Cochlear Implant Patients. - Page 22

**shel90** · 12-29-2010, 06:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zebadee2010

Well personally I feel that if someone is deaf ( a child for instance) that it is much better to get them implanted while their young as opposed to them growing up being told about all these great things they are missing out on and then deciding well i'll get a CI.

Getting a CI while young is much better than waiting until your older, especially if you have no hearing to begin with. When you get a CI young you have almost no memory of surgerys and such that happen when you are young. I personally have been having surgery's since i was 4 and don't remember any of them up until i was 13.

Honestly although your child may go through pain during the recovery, they won't remember any of it. I however will remember the pain that I have went through during recovery. Which i must say isn't that much at all, especially if your taking the pain medication.

I really think that it's selfish of you to keep your child from hearing. Do you know what it's like to hear?? I thought not. So you don't know what you are keeping your child from, apparently he is 25 now and supposedly doesn't regret it..
As far as surgery risks.. Go to a good doctor to get it performed, don't go to some local guy who smokes weed on the weekends. Go to someone who is good. Surgery risks are very high risks, but if you follow all the procedures you don't have anything to worry about. Re-implantation is not that big of a deal. The surgery actually isn't as long from what I hear. And there probably isn't as much swelling and stuff.

You may think that you are perfectly fine without hearing, but I beg to differ. Sure this is a post from someone who has had hearing most his life. But it has made me able to do many more things like listening to music. Playing games with your eyes closed. There are disadvantages to being deaf. Again i'm not saying i'm cured by getting this but its like taking medicine for a head ache. When you have it, it helps.

Honestly I think most of you are being childish in your repeated arguing. Some people want there kid to have hearing, just because you are just fine without it doesn't mean your child will feel the same way. If you want the best for your child give him every opportunity he has, don't limit him because he can't hear anything.
And on the no pain while deaf thing. My ears have been ringing quite loudly ever since i became deaf.. I don't know if that occurs in people who are naturally deaf, but it is really unpleasant and at times somewhat painful. And before you try to say this is from being implanted, it isn't because it's in both ears..

Stop arguing you guys, and girls.. I cot on here yesterday to look and i come back today and have 3 new pages full or arguing..

You dont want arguements? Dont say s*** like the ones bolded above to a deaf audience. You are operating from an audist view. If you want a CI, great but dont say that we are limited and other s*** because we are deaf.

**shel90** · 12-29-2010, 06:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Banjo

Perhaps I should mention the fact that I am profoundly deaf. I wear only one hearing aid in my right ear. I cannot hear anything at all in my left ear, despite the fact the hearing test showed that I can hear better in that one. Go figure!

My parents started raising me with the oral-only method on the advice of the family doctor who died shortly after. They realized that it wasn't working by the time I was three. They decided to adapt the SEE method. Suddenly, everything became much easier for everyone involved. I started learning ASL in the fourth grade. Yes, I did have speech therapy for years, just in case you were wondering.

I was in a total communication program for the deaf at a public school from kindergarten to grade six. After that, I decided to attend a school for the deaf. I graduated with the highest grades in the school leading to a post-secondary scholarship awarded by the government. After I graduated from high school, I decided to enter a college. They provided interpreters. No problem. I graduated with honours.

Yep, yep.

I have a full-time employment. I own a car. I own a house. I have a wonderful wife. I enjoy my life a lot. I cherish and enjoy the gift of life that I have been given. I don't take life for granted and never will.

To bemoan the absence of the ability to hear on a daily basis is just sad and a waste of time. If you want to hear, go for it. If you feel the need to get defensive with us over the choices you make in your life, it shows that you are not fully confident in yourself. If you are confident and comfortable with the choices you have made, you would not see the need to argue with people over it. Just let it be.

You should be happy to be who you are and take pride in the choices you have made with your life.

Life is short, enjoy it while you can.

Banjo

drphil · 12-29-2010, 06:55 PM

Interesting that Jillio claims the person-zebadee 2010 -who started this thread about his upcoming Cochlear Implant operation- is a snot nosed newcomer-626. Some deep therapeutic diagnosis-pro bono! An Interesting exercise to analyze her from some of her comments. Yeah even Harlan Lane would approve- of "a Journey into the DEAF-WORLD" diatribeimfamy!
Perhaps you can contact my user name: Dr Phil-website: drphil.com -why did I continuously
spiel about the "alleged horrors of Cochlear Implants"? Is there "something compulsive" of my actions? Is this ongoing basis of my actions triggered from the "recent" past -dealing with the deafness of my son by relabelling as "cultural" and use ASL only?
Not to psychoanalyze- of course.
No comment on any other person claiming to be "pontificating" from "non- time hell". I understand from a theological viewpoint human deafness as such doesn't carry forward to "non-time existence".-post death. What next?

Implanted Advanced Bionics-Harmony activated Aug/07

drphil · 12-29-2010, 06:56 PM

In the below comment who is actually real deaf-silence vs self defined "cultural" has been around for a few years. Seems this discussion was triggered by actual electronic devices-Hearing Aids and Cochlear Implants which have been invented in the recent past. A study of history seems sign language was "devised" in France a couple of hundred-?- years ago. Silly question- what did the deaf do before that? Even more interesting no schools for the then- general public- apparently. Even more incredible- no computers either. Isn't reality- shocking?
Do our "cultural" labellers of the deaf want that actual "past" situation prior to ASL to be replicated today?
From some prior discussions -apparently I didn't become bilateral deaf-silence- on December 20, 2006 because I didn't IMMEDIATELY learn ASL. Thus NOT deaf -just my imagination? To this pious ravings-gee I didn't know about alldeaf.com back then! I joined in July 2010. Would this forum offer an interesting insight on deafness perhaps Jillio can do a "case study" on various attitudes articulated?

Implanted Advanced Bionics-Harmony activated Aug/07

zebadee2010 · 12-29-2010, 09:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jillio

You really are funny. Overprotected nor undereducted.

It would appear you are using some projection, there.

