Well here is a twist

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theatregrl

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Ok so things had seemed to be good for a whole. Given my family history as I said I was going to get a set of BTEs next month. I made the appointment for the fitting in the end of July. I was adjusting well. On 6/11 things changed. I woke up unable to hear anything but I high squeeling noise in one ear. I told my cousin and asked her to call my doctor for an appt. I went and he said that as we discussed this was always a possibility given my family history. When I went to see him I had started to hear some things again. He said that it may come back but I should prepare myself that it may not. He suggested a visit to the audi for an adjustment. It improved somewhat over the next few days. I went to the Audi this morning. She said it probably won't improve anymore from here but she will adjust my aids to the best she can given their capability and order new BTEs. She is going to take care of any insurance issues. I tested today in the profound to no response in my right and severe to profound in my left. She told me that she wants me back in 7 days in case it improves and my aids are set too high. I am going with the phonak Nadia Q. Before she puts the order in for sure I want feedback from you guys. Anything u got. I'm freakinf out inside but right now I am just deal with trying to get my life back. My cics are giving horrible feedback at this setting and everyone sounds like muffled. I know things will never sound right again or at all but I want something that will be the best for the money.
 
Oh wow. That is a huge twist.

Phonak Naidas are awesome. I have the Phonak Naida S and love them. Everyone hear differently so give them a try to see how you feel with them.

There are other hearing aids for severe to profound other then the Naidas, so if they don't work, then don't feel like you need to give up.

Keep your chin up tho. :)
 
Theatregrl,


Sorry your are going through so much with your hearing. With your loss being Severe to Profound it is worth trying the Naidas. I tried an older version of the Naida and I liked them. If you have not already asked your audi, I would ask them what the trial period is and make sure you get a couple of adjustments if needed before the trial period ends. I would also look into Assistive Listening Devices if you have not already done that.
 
Assisted listening devices? Like the remote mic and TV thing? She mentioned those but my head was spinning and I was having so much trouble following the convo that she said we should take it one step at a time. Get the more powerful aids and then move on. I'm a little lost. I am living through txt messaging right now
 
Yes, those are some of the ALDS. I agree with your audi about taking things one step at a time. You are dealing with a lot. Let us know how things work out for you.
 
Phonak Compilot with TV Link S and Remote Mic seems to be common and good accessory.
Helps you with phone, music, TV and the remote mic will help in noisy places or where you are not close to the speaker like at church or at school setting where they are based at the front.
The ComPilot is also a remote control as well.
 
I have the Q's. I can tell the difference between them any my Starkey's. The problem I have is there is just too much static/feedback when they are set high enough for me to hear. I've maxed out HA technology. I am moving on to Cochlear Implants. You might want to research CI's before you spend the money on the Q's.
 
CIs are a long way down the road I think. My doctor or Audi didnt even mention them. This is all really new. As things stand right now I am communicating through txt messages from my friends and family. I have been using the notes ap on my iPhone when I go out. My cics are mostly useless. I can pick up some things in my left ear but making out what they are is almost impossible. I am going to look into some ASL classes at the local college and maybe of the local deaf organizations that hold events. My Audi said that sign language will help with my frustration on the communication level and so will phone with captions. She showed me one that I can buy. She also said there is an ap for the iPhone but she could tell I was getting overwhelmed so again she tabled some of that discussion. Does anyone have suggestions on this front? I am still in action mode trying to get things back that I had. I turned the captions on the TV. (That is going to take some getting used to) my cousin said I need to slow down and that it hasn't hit me yet. She could be right but I think keeping busy is helping.
 
HOH-ME said:
I have the Q's. I can tell the difference between them any my Starkey's. The problem I have is there is just too much static/feedback when they are set high enough for me to hear. I've maxed out HA technology. I am moving on to Cochlear Implants. You might want to research CI's before you spend the money on the Q's.
Click to expand...

