with hearing aids in both ears you function pretty well. I would tend to agree with the others that it may be doubtful that you would qualify for a CI at this stage. Basically, the benefits that CI users get is pretty much you are getting in your better ear right now with the aid, maybe with greater clarity but maybe not. It depends on the individual.

Maybe for the time being, you could have some speech recognition tests done by your audiologist for both ears so that you can set a baseline. You mentioned that your loss is progressive, so it would be useful for you to have something to compare yourself against further down the track so as to help with your decision making.
 
about functioning well with HAs..
what about this:

I am only asking the question as to what's the difference between the sounds because my audiologist says that the chances of me getting the CI is very high. Since the chances are high...I do get a choice as to wheither or not I get the CI.
Click to expand...

Fuzzy
 
Excellent advice R2D2! I have to say I wish the other dhh sites out there were a bit more "It's amazing, but....." in regards to the CI. Some of them almost seem to be infocommericaling it.
Audiofuzzy, it's possible that the audi may not be very familiar with CI eligibilty criteria. Some who don't have a lot of experiance with it might think that its a treatment for ALL severe and profound losses.
 
With both ears wearing hearing aids I can function quite well in the hearing world, however things now have changed. The past two months I've noticed that I wasn't hearing things well (things sounded fuzzy and hazy) and I was missing out on a lot of sounds. I went to my audiologist because of this. We found out that my right ear is going bad. It's so bad that the HA will not work on the ear and I am on the most powerfullest HA out there. Right now we don't know if this is permanent or temporary. I am going to find out on the 25th of Oct *crosses fingers and hoping its temporary*.

As of now I am only wearing the HA on the left side,which is on my good ear (which is moderate), but I am missing out on a ton of stuff and I feel like the whole world is just buzzing past me and I am going in a really slow pace. It's really scary honestly.

I live more so in the hearing world than the deaf world. I am working on my BA in Biology so I need to hear so I can pass my classes. My fiance` is hearing too. He doesn't know much about the HOH/deaf world, however Ihe is willing to learn (I got lucky there). Hearing is VERY important to me. It's all I really know.

My audi told me that if this is a permanent thing that I really should consider getting a CI, just because I depend on my hearing so much. She's a really good audiologist and knows what she's talking about (knows me well too as a person too). She's the head of the audiology department at Boys Town National Hospital in Omaha, Nebraska. My audi knows about everything about both HA and CI. So there is no question about her credibility of her knowledge. She knows the requirements and everything that goes on with the CI. If she didn't she wouldn't of recommended it to me, she would've asked me to do some research on it (which I did anyways just in case). She knows me well enough not to do that to me.

I am scared of what the future holds honestly, the surgery, weither or not it will work, what the CI sounds like and etc. I do not like the unknown.

If you have any more questions I am willing to answer and clear a few things up. Thank you for your suggestions and help, I do appriciate it.
 
Well, if you don't mind me asking I wonder what kind of hearing loss do you suffer. You seem to be very similar to me, which is sensori-neural loss, progressive.


I am scared of what the future holds honestly, the surgery, weither or not it will work, what the CI sounds like and etc. I do not like the unknown.
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You know what I don't know either but I am hopeful by all those who posted in the "CI Moments thread.
http://www.alldeaf.com/hearing-aids-cochlear-implants/42920-ci-moments.html

But this would be my line of thinking:- Will the surgery work or not? Most CI surgeries are successful meaning the surgery per se is not a complicated surgery, can be done outpatient even, I've heard. You must rememeber to get bacterial menigitis vaccination prior to surgery.
After surgery you will have to wait some time for activation and mapping but about this someone who's got CI will explain better. That probably will go rather smoothly too.
Will the results of surgery be what you'd wish to be?
That is rather impossible to say, I'm afraid but we can speculate a bit that if you can hear pretty well with your HAs - if you have decent word and sentences cognizance then I hope it would be more like being late deafened than being just deaf without prior speech cognizance. Then again you probaly shouldn't exclude possibility of having to work a lot toward achieving good sounds understanding with your CI anyway.
But considering that you are mostly in the hearing world and being able to hear is very important to you, I think you would be very motivated toward that.

