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5 days since activation and introduction


4Boomer

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New CI implant patient.  Just activated 5 days ago.  My implant was needed as I had a virus in my inner ear and my hearing went down fast.  Will backup little here.  I had an Acoustic Neuroma removed on my left side at the age of 39 in 1985.  Surgery cut off the blood supply to my hearing nerve so instant destruction of hearing on the left side.  Did quite well with my good ear on the right for the last 30 years.  Then the dreaded news that I was losing my hearing on the good (right) side.  Went to a hearing aid for about a year and then it got progressively worse the last 4 month til I could hear nothing.  And I was now a candidate for a CI .  Had to wait about 3-4 months for the implant.  A living hell during this time as communications with the wife was nil.  We had to use a program called "Closed Captions on my iphone and that was not the best.  She finally resorted to using a word processor on the computer to communicate.  Life was miserable for the both of us. 

 

Now 5 days after activation I can see this is going to work.  So far in a quite setting we can converse with each other.  My brain is sorting out the "electronic sounds" and I feel making good progress.  I'm excited about my new journey and ready to go.  Med-El has been great  and I am so glad I went with this company.  Looking for positive comments on what to expect over the next 1, 3, 6, months and beyond. 

 

I feel I have been blessed beyond measure by the Good Lord leading me to the right Dr. and implant team.  The waiting list originally had me getting an implant in Jan. 2016 instead of June 29.  A cancellation came up and the CI team was able to get me in early .  Thank you Lord. 

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  • HearPeers Heroes

Hi 4Boomer,

Welcome and boy are you in for a wild ride. Things change so quickly during the first weeks. Just listen and listen and listen. You will be amazed.

Mary Beth

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Hi 4Boomer

Welcome to hearpeers!!! Congratulations on your activation. You will have great times and frustrating times. Just try to remember the 3 p's. PATIENCE, PRACTICE and perseverance. You will make some great strides in your hearing but it will take some work as your brain is relearning how to hear. It sounds like you are off to a great start. Please keep us posted and ask as many questions as you can.

One thing you can do before your next mapping is to keep a journal and write down what things sound like in certain situations. Try to be as specific as possible as this will really help your audiologist be able to program. Write Down where you were, how big the room or area was, how many people, what did the sounds sound like.....keep your journal and write down everything about the different sounds especially if you are hearing a certain sound for the first time since activation.

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  • 3 months later...

Hi 4Boomer,

 

I should have searched for AN befor posting a few minutes ago.  I was asking if there was anyone else out there with both AN and SHL. You are the first other person I have heard of.  Major difference is I got both within the last year.  I have had my CI turned on for about 5 months and next week I go in for Gamma Knife surgery for the AN.  So far my CI only works in quiet with one person... if they speak slowly.  I know first hand about the hell you went through BC... Before Cochlear.  My husband and I both have an icon on our desktops that pops up MSWord in 26 point type, and we still sometimes use a computer chat, if we are at our computers, but in different rooms. 

 

I recently read that the odds of getting an AN have gone up from 1 in 100,000 to 1 in 90,000, and the odds of getting a sudden hearing loss are 10 in 100,000.  If the odds are correct, and if AN and SHL are unrelated, the odds of getting both should be 1 in 900,000,000.  Since that is almost 3 times the population of the US, maybe we are the only two.  But more likely AN and SHL are somehow related... or my math is wrong.

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  • HearPeers Heroes

It will take some time but I believe that you will improve with your CI. Be patient and practice a lot. You will get there.

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Hi 4Boomer,

 

I should have searched for AN befor posting a few minutes ago.  I was asking if there was anyone else out there with both AN and SHL. You are the first other person I have heard of.  Major difference is I got both within the last year.  I have had my CI turned on for about 5 months and next week I go in for Gamma Knife surgery for the AN.  So far my CI only works in quiet with one person... if they speak slowly.  I know first hand about the hell you went through BC... Before Cochlear.  My husband and I both have an icon on our desktops that pops up MSWord in 26 point type, and we still sometimes use a computer chat, if we are at our computers, but in different rooms. 

 

I recently read that the odds of getting an AN have gone up from 1 in 100,000 to 1 in 90,000, and the odds of getting a sudden hearing loss are 10 in 100,000.  If the odds are correct, and if AN and SHL are unrelated, the odds of getting both should be 1 in 900,000,000.  Since that is almost 3 times the population of the US, maybe we are the only two.  But more likely AN and SHL are somehow related... or my math is wrong.

 

Leah, it's not so easy to make a conclusion because - statistics give you just a chance to get but it doesn't have to really happen...If you understand me... 

Also, 4Boomer didn't have sudden hearing loss than regular progressive hearing loss which was slowly deteriorating. 

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