Getting a CI doesn't make you deaf. You were deaf before you got one. Duh. Otherwise, you would not have qualified. What you aren't, pre-CI or post-CI, is Deaf.

Why don't I leave? Because I have been accepted by the Deaf community on this forum. I have friends here, and have no intention of letting some snot nosed newcomer attempt to bully me into leaving somewhere I have earned the right to be. Does that answer your question satisfactorily?

Apparently you are under-educated. Or am I for not knowing what undereducted is? Also I think you mean to say "What you are, pre-CI or post-CI, is Deaf.." Not aren't.

I'm not saying you should leave the forum, just this thread. You are providing no benefit what-so-ever to this thread. You are only giving ridiculous and unneeded comments!

zebadee2010 · 12-29-2010, 09:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shel90

You dont want arguements? Dont say s*** like the ones bolded above to a deaf audience. You are operating from an audist view. If you want a CI, great but dont say that we are limited and other s*** because we are deaf.

1) I would prefer you didn't use profanity. Not telling you to quit, only asking..
2) None of that would have been said if I didn't have people in here trolling and going on about how they think people should just accept that they are deaf.
3) Not having a natural sense is what I would call being limited. You are limited to talking to someone or watching TV by either reading captions or ASL. Both of which are difficult to understand when in a group setting.
4) Repent!

posts from hell · 12-29-2010, 09:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zebadee2010

Apparently you are under-educated. Or am I for not knowing what undereducted is? Also I think you mean to say "What you are, pre-CI or post-CI, is Deaf.." Not aren't.

I'm not saying you should leave the forum, just this thread. You are providing no benefit what-so-ever to this thread. You are only giving ridiculous and unneeded comments!

Now you're just getting started...

She said exactly what she said, and I understood it. I also agree with it. Her statement didnt need one bit of correcting.

**Bottesini** · 12-29-2010, 09:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zebadee2010

Apparently you are under-educated. Or am I for not knowing what undereducted is? Also I think you mean to say "What you are, pre-CI or post-CI, is Deaf.." Not aren't.

I'm not saying you should leave the forum, just this thread. You are providing no benefit what-so-ever to this thread. You are only giving ridiculous and unneeded comments!

Deaf culture lesson anyone?

AlleyCat · 12-29-2010, 09:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jillio

You really are funny. Overprotected nor undereducted.

It would appear you are using some projection, there.

Getting a CI doesn't make you deaf. You were deaf before you got one. Duh. Otherwise, you would not have qualified. What you aren't, pre-CI or post-CI, is Deaf.

Why don't I leave? Because I have been accepted by the Deaf community on this forum. I have friends here, and have no intention of letting some snot nosed newcomer attempt to bully me into leaving somewhere I have earned the right to be. Does that answer your question satisfactorily?

Quote:

Originally Posted by zebadee2010

Apparently you are under-educated. Or am I for not knowing what undereducted is? Also I think you mean to say "What you are, pre-CI or post-CI, is Deaf.." Not aren't.

I'm not saying you should leave the forum, just this thread. You are providing no benefit what-so-ever to this thread. You are only giving ridiculous and unneeded comments!

What she was getting at was the difference between Deaf and deaf. I can see from reading your response that went entirely over your head. Her statement about you being deaf before you got a CI was correct. Her statement about you not being Deaf, pre- or post-CI was correct.

I understand that you went through a huge shock and loss at suddenly losing your hearing. I can't even begin to comprehend the feelings associated with that. What I do understand is that there is an entirely different association of loss for those of us who are early-deafened, such as at birth, and many of your comments have been very offensive to us in that scenario.

(And just for your background information, I am deaf. And Deaf.)

jillio · 12-30-2010, 12:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zebadee2010

Apparently you are under-educated. Or am I for not knowing what undereducted is? Also I think you mean to say "What you are, pre-CI or post-CI, is Deaf.." Not aren't.

I'm not saying you should leave the forum, just this thread. You are providing no benefit what-so-ever to this thread. You are only giving ridiculous and unneeded comments!

Typical of one who has run out of logical argument to support their illogical perspective. Ad hominem attacks. We see it all the time around here. Makes you appear to be attempting a battle of wits without any ammunition.

And no, that is not what I meant to say. I suggest you attempt to alter your understanding, not my phrasing.

jillio · 12-30-2010, 12:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drphil

Interesting that Jillio claims the person-zebadee 2010 -who started this thread about his upcoming Cochlear Implant operation- is a snot nosed newcomer-626. Some deep therapeutic diagnosis-pro bono! An Interesting exercise to analyze her from some of her comments. Yeah even Harlan Lane would approve- of "a Journey into the DEAF-WORLD" diatribeimfamy!
Perhaps you can contact my user name: Dr Phil-website: drphil.com -why did I continuously
spiel about the "alleged horrors of Cochlear Implants"? Is there "something compulsive" of my actions? Is this ongoing basis of my actions triggered from the "recent" past -dealing with the deafness of my son by relabelling as "cultural" and use ASL only?
Not to psychoanalyze- of course.
No comment on any other person claiming to be "pontificating" from "non- time hell". I understand from a theological viewpoint human deafness as such doesn't carry forward to "non-time existence".-post death. What next?

Implanted Advanced Bionics-Harmony activated Aug/07

"Snot nosed newcomer" is not a diagnosis. It is an accurate description.

As is, self absorbed newly deafened pontificator that needs to increase his level of knowledge on that which he pontificates. And I'm not talking about zeb.

Leave the philosophy to those that are capable of understanding it. You cannot even manage to phrase the concept in a comprehensible manner.

jillio · 12-30-2010, 12:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlleyCat

What she was getting at was the difference between Deaf and deaf. I can see from reading your response that went entirely over your head. Her statement about you being deaf before you got a CI was correct. Her statement about you not being Deaf, pre- or post-CI was correct.

I understand that you went through a huge shock and loss at suddenly losing your hearing. I can't even begin to comprehend the feelings associated with that. What I do understand is that there is an entirely different association of loss for those of us who are early-deafened, such as at birth, and many of your comments have been very offensive to us in that scenario.

