Cochlear Implant Patients.

Status
Not open for further replies.
Wow, that seems pretty unlikely. Are you sure you'll even be activated by then? I've heard from other late-deafened that sounds are dramatically different with a CI than with "normal" hearing. They say it takes time, sometimes many months to understand and accomodate to the new hearing.

In any case, best of luck with surgery and with your new job. :wave:
Click to expand...

It takes several weeks or months for your brain to adjust to the new way of hearing things.

Your CI will be "turned on" 3-4 weeks after surgery. Things will not sound like what you think they should.

You will be going in once a week for a few weeks to "tweak" the CI.

Do NOT expect to have your hearing back the way it was. If you do, you will be very disappointed. Everyone has different results.

My 'learning curve' topped out after 5-6 months.
Click to expand...

I know the results will be very different, but I have to try i've been working with sound since i was 15 so i've lost a lot. Also I'm going to be doing everything I can to get my hearing back as quickly as possible.

We talked with them and they have given me a earlier date for surgery and have agreed to activate it at the earliest date possible (3 weeks) so chances are in my favor. my main goals are to be able to understand speech well enough to tell what someone is saying i feel that if i can do this i can keep up with who is singing.. (I change the words on the screen)

And additionally sorry to anyone i offended by saying patient. I figured that words would be the same didn't see someone getting offended by that.. I'll try to refrain from using it again. And I guess that just offers insight into the deaf community. :aw:
 
Shel: getting a Cochlear Implant is hardly a trivial matter! I was "out" over 5 hours from the surgery while I was a PATIENT in Sunnybrook/Toronto. To date I have had NO REGRETS in getting one.
Before PFH has another paroxysm- I didn't consult the "local deaf group-Ontario Association of the deaf"-if "they approved"! I have NO idea the actual number of persons belonging to this group.

Implanted Advanced Bionics-Harmony activated Aug/07
 
shel90 said:
Normally, would take a dare bit my moral values can't fathom wasting a $100K surgery based on a trivalious action like these two( me getting one just to see what the big fuss is or on a dare). I do not want to waste other people's time and money when it is something I am not passionate about. I just can't be that frivilious. That's just me.
Click to expand...

I didn't really think you would. :)

drphil said:
Shel: getting a Cochlear Implant is hardly a trivial matter! I was "out" over 5 hours from the surgery while I was a PATIENT in Sunnybrook/Toronto. To date I have had NO REGRETS in getting one.
Before PFH has another paroxysm- I didn't consult the "local deaf group-Ontario Association of the deaf"-if "they approved"! I have NO idea the actual number of persons belonging to this group.

Implanted Advanced Bionics-Harmony activated Aug/07
Click to expand...

Dr. Phil, I think there are people with CI belonging to Ontario Association of the Deaf. You might like them if you gave it a try. :)
 
True, it is not a trivial matter.

Don't even consider it unless you really are committed to seeing it through. If you are happy with your current situation, no need to get one.
 
green, if you are talking to me, i am in no way happy with my current situation. since i had hearing before there is so much that i miss now.. And for all the deaf people out there, i really feel sorry for you even though you probably don't want me to. but ya'll are missing quite a lot.
 
Music, largely because it was my intended career.. But even watching movies or "talking" to people isn't the same without being able to hear them laugh. Or with movies hearing the ambient noises. I can't even communicate with my family without a pen and piece of paper.
 
zebadee2010 said:
Music, largely because it was my intended career.. But even watching movies or "talking" to people isn't the same without being able to hear them laugh. Or with movies hearing the ambient noises. I can't even communicate with my family without a pen and piece of paper.
Click to expand...

Well. Thats understandable coming from you - but I'll just be nice here and tell you this - I think you're missing out. :)
 
drphil said:
Shel: getting a Cochlear Implant is hardly a trivial matter! I was "out" over 5 hours from the surgery while I was a PATIENT in Sunnybrook/Toronto. To date I have had NO REGRETS in getting one.
Before PFH has another paroxysm- I didn't consult the "local deaf group-Ontario Association of the deaf"-if "they approved"! I have NO idea the actual number of persons belonging to this group.

Implanted Advanced Bionics-Harmony activated Aug/07
Click to expand...

Right that's why I really need to want it to get one. I dont feel the need to hear any better than I do now so I wont get one. I dont stress about my deafness like I did before.

I stress about the audist attitudes that affect my career. I dont like that at all.
 