Everyone hears very differently so she shouldn't just disregard the Naida Q. Your loss is very unusual as well.
 
theatregrl said:
CIs are a long way down the road I think. My doctor or Audi didnt even mention them. This is all really new. As things stand right now I am communicating through txt messages from my friends and family. I have been using the notes ap on my iPhone when I go out. My cics are mostly useless. I can pick up some things in my left ear but making out what they are is almost impossible. I am going to look into some ASL classes at the local college and maybe of the local deaf organizations that hold events. My Audi said that sign language will help with my frustration on the communication level and so will phone with captions. She showed me one that I can buy. She also said there is an ap for the iPhone but she could tell I was getting overwhelmed so again she tabled some of that discussion. Does anyone have suggestions on this front? I am still in action mode trying to get things back that I had. I turned the captions on the TV. (That is going to take some getting used to) my cousin said I need to slow down and that it hasn't hit me yet. She could be right but I think keeping busy is helping.
Click to expand...

Learning ASL is a good idea. Is there any family that would want to learn with you? Might make it easier as you will be learning together.

Getting an adaptive phone would help. There are many phones out in the market. You'll have to find one that works for you.

Maybe think about fire alarms in your house/apartment where ever you live. I can't hear fire alarms with my hearing aids but even if you can hear them with your hearing aids, think about at night when you don't have your hearing aids in.

Captions on the TV is a good way of doing it. That's how I watch TV. There are other tech about that helps you hear the TV but I prefer captions :)
 
My HA audi never suggested an implant to me. You do have enough loss to qualify for one, I have the same hearing loss you do (severe to profound in one ear, no response in the other) and I am extremely glad I decided to persue an implant, as it has really improved the quality of my life.
 
I am not sure a CI is something I am ready to consider. My insurance is picking up a decent portion of the hearing aids. Before I would think about a CI I would want to do a ton of research. That is something on the back burner for now. Right now I am just trying to find out how to obtain a sense of normalcy to my life after the rug was yanked from under me. I have so many questions. A lot that a hearinf person I don't think could even answer. For starters will my voice change? My job has already been notified and I was getting a co-teacher for special Ed students anyway so this person will be able to help me at work. I was put in touch with an ASL tutor (she used to be an interpreter and grew up with deaf parents) who works with families of deaf children. I hired her three times a week this summer. What else is going to change? I have been so overwhelmed I am just now thinking about these things.
 
I understand. It took me coming to terms with exactly how little I could hear before I even wanted to consider a CI, and I have had hearing problems for a very long time. I was always mentally resistant to putting myself in the actually deaf category because I can still hear things, I just couldn't understand voices. I'm not trying to push anything on you, just letting you know that it is an option and outcomes for CI users are quite good nowadays. The surgeons and audiologists involved have a good deal more experience than they used to.

Definitely you should try getting HAs to work, but if you find that you still can't understand people with powerful HAs, a CI is basically the only solution that can restore hearing to those with large hearing losses. Many insurance providers will cover CIs, too.
 
theatregrl said:
CIs are a long way down the road I think. My doctor or Audi didnt even mention them. This is all really new. As things stand right now I am communicating through txt messages from my friends and family. I have been using the notes ap on my iPhone when I go out. My cics are mostly useless. I can pick up some things in my left ear but making out what they are is almost impossible. I am going to look into some ASL classes at the local college and maybe of the local deaf organizations that hold events. My Audi said that sign language will help with my frustration on the communication level and so will phone with captions. She showed me one that I can buy. She also said there is an ap for the iPhone but she could tell I was getting overwhelmed so again she tabled some of that discussion. Does anyone have suggestions on this front? I am still in action mode trying to get things back that I had. I turned the captions on the TV. (That is going to take some getting used to) my cousin said I need to slow down and that it hasn't hit me yet. She could be right but I think keeping busy is helping.
Click to expand...

theatregrl said:
I am not sure a CI is something I am ready to consider. My insurance is picking up a decent portion of the hearing aids. Before I would think about a CI I would want to do a ton of research. That is something on the back burner for now. Right now I am just trying to find out how to obtain a sense of normalcy to my life after the rug was yanked from under me. I have so many questions. A lot that a hearinf person I don't think could even answer. For starters will my voice change? My job has already been notified and I was getting a co-teacher for special Ed students anyway so this person will be able to help me at work. I was put in touch with an ASL tutor (she used to be an interpreter and grew up with deaf parents) who works with families of deaf children. I hired her three times a week this summer. What else is going to change? I have been so overwhelmed I am just now thinking about these things.
Click to expand...