(And just for your background information, I am deaf. And Deaf.)

Thank you.

There was a specific reason that I used "deaf" and "Deaf" in the way I did. The meaning was clear to those who are informed regarding the topic.

Anij · 12-30-2010, 12:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jillio

Thank you.

There was a specific reason that I used "deaf" and "Deaf" in the way I did. The meaning was clear to those who are informed regarding the topic.

Made perfect sense to me as "deaf" and "Deaf" have completely separate meanings.

deafdyke · 12-30-2010, 12:43 AM

Quote:

) Not having a natural sense is what I would call being limited. You are limited to talking to someone or watching TV by either reading captions or ASL. Both of which are difficult to understand when in a group setting.

ASL is difficult to understand in a group setting? That's news to me. How are captions difficult to understand in a group setting? SPEECH is very difficult to understand in a group setting yes.
Look we understand that there are many late deafened people who consider being dhh "limiting" That is understandable. You guys were hearing for most of your lives. For you guys it is an inabilty. For us it is not.

Anij · 12-30-2010, 03:26 AM

As others have mentioned - I completely understand that for what I call "formerly hearing" people becoming Hoh or deaf is often a hardship, disadvantage, limitation etc - and can be a scary and sometimes emotionally devastating situation which they want to "fix" as soon, and completely as possible with the end goal of being as close to hearing as possible. By "formerly hearing" I mean people who had normal or very near normal hearing for most of their life and completely identify as hearing (in the same way someone who lives in Mexico, Spain, Germany, Switzerland identifies with being Mexican, Spanish, German, Swiss etc) it is WHO you are right down to your "core" identity including language, culture, social views/values etc.

However for the majority of us who were BORN Hoh or deaf (or became so in the first year of life) especially for those like myself who were born with significant hearing loss (either unilaterally or bilaterally) we generally see being Hoh/deaf as not a "limit" but an natural and acceptable aspect of who we are.

I honestly feel that being Hoh/Deaf is as equally "limiting" in my life as:

- Being only 5'3" tall (which makes getting things off tall shelves in stores etc difficult)
or
- Having very light/fair skin & blue eyes (which means I burn VERY easily & am visually very light sensitive as well)
or
- Being a female (when I work in a VERY male dominated field. In fact for the first 7 or so years ie up until 2002/03, I was the FIRST and ONLY female in my entire province who was trained, licensed and practising professionally in my field. Like most women in male dominated fields I make MUCH less than my male co-workers EVEN though I have MORE training, more experience, more "specializations" and had clients requesting my work from as far away as the Yukon/North West Territories,Nunavut & Alberta)

Do these things occasionally "limit" me? Frustrate me at times? I suppose - but not in a manner that lessens my life in any realistic sense. I certainly wouldn't want to change WHO I AM working on the belief that somehow I'd be a "happier person" or a "better person" if I had Olive skin, was 5'6", was a male and had perfect hearing - because if I did that, I'd also not be ME.

I've worked hard to prove that I CAN do anything I want - it might need to be slightly modified but I CAN do it. From the time I was little people told me I'd never be able to play an instrument - so at 6 I started playing recorder, 8 I started playing violin (played for 4years and did a number of concerts) and then in jr high I started playing Flute & Alto sax and then Piccolo and Trumpet as well. I ended up (through a LOT of hard work) becoming very advanced and played with a number of professional youth orchestras and bands while still in High school (15-17), teaching individual lessons, teaching clinics, and achieved a goal that I'd set for myself as a young child - to play with a "real orchestra" by the time I was 21... I played flute & piccolo in a concert with our professional provincial symphony orchestra, performing Saint-Saëns "Organ Symphony" (Symphony #3) at 17years of age while still in high school.

The fact that I don't hear the music in the same way as hearing people does NOT lessen the enjoyment or beauty of it - I simply experience it slightly differently (I'd say even more profoundly in many ways).

While hearing people (and "formerly hearing people") see Hoh/deafness as a "lack" of a sense - I see it more as a sense that is in many ways transferred to my other senses - I hear with my eyes, my touch and "instincts" in ways that hearing people can't even begin to understand. I can sense the subtlest of vibrations indicating someone is driving by on the road outside, or walking in the hall, or my phone is ringing/buzzing ...
I don't "miss" sound - because it's literally all around me - I can FEEL it, I can SEE it - and it is beautiful and awe-inspiring just as it is to aurally hear it (I was born SSD, so I DO know what things sounded like before, versus now when I have more & severely fluxing HL as well as APD etc)

While hearing people look at me (and others who are Hoh/Deaf) and think of all the things that they believe we are "missing out on" - In reality, with hard work and determination I'm not missing out at all. Through many years working hours a day on reading and literacy skills, I learned to love the written word - and through that the entire world was opened up to me. Through practice I learned to interpret the subtle vibrations through which music is able to come alive.

This may seem a bit off topic - but it's important for newly-deaf people to understand this... so I'm writing it here

To me (and many professionals) - the most important factor isn't hearing/lack of hearing at all - it's literacy (something that many Hoh/d/Deaf really struggle with due largely to the techniques often used to teach Hoh/Deaf children).

Through understanding of written words the entire world becomes available not only to allow basic communication, but to explore a vast world of literature, culture, language, art, education and understanding. If a Hoh/d/Deaf person is able to have a deep understanding of written language(s) the barriers simply disappear (in a way that is much more profound than HAs or CIs alone are able to do).

If there is one thing that I wish every single person who is Hoh/d/Deaf and every parent of an infant/child who is Hoh/d/Deaf could understand the importance of - it's the necessity of solid written language comprehension and that no matter how much time, dedication, tears it takes - that investing in learning to read, write and understand the language which surrounds them (in Canada, USA, UK etc this is English for the most part). Even more important is that for Hoh/d/Deaf infant pre-literacy skills need to be started the day they are born - the infant needs (and deserves) to be surrounded by words constantly and have family members who are educated in pre-literacy teaching techniques so that the infant will grow into a child who not only understands the written word - but loves it.