Experiences with CIs

December 14th is not far off.
You'll be going through this surgery 4 years minus 2 days from my first CI surgery. I lost my hearing over roughly 18 month with the last 2 being very difficult with talking to others. I grew up hearing like you.

As far as surgery, it wasn't bad. The first week, you'll be sore but you can read other posts on how it goes. Mine, I was back on my feet pretty quickly. My biggest problem was the lifting restrictions. If you over do it, you just might hear ringing due to the pressure in the cochlea. You don't want to do this and your Surgeon will remind you of this. I was lucky and didn't cause any problems but it could have turned out differently.

On the question about at a concert. You will likely have some challenges but you might also be really lucky in that you can have your audiologist program one of your maps to turn the Microphone down so your not blasted with the loud noise. If I read your post correctly and I'm thinking your a stage hand and if you use radios to communicate with each other, you might be in luck. Use a telecoil and attach it to your radio, turn your microphone way down but keep the telecoil turned up, you might be able to hear better than you ever have before. You won't hear the concert because the microphone is down but.... Talk with your Audiologist on this topic. They might be able to just set you up.

I have Bilateral CIs and will say that activation was different with each. My first, I could hear and understand the moment they turned it on. My second, took some time to get use to it. The second is still not perfect but I really prefer bilateral. It is just easier to hear everything. I've had my second bilateral CI going on 2 years. The surgery was 2 years minus 1 day from my first surgery. It has been a very nice change.

Steve
 
SteveESP52 said:
December 14th is not far off.
You'll be going through this surgery 4 years minus 2 days from my first CI surgery. I lost my hearing over roughly 18 month with the last 2 being very difficult with talking to others. I grew up hearing like you.

As far as surgery, it wasn't bad. The first week, you'll be sore but you can read other posts on how it goes. Mine, I was back on my feet pretty quickly. My biggest problem was the lifting restrictions. If you over do it, you just might hear ringing due to the pressure in the cochlea. You don't want to do this and your Surgeon will remind you of this. I was lucky and didn't cause any problems but it could have turned out differently.

On the question about at a concert. You will likely have some challenges but you might also be really lucky in that you can have your audiologist program one of your maps to turn the Microphone down so your not blasted with the loud noise. If I read your post correctly and I'm thinking your a stage hand and if you use radios to communicate with each other, you might be in luck. Use a telecoil and attach it to your radio, turn your microphone way down but keep the telecoil turned up, you might be able to hear better than you ever have before. You won't hear the concert because the microphone is down but.... Talk with your Audiologist on this topic. They might be able to just set you up.

I have Bilateral CIs and will say that activation was different with each. My first, I could hear and understand the moment they turned it on. My second, took some time to get use to it. The second is still not perfect but I really prefer bilateral. It is just easier to hear everything. I've had my second bilateral CI going on 2 years. The surgery was 2 years minus 1 day from my first surgery. It has been a very nice change.

Steve
Click to expand...

On the concert topic, I am more or less a visual guy, I did/do anything you might see on the screen. So we typically had no problems communicating because we were all right next to each other. Thanks for the tip on the maps!

And on the Bilateral front. I was planning on getting those but due to my cracked left cochlea he said not right now but maybe later down the road..

and to Post from hell, i feel the same towards you. God made hearing a gift and to not have that gift could just be a post from hell.. :lol:
 
Steve.. Is the sound way different than what you used to hear?
Have you ever wore an HA? If you have does the HA sound similar when you used to hear? The reason I am asking is I went deaf at three so never knew what normal hearing sound like and I believe they can one day make the HA sound similar. I still don't hear alot what the hearing is hearing and sometime its gets fustrated!
 
I think its great for CI.. but what about how it sound???
 
zebadee2010 said:
green, if you are talking to me, i am in no way happy with my current situation. since i had hearing before there is so much that i miss now.. And for all the deaf people out there, i really feel sorry for you even though you probably don't want me to. but ya'll are missing quite a lot.
Click to expand...

You're not going to score a lot of points with that. :roll:

Many of us here are early-deafened. We can't miss what we never had. And a CI won't restore to us what you had before you became deaf.

And for those who are late-deafened, they know what they are missing, CI or not.
 
zebadee2010 said:
green, if you are talking to me, i am in no way happy with my current situation. since i had hearing before there is so much that i miss now.. And for all the deaf people out there, i really feel sorry for you even though you probably don't want me to. but ya'll are missing quite a lot.
Click to expand...

