Starting my cochlear research

Posted by kgailey67 @kgailey67, Mar 18 1:37pm

I am 43 years old, have been profound to severely deaf my entire life, BTE hearing aids, no change at all until 6 months ago, my right ear dropped significantly, I don't have the numbers, the audiogram is at home, but I do know my word recognition went from 40% to 0. I don't know what caused my long-term loss, or my most recent drastic loss, I'm waiting on my CT and MRI scans, but the ENT, the very first thing he said to me was "wow you have really bad hearing" lol..thanks? I have been evaluated twice in my life for cochlear, the first time in the 80s when i was very young, wasn't a candidate, the second time in my 20s when I was, but I was a new mother, just graduated and started my career, I was violently opposed to taking all that time off, and having to drive 2 hours every appointment, and I have been bilateral BTE hearing aid wearer 40 years, I couldn't figure out why I would want to undergo brain surgery to wear bigger devices at the time. I am going through evaluation again, only this time the appointments will be local, my son is graduated and grown, and I am more receptive to the idea, though some of it terrifies me. I am still doing pro's and con's. Has anyone else had lifelong deafness with BIL BTE aids that underwent a CI? any advice? places to start? I get the gist from my previous research and evaluations, but that was 15 years ago, I am sure technology and stuff has changed.

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hedgerow | @hedgerow | Mar 19 8:22am

here are a couple of good websites
• a nice blog of an audiologist's personal journey with CI. https://www.hearwellcenter.com/cochlear-story/
• Cochlear Implant Help lots of resources, comparison chart, describes the process. https://cochlearimplanthelp.com/

jhspear | @jhspeat | Mar 20 8:44pm

Welcome to the club! We have a similar hearing loss history; I also had severe to profound hearing loss since birth and used hearing aids until I was 50.

My first hearing aid was a rectangular steel device with a volume control and on/off switch along with a single long cord ending in a receiver and earmold and worn in a chest harness. I received my first CI 24 years ago and the second seven years later when my hearing deteriorated even further in my aided ear.

There was no AHA! moment for me and in fact my first couple of weeks were miserable; fortunately audiologists are now much more skilled at managing the activation process. Overall the technology has advanced tremendously and I envy the benefit of the self-curling electrode leads that people now receive.

The most difficult task I faced was figuring out what the vastly increased range of sounds represented. Sounds I had never heard were at times overwhelming; my brain needed time to learn, adapt, and integrate the sounds...all part of the wonderful brain plasticity/adaptability we possess (however slow it is).

Unquestionably I hear more sounds and those sounds are clearer and tremendously meaningful to me (except for a yammering TV or excessive noise that intrudes itself into a conversation). I am no longer as good of a lipreader as I used to be, but lipreading remains vital...especially in the presence of noise. I enjoy music; I don't understand the words of songs, but I can recognize the words in the songs if I previously learned them via reading.

It's an adventure....yours will be different for sure, just because you are a different individual and bring different skills and strengths. All things being equal, expect to feel less tense and expend less energy. I know several people with implants and while we are all different, we all benefited. One even functions like a fully hearing individual - remarkably so. But we all have more confidence, a sense of security we did not possess prior to receiving a CI simply because life became easier because communication became a more relaxed process without the constant straining to listen. In short, there is less ambiguity. We are not "cured" but we all benefited greatly.

My number one suggestion at this point for you is to find a HLAA (Hearing Loss Association of America) Chapter and to attend some meetings and talk to members. Ask your questions....nearly everyone is willing to share their story. Asked what worked for them and what did not. Find a chapter by searching on the national website http://www.hearingloss.org.