Deb1hd · 12-30-2010, 03:47 AM

Wow gone 2 days and It looks like 10 pages of Fighting.
I got my C I implant yesterday. And all is well. The spot is tender and i feel pressure and alot of ringing in that ear which i already had ringing in both ears... It's just louder. did yours ever calm down Zee. My balance was way off but that has already improved alot... Pain is not 2 bad I'm taking the meds but not as many as I could take. Just taking them sparingly ... i think they help somewhat with the ringing. What little hearing i did have in that ear is totally gone.. I don't go back to the doctor till Jan 12th for follow up. Ive seen alot of conversation about not excepting hearing loss in this thread. It's hard to except when you become hoh or deaf later in life to adapt to the deaf world or even become part of that culture when everyone around you are of hearing and that is what you are use to.. And that is the world that you are use to living in. Ive been fighting to survive in that world for 30 years now. I lost half my hearing when i was around 20 do to a car accident and over the years have become profound to the point of needing 2 implants but will settle with 1 for now. I really don't think I'm gonna regret this surgery and it might take me a while to get there but I'm keeping my expectations high as far as this implant goes.. plus it would be nice for once in my life to hear the microwave go ding... And music... i just can't wait... yeah i can... ive been waiting this long... Let me know how you are Doing Zee and I'll do the same.

lucky loser · 12-30-2010, 04:53 AM

well mine went perfectly
The surgery was pretty painless, i only stayed in the hospital overnight and my health insurance paid for the surgery but i had to pay $30 for unnecessary pain killers and some antibiotics but no infections.
When i was in hearing therapy to help me hear with the Ci i only had two sessions because it came so easy to me, to put this in to perspective it is supposed to take up to a year or more to get used to a CI, i took 2 weeks
I love all the sounds and now have 100% speech recognition in my implanted ear.
love my CI but i know it's not for everybody and not everyones story will be as good as mine.

**shel90** · 12-30-2010, 07:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zebadee2010

1) I would prefer you didn't use profanity. Not telling you to quit, only asking..
2) None of that would have been said if I didn't have people in here trolling and going on about how they think people should just accept that they are deaf.
3) Not having a natural sense is what I would call being limited. You are limited to talking to someone or watching TV by either reading captions or ASL. Both of which are difficult to understand when in a group setting.
4) Repent!

I grew up orally deaf not knowing any ASL until 25 years old. I found spoken English more difficult to understand than ASL in a group setting.

drphil · 12-30-2010, 08:37 AM

Jillio: How did you arrive at "snot nosed newcomer"-your description of Zeebadee if you NEVER met him-- Your projection? What description would fit you? Not to quibble too much- how much "snot" is necessary to be labelled "snot nosed"? Possible for the deaf to be so labelled?Important matters- apparently. How long is one a "newcomer"-50 years?
Does leaving philosophy/psychology to "experts" apply to you-especially? Does interacting /commenting in this forum ONLY for experts? Bye Jilllio!

Implanted Advanced Bionics-Harmony activated Aug/07

Frisky Feline · 12-30-2010, 08:39 AM

Yes. It is just a forum.

zebadee2010 · 12-30-2010, 10:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Deb1hd

Wow gone 2 days and It looks like 10 pages of Fighting.
I got my C I implant yesterday. And all is well. The spot is tender and i feel pressure and alot of ringing in that ear which i already had ringing in both ears... It's just louder. did yours ever calm down Zee. My balance was way off but that has already improved alot... Pain is not 2 bad I'm taking the meds but not as many as I could take. Just taking them sparingly ... i think they help somewhat with the ringing. What little hearing i did have in that ear is totally gone.. I don't go back to the doctor till Jan 12th for follow up. Ive seen alot of conversation about not excepting hearing loss in this thread. It's hard to except when you become hoh or deaf later in life to adapt to the deaf world or even become part of that culture when everyone around you are of hearing and that is what you are use to.. And that is the world that you are use to living in. Ive been fighting to survive in that world for 30 years now. I lost half my hearing when i was around 20 do to a car accident and over the years have become profound to the point of needing 2 implants but will settle with 1 for now. I really don't think I'm gonna regret this surgery and it might take me a while to get there but I'm keeping my expectations high as far as this implant goes.. plus it would be nice for once in my life to hear the microwave go ding... And music... i just can't wait... yeah i can... ive been waiting this long... Let me know how you are Doing Zee and I'll do the same.

As said somewhere earlier like 500 pages back, Take the pain medicine, it really helps a lot. By the time its gone I felt fine taking advil. The ringing in the ears isn't fun, but it did die down a bit. And my hearing was gone. But it was very limited in the first place. Give it another 3 or 4 days and you'll probably feel fine for the most part. I can still rub my hand down my scar and it is "tender" but it doesn't hurt. Glad to know you got it done before the new year came!

For everybody else... I don't know how ASL in a group setting can be easy at all. You have to wait your turn to "sign" or otherwise "sign" to nobody. And I've been watching TV with closed captioning on, and well when two people are arguing its hard to keep up with who is who. But back to the group thing. It is easier being able to hear everybody talk at one time, you hear them all and comprehend them as they come it. Or as you get to them.

And I guess right now you could say i'm snot nosed, because well, I have a cold right now.. But with other uses of the term I wouldn't say so. I think that you guys don't understand how much better music is when you can hear every part of it. All the highs and the lows.. You can only feel the lows, not the highs. You can't see the highs either. Speakers just don't work that way. Sure you can appreciate music, but you can never see/feel/hear all of it being deaf. Or is it Deaf? I don't know, and don't really care that much.

I would have to say that a few people have more or less ruined this thread for anybody coming in here seeking advice, what will all this arguing how are they supposed to find out anything. I was hoping that it could help me, and in the long run help others who are looking to find out more about a CI and how it affects them pain wise and what others experiences are.

