Cochlear Implant Help.

[Renachelw]

Hi everyone, i'm new to this site. 

I'm from Singapore. My left ear has bad hearing since young and was discovered when I was 7. When I was 14, the hearing in my right ear suddenly went bad and I started wearing hearing aids. No i'm 21, and the situation has changed. My left ear is now the better ear, and my right ear is profoundly deaf, hearing aids don't help anymore.

The doctors have encouraged me to go for CI in my right ear, and I believe that's all I can do now as there are no other options. Hence, I have a few questions and hope that I can find my answers here.

I would just like to know if CI will sound very robotic given 2017's technology advancements? I used to have normal hearing and I'm wondering if it will sound very different. Will it eventually sound like normal hearing?

Also, I used to play the violin before I got fitted with hearing aids, I was just wondering if it would be possible to play it again?

Finally, does anyone use Cochlear's Kanso? Do you get the hair brushing against the mic sound, like hearing aids? Would BTE CI be better? It would be great if you could share your experiences.

Thanks everyone  

[Kara of Canada]

Hi Renachelw! Welcome to Hearpeers! This is a Med el site but we will do the best we can to answer your questions. I have a CI and it does sound a bit different. But nothing hugely different. It becomes the new normal. We have heard of many CI wearers that play music once again when their hearing stabilizes.  We have also many Rondo wearers here. I have Sonnet which is the BTE processor for Med el which is the most up to date technology. I have had the hair brushing against my mics before but it is all in how the hair is hanging over the processor. Because I have long hair I simply lift my hair apply the magnetic coil then let the hair fall naturally. Then it doesn't brush against the mics. I hope this helps. Best of luck with your decisions! 

[Mary Beth]

Hello and welcome. As Kara mentioned we are Med-El users here so you won't find info about the Kanso here.  Med-El's one piece processor is called the Rondo and its mic is protected so you do not hear any sound from your hair moving.  I am not sure if the Kanso mics are protected but it's a great question to ask on a Cochlear board.

 

Regardless of brand, many similarities exist between CI users.  Music took awhile to sound good to me but now it sounds great.  I returned to playing the piano after decades of not playing it since it just sounded like noise.  There are violin players with CIs.  Check out the You Tube of  Sounds Of Cochlea, a musical performace by CI users.

 

Wishing you the best on your CI journey.

[Renachelw]

Thank you Kara and Mary for ypur replies  I'm apologise, I did not know this was a Med-El site, so I might have came off as offensive talking about other brands, sorry about that.

On the bright side,  I now know of the Rondo as previously I thought Kanso was the only hidden unit. So thank you hehe  

I am still so very afraid of hearing robotic sounds, i fear that i cant get used to it... also, are you guys able to hear without lip-reading, or watch movies without subtitles? How would you describe your hearing experience with CIs in comparison with HAs? Thank you.

[Renachelw]

Oh, and also, does anyone have kids? How do you hear in the middle of the night if your baby is crying? This has been one of my main fears after going deaf lol. 

[Mary Beth]

I did a lot of aural rehab.  Check out our aural rehab topic for lots of suggestions.

 

Everything sounds natural to me now.  I hear on the phone, listen to podcasts and audiobooks, understand the radio in the car (speech and music).  It's been terrific!  So much better than hearing aids!

 

Check out

www.harriscomm.com

 

for lots of alerting device options to hear your baby at night.

[Cara Mia]

Hi Renachelw!

Regarding robotic sound... I think it depends from case to case. After my first implant was activated, I had that robotic effect for about two months. With my second ear implanted I had much shorter period of of robotic sound (just a several days). The difference between my ears - the first was completely out of business for about 10 years, the second one has some residual hearing after implantation. Then, it is also about our brain plasticity which is very individual ability of the brain to adapt to new stimuli.

Wish you to gain the comfortable hearing and learn to understand music again in full soon after surgery despite of which brand device you will go with.

[hadron]

Hi Renavlchelw,

It's not clear why, but after an adaptation period, speech usually "sounds" just like it did pre-implant.

So yes the robotic sounds go away.

[Renachelw]

Hi everyone, thanks for your replies.

Does anyone know what different kinds of electrodes are available and what are the differences? 

Also, would a BTE processor or a Rondo kind be clearer? 

I am so looking forward to starting school again and I'm wondering if i would still need FM for my CIs? I used FM with hearing aids previously and it was still a struggle..

Oh, and does anyone know of anyone who has been reimplanted? I was just wondering if there is a difference between old and new electrode models.

Thanks. 