Nobody likes the uknown - this too stops me from getting CI tomorrow. But one must calculate calmly the options, also.
If hearing is so important to you, then what choices do you have.
It probably would be either to try to exist with one HA, if the hearing loss in the other ear is permanent indeed or enhance your lost hearing with CI..

Or you can look into switching to deaf ways, learn sing language and start from here.

What is encouraging, your audiolgist seem to be quite knowledgeable on the subject, so if she says CI could help you it probably would.
As for the sound - I too would like to know how one does "hears" thru CI comparing to what he hear now, practically unaided -just having sound amplified. I was told it might be not what one heard before.
But then again, from what late deafened implantees wrote I have an impression it is not that much different as before. So that too is encouraging.
It would be a very good idea for you to read a book by Beverly Biderman:
Amazon.ca: Wired for Sound : A Journey Into Hearing: Books: Beverly Biderman

This is great, and simply written, insight into her journey into hearing word with CI.
keep in mind that she lost her hearing early, though. You probably wouldn't need anywhere that much time.


And last but not least - I can't remember the thread but it is mentioned somewhere here that contrary to the popular belief, one does NOT lose residual hearing with CI. but I don't know anything about that.


Fuzzy
 
Hi Ladycaissa,

That's what happened with me. My hearing suddenly deteriorated and then we gave my ear a break from hearing aids for a month to see if anything would change. My audie was actually quite reassuring that my hearing would return but in my case it never did and it was only then that we commenced the cochlear implant route.

It sounds like you are in good hands and I can tell that you trust her, which counts for a lot! Yes, it all is very intimidating and when my audie first broached cochlear implants I was pretty scared too. But then I did my research and the more I read, the better I felt and the more convinced that it was the right choice for me.

Keep us informed with your progress (or lack of!).
 
Will do R2D2. I am just waiting for the grace period between now and when they retest me. It feels like it's taking forever though.

Audiofuzzy, thanks for the advice. I'll look into the book and read it sometime between my massive study crams. As for switching into the deaf ways...I am enough into it as I can be. Deaf people tend to get quite jelous of how well I interact with the hearing world and they tend to shun me. It's actually quite sad. I do know sign language, taught myself how to do so in preschool/kindergarden. All I need is a refresher course. lol.

The more I think about it, I've realized that I might just have to get the CI if I need it. I am in the prime of my life and it just started. It's not fair to me if I just quit, I've worked too hard to get to where I am now in life. I am not going to let it stop me at a grinding halt.

Bleah...life sucks.

I just wish someone would answer my question of what it sounds like. What is the difference between the sounds of CI and HA? I am deeply curious.
 
That's good that your audi is one of the wicked good ones. Sounds like you're in good hands there! So you're currently in the throes of trying out different HAs, for your worse ear? That's good. It's always good to experiment since hearing loss is just so indivdual that you really don't know how hearing will respond to HA amplification. I know a girl who had VERY deep profound loss. It was so profound that she didn't even get much use out of a body worn aid (back in the '80's) But she recently tried a digital aid, and was actually getting WORDS with a HA!
I'd opt for it. It does sound like you really do need it. Bilateral hearing is important! If you'd grown up with just having one aidable ear, it would be different. It's really too bad that you're not at a school that has a significent Dhh program......and I know how it is. Sometimes it does seem like some Deafies are kind of stuck up about oral folks. (but that said there are some oral folks who are kinda derogatory towards Deafies....really a chicken or the egg thing)
 
Ladycaissa,


I have a CI for my right ear and a HA for my left. I have had the CI for almost three months and as far as the difference in sounds I find environmental sounds to be richer with the CI than with the HA. The CI also has allowed me to hear some sounds my HA could not (Mouse Click, Ticking Clock, Dripping Faucet, Crickets, etc.).

For me Speech sounds pretty normal with the CI and HA together. If I am just using the CI speech sounds higher pitched than with just the HA. With my HA alone speech has the same quality as that of a Pilot making an announcement on a commercial jet (staticky and not very clear).

You should know that initially things will not sound so great with a CI. When the audi switches the CI on for the first time they will sound robotic, high pitched, otherworldly. It kind of makes you want to check their ID, LOL. With time, practice and more mappings things sound better.
 
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