Implanted 3 months ago

[EM46_-]

Hello to all. I am a 67 year old male who has suffered with hearing loss for 25 years. They say that I have "unspecified sensorineural heariang loss" I say that I have a multi component hearing loss. Ear infection as a 5year old poorly treated, too many rock concerts as a teenager, sensorineuralinal loss and the biggest factor is a genetic familial component-my father had poor hearing. Hearing aids in both ears helped but afte 20 years and 4 or 5 sets I reached a plateau where they were not helping and my hearing was deteriorating. I decided after much research here on this forum and attending Aldacon conventions that I needed a CI in my worst ear -the left. I am bi-modal. HA in right ear and CI in left. My implant operation went well because Dr. Alan Micco of Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago did a masterful job. The only minor  complication was CTN. My chorda tympanic nerve was compromised-resulting in a slightly salty taste in my mouth. I am told this will subside in time. Im not complaining just stating a small side effect. I am doing great because I am hearing sounds, bells, whistles, tones, alarms and beeps that I havent heard for 25 years. The CI restored much of my high freguency tonal loss. I am grateful for this. I am still struggling with conversation in noisy situations. My audiologist Dr. Micheele Burns is most encouraging  and is working dilligently in mapping sessions to help my progress. This forum has taught me that patience, perseverence and practice will aid my progress. Sorry for the verbose post but I believe in imparting specific information that might help others. I will relate more in future posts as I progress.