All of the things above would be helped by a CI. It sounds like you would qualify for one. I suggest doing some research-I'd suggest joining one of the chat groups, specifically the Advanced Bionics group if you are getting the Q's since they are owned by the same company. I think you will find that a lot of your adaptations wouldn't be necessary with a CI given your sudden loss and the good chance at having near-normal hearing with a CI. Learning ASL is great, if your friends and family know it too..if not, kind of pointless.
 
Some of my family knows ASL because there is a family history of hearing loss and some of it would be willing to learn with me. Unfortunately my immediate family is not that knowledgeable about it but maybe they will learn. One or two of my friends know ASL basics. A CI is something I am going to look into eventually. Since this is so new I don't want to rush into it. In addition surgery is always tricky with me because I have an allergy to some anesthesia. I can get surgery but have to be careful. Also I want to know a ton about it before I rush into it. I have ordered the Nadia Q SP hearing aids in sand beige. I know that the CI may be a good option. . .I think it is something I will think about someday. Right now I want to deal with what I have.
 
Nearly the same thing happened to me last year (ironically on the day after my birthday which I spent observing cochlear implant surgeries).
Message me for more advice/sympathy/empathy.
I got married a few days ago and we just got back home.

But regarding your hearing/voice questions:
My hearing in my good (right) ear dropped from moderate-severe to severe-profound in one night. I will not lie, it was scary.
Eventually, after several weeks, I was able to make sense of sound in that ear again (I had my Naidas adjusted but it still took a few weeks).
Regarding voice changes, I have had progressive hearing loss since I was ~12 (possibly earlier since I had to have speech therapy as a kid). With the big drops in hearing I've had in the past few years the only real change is that sometimes my speech gets "slushy" and at times I mispronounce the /r/, /sh/, /s/, /l/, and a few other sounds.
Most people just think I have a cool accent.
I usually notice when I say something incorrectly because it is as if my mouth feels wrong, which I'm sure has something to do with muscle memory or something.

Before I forget- I was a CI candidate before the big drop in hearing and really, really wanted a CI but my insurance wouldn't cover it. I thought I wouldn't be able to function with hearing loss that starts at 95dB and goes to 120+ by 1,500Hz but my right ear recovered a bit. So I'm waiting until my insurance covers CIs.
 
theatregrl said:
Some of my family knows ASL because there is a family history of hearing loss and some of it would be willing to learn with me. Unfortunately my immediate family is not that knowledgeable about it but maybe they will learn. One or two of my friends know ASL basics. A CI is something I am going to look into eventually. Since this is so new I don't want to rush into it. In addition surgery is always tricky with me because I have an allergy to some anesthesia. I can get surgery but have to be careful. Also I want to know a ton about it before I rush into it. I have ordered the Nadia Q SP hearing aids in sand beige. I know that the CI may be a good option. . .I think it is something I will think about someday. Right now I want to deal with what I have.
Click to expand...

Wow, with your loss I would get the most powerful Naidas which are the Naida Q UPs, I wouldn't even look in to the SPs. The UPs are more powerful and way louder in the low frequencies. UPs take bigger batteries so you won't be changing batteries all the time.

A lot of people on this site have said that the UPs sound so much better then the SPs.
 
yeah and besides, Bottsini rocks her blue UPs and same with the 2 other posters who has red Naidas *talk about cute and classy in red*
 
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