**Bottesini** · 12-30-2010, 10:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zebadee2010

As said somewhere earlier like 500 pages back, Take the pain medicine, it really helps a lot. By the time its gone I felt fine taking advil. The ringing in the ears isn't fun, but it did die down a bit. And my hearing was gone. But it was very limited in the first place. Give it another 3 or 4 days and you'll probably feel fine for the most part. I can still rub my hand down my scar and it is "tender" but it doesn't hurt. Glad to know you got it done before the new year came!

For everybody else... I don't know how ASL in a group setting can be easy at all. You have to wait your turn to "sign" or otherwise "sign" to nobody. And I've been watching TV with closed captioning on, and well when two people are arguing its hard to keep up with who is who. But back to the group thing. It is easier being able to hear everybody talk at one time, you hear them all and comprehend them as they come it. Or as you get to them.

And I guess right now you could say i'm snot nosed, because well, I have a cold right now.. But with other uses of the term I wouldn't say so. I think that you guys don't understand how much better music is when you can hear every part of it. All the highs and the lows.. You can only feel the lows, not the highs. You can't see the highs either. Speakers just don't work that way. Sure you can appreciate music, but you can never see/feel/hear all of it being deaf. Or is it Deaf? I don't know, and don't really care that much.

I would have to say that a few people have more or less ruined this thread for anybody coming in here seeking advice, what will all this arguing how are they supposed to find out anything. I was hoping that it could help me, and in the long run help others who are looking to find out more about a CI and how it affects them pain wise and what others experiences are.

When do you get to be activated and experience your new CI hearing?

jillio · 12-30-2010, 11:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Anij

As others have mentioned - I completely understand that for what I call "formerly hearing" people becoming Hoh or deaf is often a hardship, disadvantage, limitation etc - and can be a scary and sometimes emotionally devastating situation which they want to "fix" as soon, and completely as possible with the end goal of being as close to hearing as possible. By "formerly hearing" I mean people who had normal or very near normal hearing for most of their life and completely identify as hearing (in the same way someone who lives in Mexico, Spain, Germany, Switzerland identifies with being Mexican, Spanish, German, Swiss etc) it is WHO you are right down to your "core" identity including language, culture, social views/values etc.

However for the majority of us who were BORN Hoh or deaf (or became so in the first year of life) especially for those like myself who were born with significant hearing loss (either unilaterally or bilaterally) we generally see being Hoh/deaf as not a "limit" but an natural and acceptable aspect of who we are.

I honestly feel that being Hoh/Deaf is as equally "limiting" in my life as:

- Being only 5'3" tall (which makes getting things off tall shelves in stores etc difficult)
or
- Having very light/fair skin & blue eyes (which means I burn VERY easily & am visually very light sensitive as well)
or
- Being a female (when I work in a VERY male dominated field. In fact for the first 7 or so years ie up until 2002/03, I was the FIRST and ONLY female in my entire province who was trained, licensed and practising professionally in my field. Like most women in male dominated fields I make MUCH less than my male co-workers EVEN though I have MORE training, more experience, more "specializations" and had clients requesting my work from as far away as the Yukon/North West Territories,Nunavut & Alberta)

Do these things occasionally "limit" me? Frustrate me at times? I suppose - but not in a manner that lessens my life in any realistic sense. I certainly wouldn't want to change WHO I AM working on the belief that somehow I'd be a "happier person" or a "better person" if I had Olive skin, was 5'6", was a male and had perfect hearing - because if I did that, I'd also not be ME.

I've worked hard to prove that I CAN do anything I want - it might need to be slightly modified but I CAN do it. From the time I was little people told me I'd never be able to play an instrument - so at 6 I started playing recorder, 8 I started playing violin (played for 4years and did a number of concerts) and then in jr high I started playing Flute & Alto sax and then Piccolo and Trumpet as well. I ended up (through a LOT of hard work) becoming very advanced and played with a number of professional youth orchestras and bands while still in High school (15-17), teaching individual lessons, teaching clinics, and achieved a goal that I'd set for myself as a young child - to play with a "real orchestra" by the time I was 21... I played flute & piccolo in a concert with our professional provincial symphony orchestra, performing Saint-Saëns "Organ Symphony" (Symphony #3) at 17years of age while still in high school.

The fact that I don't hear the music in the same way as hearing people does NOT lessen the enjoyment or beauty of it - I simply experience it slightly differently (I'd say even more profoundly in many ways).

While hearing people (and "formerly hearing people") see Hoh/deafness as a "lack" of a sense - I see it more as a sense that is in many ways transferred to my other senses - I hear with my eyes, my touch and "instincts" in ways that hearing people can't even begin to understand. I can sense the subtlest of vibrations indicating someone is driving by on the road outside, or walking in the hall, or my phone is ringing/buzzing ...
I don't "miss" sound - because it's literally all around me - I can FEEL it, I can SEE it - and it is beautiful and awe-inspiring just as it is to aurally hear it (I was born SSD, so I DO know what things sounded like before, versus now when I have more & severely fluxing HL as well as APD etc)

While hearing people look at me (and others who are Hoh/Deaf) and think of all the things that they believe we are "missing out on" - In reality, with hard work and determination I'm not missing out at all. Through many years working hours a day on reading and literacy skills, I learned to love the written word - and through that the entire world was opened up to me. Through practice I learned to interpret the subtle vibrations through which music is able to come alive.

This may seem a bit off topic - but it's important for newly-deaf people to understand this... so I'm writing it here

To me (and many professionals) - the most important factor isn't hearing/lack of hearing at all - it's literacy (something that many Hoh/d/Deaf really struggle with due largely to the techniques often used to teach Hoh/Deaf children).

Through understanding of written words the entire world becomes available not only to allow basic communication, but to explore a vast world of literature, culture, language, art, education and understanding. If a Hoh/d/Deaf person is able to have a deep understanding of written language(s) the barriers simply disappear (in a way that is much more profound than HAs or CIs alone are able to do).

