To hear or not?

sonocativo

sonocativo

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Ok, those who know me here know I was born hard of hearing and have been losing my hearing ever since. Now at 44 I am legally deaf without hearing aids, and after dealing with the ones I have messing up since day one, Yesterday they quit again....
Now tonight I have a get together with some old highschool friends and I cant hear anything unless they yell, plus we will be in a noisey environment (Hooters) so it will be difficult for me to communicate with them, not that I can talk, but I wont be able to hear anything they say, so I guess i will be brushing up on lip reading after so many years of not doing it like I once did. I just feel so out of place, but going to try and make the best of it.

I kinda love being in the world of silence, dont have to listen to all the bickering at home ( for now until I get moved into my own place ) but miss the sound of my sons voice.

Should I consider Coclear Implants? I was recommended for them but I just never pursued it, and after 2 years I still dont know much on them as I dont know anyone with them... So, I would like to ask, who has them and what do you like/dislike about them and would you recommend someone to get them or stay far away from them? What are the best ones...ect...? Thanks for some insight on this issue.
 
I'm sure that chicks at Hooters will think CIs are sexy. If you want CI, go for it. Have fun!! Life is short.
 
It's really a personal decision, and it's up to you. All 3 implant brands in the US work well and get the job done. I'm happy with my CI. and if you really want to go back to silence, you can take the CIs off and hear nothing again, very easy. cochlear implant HELP is a pretty good info, with info on all CI brands and what each brand has to offer, tips and advice, etc.
 
Even though I have had a difficult time with my CI as you might have read in my thread "CI surgery approved today" I feel blessed that I was able to get one, especially for one on one conversations with my husband, mom and kids. I missed their voices so, so much.

I am what they call a very "difficult, not normal CI user" I guess because I had traumatic total sudden hearing loss both ears with brain injury. However, I love my CI and I have no regrets having the surgery.

Like stated above, life is short do what ever you can to enjoy it!!!
 
Like Cdmeggers said- it's a personal decision.

Do you LIKE to hear?
If you do, maybe CI for you is worth it.

If you don't think it's worth all the hard work, perhaps not, then...


as for the "I like silence, too" - well, whenever you feel like, you can always turn the stuff off.

Fuzzy
 
i agree, and thank you. When Im with my kids I like to hear them and talk to them, but when Im by myself I like the silence or listening to music ( I play piano and guitar ) so I do want to hear certain things still. Yet, its nice to just turn it off and just be with myself.
 
So, if I have just a tad bit of hearing left and opt for the cochlear implants, after the surgery I am totally deaf from then on, am I correct? Only to hear with the cochlear?
 
sonocativo said:
So, if I have just a tad bit of hearing left and opt for the cochlear implants, after the surgery I am totally deaf from then on, am I correct? Only to hear with the cochlear?
Click to expand...

No. They are much better a preserving residual hearing these days.
 
AB is the hardest on residual hearing, but I think they're coming out with a new implant soon (or so one of their employees recently hinted) that will be just as easy on the cochlea as the other 2. All 3 brands are really great regardless and the surgeon you choose should be able to tell you which they have the most success with.

Best of luck in whatever you decide :)
 
Are all the processors big and bulky behind the ear? Or are there some slimmer ones, all I seem to find are the bulky ones?
 
I am not sure Mike, but I think they do much cooler stuff than they did a few years ago.

It doesn't matter, though - you should be proud who you are just the way you are. Always.

If it means wearing "bulky CI stuff" - heck, wear it with gusto!
MAKE it cool!


Recently, I bought black HAs, cut my hair short on one side to expose one HA,
(wanted asymmetrical haircut) and crazy glued four tiny sparkly stars on my earmold. It look so pretty, and the red color is just in time for X-mas!

I went even further yesterday - I bought 2 small metallic charcoal
titanium nose studs for the earmolds. They have flat round backing,
so they hopefully won't bother my ears.

I will drill tiny holes in it to put the studs in, so they will never fall off
like the glued stars tend to do, and voila' !




Fuzzy
 
To hear or not..well, I always want to hear especially the day I'll never forget. When I was going through 1st divorce and decided to move back to Maryland since I wasn't really happy in Rochester, NY. So, my son and daughter stay with mom. So, over the time we get lot of visitations between here and there. As my son grew older, I think when he was 13 or 14 or around there, I haven't spoke with him on the phone for while maybe lilke about a week or more. So, I decided to call him:

He answered: Hello?
Me: (sound like a man voice) Umm, I would like to speak my son Dave (not real name)
Dave: Dad, this is me
Me: ummm, Dave?
Dave: Yes Dad, how are you dong?
Me: (silent, going into tears)
Dave: Dad?
Me: (still in tears) Your voice, you sounded that you are becoming a man?
Dave: Yeah
(then we talked more about something else)

I was like wow... it just blew me away, what a sudden change, I felt like he was no longer a child.
Then I thought more about it that I was glad that I'm able to hear his voice.
So that day it was pretty emotional for me to hear something like that of how children growning up. So, I love to hear.
 
That is such a sweet post and so, so true. I missed talking to my mom so much, she was one of the top reasons for me getting my CI.
 
AB right now still has the biggest BTE out of all 3 manufacturers used in the USA. But AB has a new smaller slimmer BTE in the works, and I think they were planning on releasing it sometime in the next year. Med-El just recently came out with an even smaller battery part for their BTE (holds 2 batteries instead of 3 if I remember that right) and a new headpiece that uses less power. Cochlear's N5 is much more slimmer than the Freedom model. All of the manufacturers are always coming up with new processors every so often, and working on the internal device as well.
 
Angel1989 said:
That is such a sweet post and so, so true. I missed talking to my mom so much, she was one of the top reasons for me getting my CI.
Click to expand...

Thanks, I did have little tiny tears while I was writing this. It just suddenly that I don't hear sweet little kid voice anymore, and when he changed, it just suddenly now that now I have to talk to him like a man, man to man talk.
 
If the aids works when they are working correctly, you need to get the aid problem fixed. It could be a lot of things from a dried out tube to moisture in the aid itself to wax buildup. I'd get the tube changed and a hearing aid dehumidifier, my audi gave me one. Aids should last a long time, my current aid is going on 7+ years.

As for the CI, it is not the same as having an aid. As others have said, it is a really personal decision. For me, the aid gives me enough to keep going without a CI. Hopefully, there will be a cure before I need a CI.
 
No the aids are maxed out, the speaker is actually inside the earpiece, so theres no feedback, Its just a thin wire instead of a tube that comes down to the ear piece. My audiologist said I will have issues because they are pushing the limits and that once these dont help anymore (which is already been 5 years) I will need Cochlear Implants. I am planning to pursue it after the first of the year, was trying to get as much as possible done with my house but looks like its gonna be real show on the house, so might as well go for the CI soon. I just dont want anything bulky on my ears, it just aggrivates me when I do stuff and they get knocked off .
 
Like I said, there are some smaller processors already out, and Advanced Bionics is coming out with new smaller processors in the next year. And you can also set up the processors so you don't have everything on the ears if you so choose. You can adjust them however you like.
 
I will have to see the CI specialist and see what they have to offer.
 
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