I'm sorry about your new hearing loss and I hope that soon you will be in a better situation, I like to add that you should never say that you feel sorry for deaf people, this is not nice to say as deafness is NOT a disease, I'm a new poster here but have been luckier for quite sometime and I do know many of people here even they do not know me since I do not post, many deaf love their life and are very successful in their career and life, they are happy as is which is something me and you (late deafened ) can not do since we stuck on our previous life, I suggest that you start living your life with whatever means God is giving you and not waste your life to get something that you may never get (hearing), as this is very hard to get, why waste your precious life when you can try to live it and love it with whatever means you can.
I'm not sure if the CI can give you anything as I'm still researching it, I hope that while you are researching that you still see that this life is worth something hearing or not
 
I'm sorry I just read your story, I can't imagine how you lost all of your hearing in one day, thanks God you are still alive and your brain still working, this what counts, right?
I guess it will take a lot of time for you to get adjusted to your new life, CI is not a magic ear that they stick in your head and will be new ear just like the ones you've lost, NO WAY, CI may work or not work for you, it all depend, at the end you are hard of hearing or deaf now and CI will NOT change this, you will need to accept it and move on, forget the sound and or light guy job and find something that will bring you some food on the table at the end of the day in 10-20 years from now, there is no way that the CI will give you what a normal ear will give you.
I'm not the one who can advise you on brands, I have been doing research for over 8 months, I have found that there is no brand is better than other, DO NOT believe any claim that some other forums will tell you, never ever go to the company's forum as they will always tell you some false claims on what their brand would do.
Here what I've found in my research, I will keep doing more research before getting my CI
1- go with a reliable company that does not have some recalls under their belt, you for sure do not want your head to be recalled, do not believe any claims that some of these recalls are nothing, no one recall something for being nothing
2- do NOT go with advertisers who push you for their brand, a good reliable company do not need an advertisement, the implant will speak for itself
3- they say that if you have had normal hearing before you lose your hearing then there is great possibility that you may get good results out of your CI, again, you will never have a normal ear or hearing so please do not expect to stick your CI on and call it a day, you will still deaf if that CI did not work for any reason.
4- you will need to work for it, this is not like a new shirt, put it on and leave, you will need to work on re-hearing all the new sounds and remember or understand what they are, this is probably because the sounds from the CI may be different than what is from the normal cochlea/ear, you will have to do some home work, listen to some tapes for months

The surgery is not painful as far as I heard, you will get activated 3-4 weeks later and then start speech therapy if needed and it may take several weeks to several months before they map you right, which means you won't hear good or anything when they activate you, it will take several tries to get you best results

Good luck
 
Wirelessly posted

Hey, why does someone who already have speech need speech therapy? I think you mean auditory therapy. Like practicing their listening skills with CI .
 
Last edited:
zebadee2010 said:
Music, largely because it was my intended career.. But even watching movies or "talking" to people isn't the same without being able to hear them laugh. Or with movies hearing the ambient noises. I can't even communicate with my family without a pen and piece of paper.
Click to expand...

I understand where you come from. When I was a kid I had to take off my hearing aids when I am taking showers and or swimming in a pool. Without the aids I could not hear the joyful sounds or laughter of kids in the pool. That is my reality being deaf at times without much issues to deal with. The aids are tools for me to hear.
Keep in mind that the CI will not give you the full frequency range that you had before. The CI is limited to about 8 kHz in the highs and if you lucky you may hear 150Hz or a bit lower in the lows. This is not as bad as it seems. There are many musicians successfully using a CI during their careers including violin players. Below is an example.
ARTS IN BRIEF - washingtonpost.com

The point is to have realistic expectations and you will find it exciting to hear sounds anew again.
 
Last edited:
Again I'm not trying to be mean or sound offensive in anyway. Me having hearing before all these terms are used often. Quite frankly I know this is an "all deaf" forum but there are clearly people here who are not all deaf. HA and CI's help you hear. I'm just trying to figure out what I can expect from my CI and anything that might be helpful when picking one out,
Cost isn't an issue, not to say that we are rich, but mom has great health insurance.
Having to work at it has already been established, and I plan on doing so everyday for 2 weeks just so that I can understand speech well enough to work January 15-19.
I know it will be a struggle and I know it won't be normal hearint (that's half of my problem with it) but it will be speech (again no disrespect) but speech is far faster and more effecive than ASL. And if all you're going to post is negative stuff then please don't post it. If you have something helpful other than hearing sucks then by all meas feel free to post it..
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top