If there is one thing that I wish every single person who is Hoh/d/Deaf and every parent of an infant/child who is Hoh/d/Deaf could understand the importance of - it's the necessity of solid written language comprehension and that no matter how much time, dedication, tears it takes - that investing in learning to read, write and understand the language which surrounds them (in Canada, USA, UK etc this is English for the most part). Even more important is that for Hoh/d/Deaf infant pre-literacy skills need to be started the day they are born - the infant needs (and deserves) to be surrounded by words constantly and have family members who are educated in pre-literacy teaching techniques so that the infant will grow into a child who not only understands the written word - but loves it.

Absolutely, regarding late deafened. Unfortunately, many times they get hung up on trying to fix the wrong thing, and are forever miserable and "handicapped" because they will never, ever be able to return to what used to be. Instead of working so hard to fix hearing, they need to put some work into fixing what is going on inside themselves. That is the only way to accomplish a comfortable existence. Hearing doesn't make life better. Being comfortable with one's self and one's situation, and making progress in spite of difficulties is what brings comfort into one's life. The thread I started for late-deafened as an informal support group has plenty of examples of both.

jillio · 12-30-2010, 11:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zebadee2010

1) I would prefer you didn't use profanity. Not telling you to quit, only asking..
2) None of that would have been said if I didn't have people in here trolling and going on about how they think people should just accept that they are deaf.
3) Not having a natural sense is what I would call being limited. You are limited to talking to someone or watching TV by either reading captions or ASL. Both of which are difficult to understand when in a group setting.
4) Repent!

How is recommending that you accept what is trolling?

You can only place those limitations on yourself. If you choose to see yourself in that way, then it is your attitude that creates limits much more so than your deafness. However, that is a choice that you can, and evidently have at this point, made for yourself. What you can't do is assume that everyone who is deaf is limited.

jillio · 12-30-2010, 11:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Deb1hd

Wow gone 2 days and It looks like 10 pages of Fighting.
I got my C I implant yesterday. And all is well. The spot is tender and i feel pressure and alot of ringing in that ear which i already had ringing in both ears... It's just louder. did yours ever calm down Zee. My balance was way off but that has already improved alot... Pain is not 2 bad I'm taking the meds but not as many as I could take. Just taking them sparingly ... i think they help somewhat with the ringing. What little hearing i did have in that ear is totally gone.. I don't go back to the doctor till Jan 12th for follow up. Ive seen alot of conversation about not excepting hearing loss in this thread. It's hard to except when you become hoh or deaf later in life to adapt to the deaf world or even become part of that culture when everyone around you are of hearing and that is what you are use to.. And that is the world that you are use to living in. Ive been fighting to survive in that world for 30 years now. I lost half my hearing when i was around 20 do to a car accident and over the years have become profound to the point of needing 2 implants but will settle with 1 for now. I really don't think I'm gonna regret this surgery and it might take me a while to get there but I'm keeping my expectations high as far as this implant goes.. plus it would be nice for once in my life to hear the microwave go ding... And music... i just can't wait... yeah i can... ive been waiting this long... Let me know how you are Doing Zee and I'll do the same.

Good to know you are recovering well.

jillio · 12-30-2010, 12:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drphil

Jillio: How did you arrive at "snot nosed newcomer"-your description of Zeebadee if you NEVER met him-- Your projection? What description would fit you? Not to quibble too much- how much "snot" is necessary to be labelled "snot nosed"? Possible for the deaf to be so labelled?Important matters- apparently. How long is one a "newcomer"-50 years?
Does leaving philosophy/psychology to "experts" apply to you-especially? Does interacting /commenting in this forum ONLY for experts? Bye Jilllio!

Implanted Advanced Bionics-Harmony activated Aug/07

I do hope that "bye" means that you will now no longer be directing your rambling diatribes toward me. Your questions are asinine and don't deserve answers.

Tousi · 12-30-2010, 12:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jillio

How is recommending that you accept what is trolling?

You can only place those limitations on yourself. If you choose to see yourself in that way, then it is your attitude that creates limits much more so than your deafness. However, that is a choice that you can, and evidently have at this point, made for yourself. What you can't do is assume that everyone who is deaf is limited.

Yeah, that's right. For example, with music, I hear and have read enough over the course of my life to know what I am missing in that world but I've not let that consume me and reduce me to a quaking mass of protoplasm!

jillio · 12-30-2010, 12:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tousi

Yeah, that's right. For example, with music, I hear and have read enough over the course of my life to know what I am missing in that world but I've not let that consume me and reduce me to a quaking mass of protoplasm!

No doubt. And I know plenty of hearing people that don't have the capacity to "hear" music or to feel rhythms. In fact, most of the Deaf I know have a much more developed sense of rhythm than many hearies. It is present in their language.

AlleyCat · 12-30-2010, 12:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zebadee2010

As said somewhere earlier like 500 pages back, Take the pain medicine, it really helps a lot. By the time its gone I felt fine taking advil. The ringing in the ears isn't fun, but it did die down a bit. And my hearing was gone. But it was very limited in the first place. Give it another 3 or 4 days and you'll probably feel fine for the most part. I can still rub my hand down my scar and it is "tender" but it doesn't hurt. Glad to know you got it done before the new year came!

For everybody else... I don't know how ASL in a group setting can be easy at all. You have to wait your turn to "sign" or otherwise "sign" to nobody. And I've been watching TV with closed captioning on, and well when two people are arguing its hard to keep up with who is who. But back to the group thing. It is easier being able to hear everybody talk at one time, you hear them all and comprehend them as they come it. Or as you get to them.

And I guess right now you could say i'm snot nosed, because well, I have a cold right now.. But with other uses of the term I wouldn't say so. I think that you guys don't understand how much better music is when you can hear every part of it. All the highs and the lows.. You can only feel the lows, not the highs. You can't see the highs either. Speakers just don't work that way. Sure you can appreciate music, but you can never see/feel/hear all of it being deaf. Or is it Deaf? I don't know, and don't really care that much.