[Mary Beth]

Hi,

 

Here is a link describing Med-El electrode arrays

http://www.medel.com/data/pdf/21617.pdf

 

The Rondo shares the same technology has the previous BTE processor, called the Opus2.  The Sonnet has Med-El's newest technology and uses ASM 2.0 which is an automatic sound management feature that uses two mics to dampen noise.  It is quite amazing.  Previously both the Rondo and Opus2 functioned the same for most users.  Depending on the location of your internal magnet, the Rondo mic may be above your ear, slightly behind your ear or a bit behind your ear.  That may impact how you hear when noise is behind you.  I have friends who use the Rondo and they love it.  I prefer the Sonnet for dailywear and I love the Rondo for waterwear in its waterwear cover.  

 

Learning to listen with a CI takes practice and there are all different levels of performance.  For me, I am in classrooms daily listening to teachers and students as part of my job and I hear Fine with just my CIs.  For others, they find the Roger System very helpful.  The Sonnet has a new integrated Roger receiver called Roger 21.  Look on Med El's official FaceBook page and you will be able to read about it.  The Sonnet can also use the Roger X type 02 receiver in its FM sleeve.  Although there is a way for the Rondo to use the Roger X type 02 receiver, it requires using the mini battery pack which then has a cable running from the Rondo down to the battery pack.  It would be easier to use the Rondo with the Roger MyLink neckloop receiver as long as it is loud enough and there is no interference while on MT or T.

 

I do know people who have been reimplanted.  They have been very fortunate and perform just as well with their new implants.  I have not heard of anyone comment on performing even better than before but I never asked that question.

 

Do you know when you may have your surgery yet?

[Mary Beth]

Link to Roger 21 integrated Sonnet receiver info

 

https://www.phonakpro.com/content/dam/phonakpro/gc_hq/en/products_solutions/wireless_accessories/roger_receivers/documents/datasheet_roger_21.pdf

[Mary Beth]

Link to information comparing the Rondo and Opus2 and also the Sonnet with ASM natural mic setting

 

http://www.crsamplifon.com/documents/76453/640793/14+Martin+Kompis+CRS+2016.pdf/5752ac0f-ee03-45e6-99fb-5cee37262a36

[Renachelw]

Hello, thank you all so much for your replies

I would like to ask, after implantation, is speech/auditory rehab necessary? 

It is really expensive here where i'm from. 

Back then when I first started hearing aids, they also made me go for rehab which i stopped after the first session as I felt it was a waste of time and money.

I could learn, and did learn, how to hear on my own with hearing aids.

Is this the same for CIs? I just went for my first "test" with the speech therapists before implant, to find out how many % i can improve with another "test" after the implant.

Does anyone know if this is necessary? It is really expensive for many sessions also and time consuming... 

Thanks. 

[Kara of Canada]

Renachelw there is no way to improve your hearing more than to do aural rehab. Obviously you have access to a computer then You can do rehab by yourself. There are tons of websites and apps to use for daily training. Please check out our section on aural rehab where others have posted the tools to use and find beneficial. A CI is not a turn on and it works type of implant. It takes months of daily training to get your brain to understand what its hearing again. Best of luck!! 

 

Kara 

[Mary Beth]

It is absolutely necessary to go to your CI audiologist for several mapping sessions after activation.  CIs are not at all like hearing aids. It will take several appointments over several months to reach a stable map.

 

As far as speech/listening training, you can do that independently.

 

Best of luck.

[Renachelw]

Hi Kara and Mary Beth, thanks for your replies.

I am aware that I have to go for mapping sessions with my audiologist, I'm just wondering why the hospital is making me go for speech therapy when I feel that I can do it on my own.

My audiologist doesn't do speech therapy so i'm able to go for mapping without therapy.

Seems like they want me to sign an AVT therapy package which cost around $5000. What do you all suggest? 

I'm 21 and my hearing loss is post-lingual, somehow I feel like they're signing me up for something more beneficial for a kid. I felt like a kid back then also when they tried to make me go for rehab when I first started wearing hearing aids. 

I have not been implanted so I do not know if its really needed or not so I came for advice. $5K is a huge amount for a student like me. Was wondering if this AVT will make me hear better or something? 

Thanks. 

[Mary Beth]

Thanks for explaining.  Wow that is a lot of money.

 

AVT or aural rehab will help you learn to listen with your CI.  In the US, not many adults get offered AVT after CI activation.  So we have to do it ourselves independently.  If you check out the topic here on aural rehab you will see all of our tips and app/website suggestions.

 

It is unfortunate that you can not pay for one or two AVT sessions after activation and then decide if it is helpful to you.  Paying $5000 for an AVT package is a huge investment,