Sorry--I meant to say I stumbled upon this conversation thread as I was searching Osia 2 reviews. So I created an account and here I am. 🙂

So I'm still totally deaf on my right side (SSHL), but I have the Osia 2 on my left side now to bring my left ear/side up to a good working level. They considered giving me a second bone-conduction device on my right side, but I didn't have good bone conduction scores so we decided against it. I'm getting on well with just left-side hearing.

@edemmenegger- To answer your questions, I've always slept only on my back and on my right side. Since the implant is on my left side, my sleep isn't affected. As you probably already know, you take off the sound processor when sleeping. But I don't think the implant will make you uncomfortable if it's installed on your sleeping side. Since you can't get the external sound processor part wet, you don't wear it when showering. (They do sell an aqua kit for swimming, which I have and it worked great! That was exciting for me; however, because I like to use a tether to ensure my sound processor doesn't fly across the room when I move my hair, it's kind of a pain to take the aqua cover on and off.) I can feel a lump in my head where the bottom part of the implant (the part that houses the vibrating piece) is. I have an iPhone, so I can't answer the Android question--I'm sorry about that. Wearing head coverings is tricky. I recently had my Ph.D. hooding ceremony (for graduation) and I couldn't wear my grad cap because it would knock the device off. I've seen where some people will cut a little hole in their hats to help with this issue.

As far as hearing goes, it sounds just like my natural hearing. After I lost hearing in my right ear, I used a cheap hearing amplifier to help out my left ear and to help me "stay in the game" while I figured out what my hearing solution would be. Similar to wearing headphones or ear buds, that device would become uncomfortable after a while. I NEVER feel that way with the Osia. It truly seems like I'm hearing as I always have--very natural.

Another important thing to note about this device is that it is extremely comfortable to wear. When I was researching solutions, I read about the challenges wearers dealt with when wearing BAHA devices that snap on. They seemed to have issues with the wound trying to heal itself, draining fluid, or scabbing. Since the Osia is held in place via a magnet, those challenges don't exist for its wearers. Some BAHA devices use magnets, but because they were submitting vibrations through the skin, they had to be really tight/strong magnets. Because Osia's vibrating part is under the scalp and on the skull, the magnet connection doesn't have to be really strong. Wearing my device feels comparable to wearing a barrette. There's absolutely no discomfort; it doesn't bother me at all. I would wear it all day long if batteries, water, and smooshing it into my pillow (this causes microphone feedback) wasn't an issue.

Battery usage is another important topic. I have to replace the battery in my device every other day. Battery usage is affected by the amount of streaming you do to your device. Since I have an iPhone, I can watch videos on my phone and have the sound stream directly to my Osia device, which is REALLY nice. If you're interested in doing so, you can even have your phone calls and alerts routed directly to your device (you would still need to speak into your phone though, since the Osia can't send your audio back to the person on the line). I turned off the feature that allowed phone calls to go to my device because it was really weird to be having a conversation at work and then have a telephone ringing in my head.

If you have access to Tiktok, there are some helpful videos on there for those of you who are approaching surgery or just looking for more information. I found a helpful user (just type Osia implant into the search box in Tiktok and you'll find her) when I was scouring the internet looking for user feedback on the Osia prior to my surgery. Her videos helped me learn how to prepare for and what to expect from surgery and the device.

Please note that the Osia is NOT a cochlear implant. The manufacturer's name is Cochlear and it is an implant, but it is a bone-conduction device and not a cochlear implant. My understanding is that the bone-conduction devices send sound waves to the working inner ear, which allows the brain to interpret the sounds; whereas, cochlear implants bypass the ear altogether and send signals directly to the auditory nerve. Two completely different types of mechanisms.

Please let me know if you have any questions that I can answer. I really want to help people who have the same types of questions and concerns that I had since there's not a lot of user information out there.