I would have to say that a few people have more or less ruined this thread for anybody coming in here seeking advice, what will all this arguing how are they supposed to find out anything. I was hoping that it could help me, and in the long run help others who are looking to find out more about a CI and how it affects them pain wise and what others experiences are.

Sigh .. the very reason you're not Deaf. You're coming to a Deaf forum and telling us how much we don't get music. Duh .. we're deaf. And Deaf. Your stuff is offensive it's ridiculous. I said after your first posts that I could see where you are coming from because of your immaturity - you're an 18 year old who just became deaf. Try being deaf (or Deaf) for 40 years or even a few years and then come back and try to say the same thing. And since you don't "really care that much" as you posted, I think you came here looking for attention. Since you don't seem to care that much anyway.

jillio · 12-30-2010, 12:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlleyCat

Sigh .. the very reason you're not Deaf. You're coming to a Deaf forum and telling us how much we don't get music. Duh .. we're deaf. And Deaf. Your stuff is offensive it's ridiculous. I said after your first posts that I could see where you are coming from because of your immaturity - you're an 18 year old who just became deaf. Try being deaf (or Deaf) for 40 years or even a few years and then come back and try to say the same thing. And since you don't "really care that much" as you posted, I think you came here looking for attention. Since you don't seem to care that much anyway.

**nodding** Misery loves company. He just discovered that no one here is into the "poor me" syndrome and refuse to support it in others.

12-29-2010, 06:55 PM	#633 (permalink)
drphil Registered User Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Toronto Ontario Posts: 4,118	Interesting that Jillio claims the person-zebadee 2010 -who started this thread about his upcoming Cochlear Implant operation- is a snot nosed newcomer-626. Some deep therapeutic diagnosis-pro bono! An Interesting exercise to analyze her from some of her comments. Yeah even Harlan Lane would approve- of "a Journey into the DEAF-WORLD" diatribeimfamy! Perhaps you can contact my user name: Dr Phil-website: drphil.com -why did I continuously spiel about the "alleged horrors of Cochlear Implants"? Is there "something compulsive" of my actions? Is this ongoing basis of my actions triggered from the "recent" past -dealing with the deafness of my son by relabelling as "cultural" and use ASL only? Not to psychoanalyze- of course. No comment on any other person claiming to be "pontificating" from "non- time hell". I understand from a theological viewpoint human deafness as such doesn't carry forward to "non-time existence".-post death. What next? Implanted Advanced Bionics-Harmony activated Aug/07 __________________ Get Real:Implanted Sunnybrook/Toronto -Advanced Bionics-Harmony activated Aug/07

12-29-2010, 06:56 PM	#634 (permalink)
drphil Registered User Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Toronto Ontario Posts: 4,118	In the below comment who is actually real deaf-silence vs self defined "cultural" has been around for a few years. Seems this discussion was triggered by actual electronic devices-Hearing Aids and Cochlear Implants which have been invented in the recent past. A study of history seems sign language was "devised" in France a couple of hundred-?- years ago. Silly question- what did the deaf do before that? Even more interesting no schools for the then- general public- apparently. Even more incredible- no computers either. Isn't reality- shocking? Do our "cultural" labellers of the deaf want that actual "past" situation prior to ASL to be replicated today? From some prior discussions -apparently I didn't become bilateral deaf-silence- on December 20, 2006 because I didn't IMMEDIATELY learn ASL. Thus NOT deaf -just my imagination? To this pious ravings-gee I didn't know about alldeaf.com back then! I joined in July 2010. Would this forum offer an interesting insight on deafness perhaps Jillio can do a "case study" on various attitudes articulated? Implanted Advanced Bionics-Harmony activated Aug/07 __________________ Get Real:Implanted Sunnybrook/Toronto -Advanced Bionics-Harmony activated Aug/07 Last edited by drphil; 12-29-2010 at 11:04 PM. Reason: double posting

