Pinky

Whoa! Jiro and Hear Again chilling out. Jiro, I understand that you're not enjoy the music. That's your decide. You don't want to get CI. That's your decide. The CI does help deafblind improve in their life to be hear when they can't see. CI is fit for Usher syndrome, deafblind, other disabled. And the real hearing until hearing loss at late age. It can restore to hearing with CI.

For example.... What if you become blind. How would you feel?? What you will do??


Hear Again, Yeah I will PM about blindness.

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Deafness

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Hear Again

Okay.

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Left ear - Nucleus 24 Contour Advance with Freedom BTE
(Implanted: 12/22/04 | Activated: 1/18/05)
Right ear - Nucleus Freedom
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Deafblind/Postlingual

Hear Again

Good post dreama.

By the way, you're right. I did grow up HoH. I had mild to moderate hearing loss from age 3-14.

By age 15, it was moderately-severe and severe-profound by age 24.

__________________
Left ear - Nucleus 24 Contour Advance with Freedom BTE
(Implanted: 12/22/04 | Activated: 1/18/05)
Right ear - Nucleus Freedom
(Implanted: 2/1/06 | Activated: 3/1/06)

Deafblind/Postlingual

deafdyke

Indeed. CI is AWESOME and a very viable option for those who have maxed out their hearing aids.
The beef that I have with CI, is that it seems to be currently being pushed as " It can overcome ALL disadvantages of being hoh/hearing aids."
I totally and completely support it when it's obviously and totally needed. I even support it being used "off label" for things like Meniere's, severe tintinus and recruitment. But when people who have a lot of speech perception with HAs, are looking into it as an option...... The marketing is almost akin to what was seen with digital aids back in the 90's.

kokonut

So, a CI can help improve a deaf person's quality of life for those who can benefit greatly from it? No? Yes?

deafdude1

We already know this, its a big reason why they get CI in the first place. Those who are happy being deaf and don't care for sounds consider their quality of life acceptable the way it is and don't want a CI or stem cells.

I will admit I look forward to stem cells improving my hearing and quality of life. My reasons are the same reasons people get a CI today. However id rather save both of my ears for future technology. That and there's no guarantee CI will give better hearing than what I already get with powerful HAs.

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Lissa

i have not read through this thread yet but would you choose stem cells? I have basically been deaf all my life and do not want a cure for my deafness. I am perfectly happy hearing with my implant

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Left Ear Nucleus Freedom
Implanted-October 25th 2000
Activation-November 28th 2000

deafdude1

Of course! This is one of several reasons im afraid to get a CI. Id like to save both ears to improve my chance on stem cells giving good results. Id really like to have some ability to hear unaided. I look at other's audiograms and don't understand why some with much better hearing than me are unhappy, I wish I had their hearing! Also from what I read, stem cells is safer and gives better results and its faster and easier for your brain to adapt than to a CI. Plus my friends say CI will be obsolete and no longer produced once stem cells for deafness becomes widespread.

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gr

Wow, I am glad to have found this this forum. My mother in law told me today she is thinking of getting a CI. She wants my opinion and I dont know what to tell her. She was born legally deaf, and can hear some with her HA.
She was told 20 years ago she was a good candidate but was afraid to do it. Now she is about 72 and is seriously considering it. She reads lips very well.
She gave me a book to read called "Hear Your WORLD with Harmony." Its looks like a big advertisement to me, and I want to learn more. I would love to hear from anyone who can help me figure out what to tell her.

By the way, tricare does not pay for HA for most people, I have 3 HOH children and wear HA myself. Tricare did not cover even one cent of the cost!

Lighthouse77

neither does most insurances. When one insurance see it as cosmetic, so does the rest. But hearpo insurance is catching up now (but I can also see hearing aids become expensive too result of that). but they will cover CI though.

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Good thing about standards is that there are so many of them to choose from.

deafdyke

How much is some?
Well if she was a canidate 20 years ago, (when criteria was a lot stricter) then it sounds like she's a right off the bat canidate. If she has a deafer ear, then she could get that one implanted and stick with being aided in her better hearing ear.

deafdude1

I found another website that debates cochlear implants:

Introduction to CochlearWar.com

That person believes in the right to choose so he is not against teens and adults deciding on CIs for themselves as long as they aren't pressured into getting CIs. He also understands CI being an option for those born hearing and became deaf postlingually. But he is against CI for those born deaf(prelingual) and explains why. One point he says is that CI is hyped way too much and there's alot of bias and cherrypicked stats that make CI sound almost like a cure.

From the studies ive read, a CI for children appears to give them hearing similar to those with an 80db HL wearing HAs. That's if the CI works properly and you achieve an average result. Shel has said that 25% of children get little or no benefit from CI. This is why id only implant my child if he got little or no benefit from HAs, had 100+ db HL and only after trying all the best HAs programmed with maximum amplification. That person sees nothing wrong with deafness and opposes trying to "fix" them. HAs aren't considered a "fix" because they are not permanent nor invasive(no surgery) and the person always gets the choice to stop wearing HAs.

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