Do you feel lucky you did not get a CI when a child?

CI on you early in the life, good or not?

  • I am glad I did not get a CI early in my life.

    Votes: 15 65.2%

  • I am glad I did get a CI early in my life.

    Votes: 3 13.0%

  • I don't care, it does not matter.

    Votes: 5 21.7%
  • Total voters
    23
F

flip

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Just curious what other deafies out there feel? Most parents seems to want to give their child a CI for the sake of better opportinities and fear the deaf child will be angry at them if a CI not was provided early. Is this what most deaf people feel, too?

Please no flame posts etc.
 
I am glad I got my CI when I did, I was old enough to be involved in the decision making. But I do know that I also went for the CI assessment at five but had too much hearing with HA's. I wouldnt have minded if I had it done at five because most of my friends have CI's.
People have different opinions and choices, if people dont want CI or against them, i respect them as it's up to them and part of deaf culture
 
As a parent of a child with a cochlear implant, someone who has been involved in the cochlear implant community for over twenty years and who has talked to hundreds of parents over that time period, your underlying assumptions about the reasons why "most parents" choose a cochlear implant is over generalized, simplified and inaccurate.

Not trying to flame just pointiing out the inherent bias and inaccuracy of your assumption. Go back and read the posts of just some of the parents who have posted on this forum in the past.
 
Yes, I feel lucky. I would have rather it had been my own decision.
 
This is not about the parents. This is about the people who are receiving the CIs as a child.

I have to say, I am glad that my parents decided to wait until I was 12 before popping the question. At least I made a decision. I knew CIs wouldn't make me fully-hearing because the people I knew with CIs 10 years ago talked like Donald Duck, so I knew they were still "deaf" even they got the "gift" of "speaking." And frankly... even some of the new implantees don't really improve all that much in their speech.

So I am glad I still got my "broken" ears!
 
souggy said:
This is not about the parents. This is about the people who are receiving the CIs as a child.

I have to say, I am glad that my parents decided to wait until I was 12 before popping the question. At least I made a decision. I knew CIs wouldn't make me fully-hearing because the people I knew with CIs 10 years ago talked like Donald Duck, so I knew they were still "deaf" even they got the "gift" of "speaking." And frankly... even some of the new implantees don't really improve all that much in their speech.

So I am glad I still got my "broken" ears!
Click to expand...

Some people here still seem cant understand that concept.
 
I am glad that my parents allow me to make decisions to get a CI. Again, I don't feel any disappointed or sad that I do not speak very well. I had a GREAT life because i had my Deaf community and Culture. Now I am thinking about getting a CI for my own curiosity. I absoluately LOVE my Deaf culture and community. I am NOW sad to see that lots of small kids with ci users and deny ASL. I know they miss out what Deaf culture feels like.
If it were me as a parent and if my kids were Deaf. I would get them to get HAs and speech therapist UNTIL kids ask me that they want CI. I will allow them to make their decisions. I will make sure to share informatin about CIs to kids when they are 4 or 5 to make sure they UNDERSTAND how CI works such as Surgery, and hear better or NOT.
 
souggy said:
This is not about the parents. This is about the people who are receiving the CIs as a child.

I have to say, I am glad that my parents decided to wait until I was 12 before popping the question. At least I made a decision. I knew CIs wouldn't make me fully-hearing because the people I knew with CIs 10 years ago talked like Donald Duck, so I knew they were still "deaf" even they got the "gift" of "speaking." And frankly... even some of the new implantees don't really improve all that much in their speech.

So I am glad I still got my "broken" ears!
Click to expand...



Even with CI, my ears are still broken, CI doesnt give me perfect hearing plus I cannot hear without it and my HA
 
I am glad they didn't decide what is best for me. I did what it is best for me. I was disappointed with my audiogolist. So I am gonna find a new one and re-do the mapping. Gotta do it ASAP before I have the baby otherwise I won't have a time do it!
 
Frisky Feline said:
I am glad that my parents allow me to make decisions to get a CI. Again, I don't feel any disappointed or sad that I do not speak very well. I had a GREAT life because i had my Deaf community and Culture. Now I am thinking about getting a CI for my own curiosity. I absoluately LOVE my Deaf culture and community. I am NOW sad to see that lots of small kids with ci users and deny ASL. I know they miss out what Deaf culture feels like.
If it were me as a parent and if my kids were Deaf. I would get them to get HAs and speech therapist UNTIL kids ask me that they want CI. I will allow them to make their decisions. I will make sure to share informatin about CIs to kids when they are 4 or 5 to make sure they UNDERSTAND how CI works such as Surgery, and hear better or NOT.
Click to expand...