12-30-2010, 03:26 AM	#645 (permalink)
Anij Registered User Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Canada Posts: 2,087	As others have mentioned - I completely understand that for what I call "formerly hearing" people becoming Hoh or deaf is often a hardship, disadvantage, limitation etc - and can be a scary and sometimes emotionally devastating situation which they want to "fix" as soon, and completely as possible with the end goal of being as close to hearing as possible. By "formerly hearing" I mean people who had normal or very near normal hearing for most of their life and completely identify as hearing (in the same way someone who lives in Mexico, Spain, Germany, Switzerland identifies with being Mexican, Spanish, German, Swiss etc) it is WHO you are right down to your "core" identity including language, culture, social views/values etc. However for the majority of us who were BORN Hoh or deaf (or became so in the first year of life) especially for those like myself who were born with significant hearing loss (either unilaterally or bilaterally) we generally see being Hoh/deaf as not a "limit" but an natural and acceptable aspect of who we are. I honestly feel that being Hoh/Deaf is as equally "limiting" in my life as: - Being only 5'3" tall (which makes getting things off tall shelves in stores etc difficult) or - Having very light/fair skin & blue eyes (which means I burn VERY easily & am visually very light sensitive as well) or - Being a female (when I work in a VERY male dominated field. In fact for the first 7 or so years ie up until 2002/03, I was the FIRST and ONLY female in my entire province who was trained, licensed and practising professionally in my field. Like most women in male dominated fields I make MUCH less than my male co-workers EVEN though I have MORE training, more experience, more "specializations" and had clients requesting my work from as far away as the Yukon/North West Territories,Nunavut & Alberta) Do these things occasionally "limit" me? Frustrate me at times? I suppose - but not in a manner that lessens my life in any realistic sense. I certainly wouldn't want to change WHO I AM working on the belief that somehow I'd be a "happier person" or a "better person" if I had Olive skin, was 5'6", was a male and had perfect hearing - because if I did that, I'd also not be ME. I've worked hard to prove that I CAN do anything I want - it might need to be slightly modified but I CAN do it. From the time I was little people told me I'd never be able to play an instrument - so at 6 I started playing recorder, 8 I started playing violin (played for 4years and did a number of concerts) and then in jr high I started playing Flute & Alto sax and then Piccolo and Trumpet as well. I ended up (through a LOT of hard work) becoming very advanced and played with a number of professional youth orchestras and bands while still in High school (15-17), teaching individual lessons, teaching clinics, and achieved a goal that I'd set for myself as a young child - to play with a "real orchestra" by the time I was 21... I played flute & piccolo in a concert with our professional provincial symphony orchestra, performing Saint-Saëns "Organ Symphony" (Symphony #3) at 17years of age while still in high school. The fact that I don't hear the music in the same way as hearing people does NOT lessen the enjoyment or beauty of it - I simply experience it slightly differently (I'd say even more profoundly in many ways). While hearing people (and "formerly hearing people") see Hoh/deafness as a "lack" of a sense - I see it more as a sense that is in many ways transferred to my other senses - I hear with my eyes, my touch and "instincts" in ways that hearing people can't even begin to understand. I can sense the subtlest of vibrations indicating someone is driving by on the road outside, or walking in the hall, or my phone is ringing/buzzing ... I don't "miss" sound - because it's literally all around me - I can FEEL it, I can SEE it - and it is beautiful and awe-inspiring just as it is to aurally hear it (I was born SSD, so I DO know what things sounded like before, versus now when I have more & severely fluxing HL as well as APD etc) While hearing people look at me (and others who are Hoh/Deaf) and think of all the things that they believe we are "missing out on" - In reality, with hard work and determination I'm not missing out at all. Through many years working hours a day on reading and literacy skills, I learned to love the written word - and through that the entire world was opened up to me. Through practice I learned to interpret the subtle vibrations through which music is able to come alive. This may seem a bit off topic - but it's important for newly-deaf people to understand this... so I'm writing it here To me (and many professionals) - the most important factor isn't hearing/lack of hearing at all - it's literacy (something that many Hoh/d/Deaf really struggle with due largely to the techniques often used to teach Hoh/Deaf children). Through understanding of written words the entire world becomes available not only to allow basic communication, but to explore a vast world of literature, culture, language, art, education and understanding. If a Hoh/d/Deaf person is able to have a deep understanding of written language(s) the barriers simply disappear (in a way that is much more profound than HAs or CIs alone are able to do). If there is one thing that I wish every single person who is Hoh/d/Deaf and every parent of an infant/child who is Hoh/d/Deaf could understand the importance of - it's the necessity of solid written language comprehension and that no matter how much time, dedication, tears it takes - that investing in learning to read, write and understand the language which surrounds them (in Canada, USA, UK etc this is English for the most part). Even more important is that for Hoh/d/Deaf infant pre-literacy skills need to be started the day they are born - the infant needs (and deserves) to be surrounded by words constantly and have family members who are educated in pre-literacy teaching techniques so that the infant will grow into a child who not only understands the written word - but loves it. __________________ Hoh/Deaf ~ +120db deaf right , mild/mod flux left & APD English & ASL ...PAH!! Ignorance is NOT Bliss

12-30-2010, 04:53 AM	#647 (permalink)
lucky loser Registered User Join Date: Aug 2010 Posts: 28	well mine went perfectly The surgery was pretty painless, i only stayed in the hospital overnight and my health insurance paid for the surgery but i had to pay $30 for unnecessary pain killers and some antibiotics but no infections. When i was in hearing therapy to help me hear with the Ci i only had two sessions because it came so easy to me, to put this in to perspective it is supposed to take up to a year or more to get used to a CI, i took 2 weeks I love all the sounds and now have 100% speech recognition in my implanted ear. love my CI but i know it's not for everybody and not everyones story will be as good as mine. __________________ "multiple explanation marks are a sure sign of a damaged mind."Terry Pratchett. My mind is damaged!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

12-30-2010, 08:37 AM	#649 (permalink)
drphil Registered User Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Toronto Ontario Posts: 4,118	Jillio: How did you arrive at "snot nosed newcomer"-your description of Zeebadee if you NEVER met him-- Your projection? What description would fit you? Not to quibble too much- how much "snot" is necessary to be labelled "snot nosed"? Possible for the deaf to be so labelled?Important matters- apparently. How long is one a "newcomer"-50 years? Does leaving philosophy/psychology to "experts" apply to you-especially? Does interacting /commenting in this forum ONLY for experts? Bye Jilllio! Implanted Advanced Bionics-Harmony activated Aug/07 __________________ Get Real:Implanted Sunnybrook/Toronto -Advanced Bionics-Harmony activated Aug/07

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12-30-2010, 03:47 AM	#646 (permalink)
Deb1hd Registered User Join Date: May 2010 Location: Chesapeake, Virginia Posts: 125	Wow gone 2 days and It looks like 10 pages of Fighting. I got my C I implant yesterday. And all is well. The spot is tender and i feel pressure and alot of ringing in that ear which i already had ringing in both ears... It's just louder. did yours ever calm down Zee. My balance was way off but that has already improved alot... Pain is not 2 bad I'm taking the meds but not as many as I could take. Just taking them sparingly ... i think they help somewhat with the ringing. What little hearing i did have in that ear is totally gone.. I don't go back to the doctor till Jan 12th for follow up. Ive seen alot of conversation about not excepting hearing loss in this thread. It's hard to except when you become hoh or deaf later in life to adapt to the deaf world or even become part of that culture when everyone around you are of hearing and that is what you are use to.. And that is the world that you are use to living in. Ive been fighting to survive in that world for 30 years now. I lost half my hearing when i was around 20 do to a car accident and over the years have become profound to the point of needing 2 implants but will settle with 1 for now. I really don't think I'm gonna regret this surgery and it might take me a while to get there but I'm keeping my expectations high as far as this implant goes.. plus it would be nice for once in my life to hear the microwave go ding... And music... i just can't wait... yeah i can... ive been waiting this long... Let me know how you are Doing Zee and I'll do the same.

12-30-2010, 08:39 AM	#650 (permalink)
Frisky Feline Registered User Join Date: Jun 2003 Posts: 20,239	Yes. It is just a forum.

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