That's how I feel. Iam sad that I wasn't given the opportunity to ASL and Deaf culture growing up. My parents made that decision for me to grow up as a hearing child. They thought that it was in my best interests. Turns out that they were very wrong. Don't get me wrong..I love them but they should have given me both.
 
shel90 said:
That's how I feel. Iam sad that I wasn't given the opportunity to ASL and Deaf culture growing up. My parents made that decision for me to grow up as a hearing child. They thought that it was in my best interests. Turns out that they were very wrong. Don't get me wrong..I love them but they should have given me both.
Click to expand...

Yeah. Such a good thing you found your way to get involved with the Deaf community now. I am sure you feel click and completely yourself as who you are now. :) Well, I spend more my time with hearing people than Deaf people where I live since 2001. I feel OK but I know I will come back to the Deaf community once my hearing kids get older, up to them if they want to follow me. I'd like to keep the Deaf Culture/Deaf community alive somehow.
 
Frisky Feline said:
I am glad that my parents allow me to make decisions to get a CI. Again, I don't feel any disappointed or sad that I do not speak very well. I had a GREAT life because i had my Deaf community and Culture. Now I am thinking about getting a CI for my own curiosity. I absoluately LOVE my Deaf culture and community. I am NOW sad to see that lots of small kids with ci users and deny ASL. I know they miss out what Deaf culture feels like.
If it were me as a parent and if my kids were Deaf. I would get them to get HAs and speech therapist UNTIL kids ask me that they want CI. I will allow them to make their decisions. I will make sure to share informatin about CIs to kids when they are 4 or 5 to make sure they UNDERSTAND how CI works such as Surgery, and hear better or NOT.
Click to expand...

That's how I feel. Iam sad that I wasn't given the opportunity to ASL and Deaf culture growing up. My parents made that decision for me to grow up as a hearing child. They thought that it was in my best interests. Turns out that they were very wrong. Don't get me wrong..I love them but they should have given me both.
 
Not available when I was a child, and I am not a candidate anyway, Plus I am fine with who I am.
 
souggy said:
This is not about the parents. This is about the people who are receiving the CIs as a child.

I have to say, I am glad that my parents decided to wait until I was 12 before popping the question. At least I made a decision. I knew CIs wouldn't make me fully-hearing because the people I knew with CIs 10 years ago talked like Donald Duck, so I knew they were still "deaf" even they got the "gift" of "speaking." And frankly... even some of the new implantees don't really improve all that much in their speech.

So I am glad I still got my "broken" ears!
Click to expand...

Yes, it is not about the parents but the assumptions made about parents and the basis for their decision is not accurate. I have met hundreds of ci users over the years and not one I ever met talked like Donald Duck, but then, I only have normal hearing. However, many implantees, especially those who lost their hearing as adults have described that initially, the voices they heard sounded like Donald Duck.

Your experience about the increase in speech production and quality of speech is at odds with those of actual implant users, parents of children with implants and studies over the years.
 
I'm not angry at my parents for not giving me a CI early because they did not know about the technology well enough when I was younger. The influence from my audiologists gave them the impression that hearing aids were better than CIs, therefore the reason why I had them for 16 years. By that time, I got frustrated with my HAs and did a lot of research on CIs, finding that the Nucleus Freedom 13 was a good fit for me. I was lucky to have health insurance at the time and got the surgery done. Even more so, before I started going to college. I'm glad that I made the personal choice to get a CI, not them.
 
flip said:
Just curious what other deafies out there feel? Most parents seems to want to give their child a CI for the sake of better opportinities and fear the deaf child will be angry at them if a CI not was provided early. Is this what most deaf people feel, too?

Please no flame posts etc.
Click to expand...

I am happy I was never forced CI on. Back then, CI was only for those with no residual hearing. I would not have objected if I was forced a CI if I had no residual hearing. However because I have residual hearing, I gain access to sounds and speech with HAs already. I don't want to risk losing my residual hearing with CI nor risk surgery. Also by leaving the choice up to me, I can decide to wait for stem cells which is what im doing. I give it about 3 years before I go ahead. Stem cells lets me avoid surgery and keep my residual hearing plus improve upon that.

I would never force CI on any child if he has residual hearing that can be aided with powerful HAs. No child has ever been angry they didn't get a CI but plenty have been angry they got a CI before they were old enough to decide. As for the fear your child will never understand speech or speak, that is false if your child is getting access to sounds with HAs. I am living proof of this. All deaf people are just as capable if only they would get equal education as hearing people! We may be deaf but we aren't dumb and we can learn everything that hearing people can, including speech and speaking clearly!
 
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