Christa Posted September 25, 2015 Report Share Posted September 25, 2015 Is there anyone around the 35 to 43 mark that has a cochlear implant? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Adam Posted September 25, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted September 25, 2015 CHrista I was implanted at age 43. I am bilateral Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christa Posted September 30, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 30, 2015 Thanks! Sometimes there are different challenges in different age groups. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Ivana Marinac Posted October 8, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted October 8, 2015 Of course, although mental age is all what is important when it comes question of your personal advancement. Like Desiderata said: "If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter;" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christa Posted October 9, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 9, 2015 Ivana I have to disagree with you a little. Someone who is older does not face the same challenges as someone who is say 30. Someone thirty is likely dealing with children, family, work etc... Someone older is likely not dealing with all of those things at once. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Ivana Marinac Posted October 10, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted October 10, 2015 True Christa, but I don't get your point? You mean, those who don't have kids have more time? I was speaking more generally - it's incredibily heavy to take all causes and get real answer. This is multivariant analysis which has to have more inputs. I was speaking about plain people withaout any specificity - of course that additional inputs can make more complex the story. But it can also make it easier. For instance, sometimes family can help a lot during the rehabilitation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Adam Posted October 10, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted October 10, 2015 Christa, I assume that you mean the younger person is going to not have as much time to devote to hearing exercises and the like, therefore wouldn't be as successful with the CI? One way to look at it is, having a lot going on, they may not have time to practice listening but if you have kids, that is a lot of stimulation for your brain to work on. As Ivana has said, Each person is a little different and will progress at different rates even under ideal conditions. One of the things that is taken into account during the evaluation process is if you have expectations that might be too high and if you are willing to put in the time to practice. If you are not willing to put in the work, the surgeon will be more apprehensive to do the surgery. Again, backing up what Ivana said, the busier you are, the more opportunity you have to expose your brain to sounds that will help in your progress. It is very difficult to predict who will do very well and who will take longer as there are so many factors that are involved. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Ivana Marinac Posted October 10, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted October 10, 2015 Exactly Adam Thank you for clearimg my mess Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Mary Beth Posted October 10, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted October 10, 2015 Hi Christa, I'm 51 so past the age range you are seeking. However, I am happy to listen to your experiences and offer suggestions if I have any. I know that I have learned a ton from people of all ages when it comes to my CI journey. I was implanted in my right ear in February, activated in March. I will soon be bilateral. Ask away. There are very helpful people on this board. Mary Beth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes hadron Posted October 11, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted October 11, 2015 Christa, Hi. There is no real data which shows that people in any age range will have similiar experiences with a CI. It is an individual journey unique to one self. It is an extremely challenging journey unlike anything you have ever experienced. At the beginning of the journey everyone becomes frustrated with unexplained successes and failures. It almost seems hopeless. Mapping sessions appear helpful but become challenging when interacting with daily experiences. Eventually out of this chaos your hearing will begin to stabilize. No more frequent ups and downs. When this occurs unfortunately is unique to everyone. Once this happens you will realize how wonderful your CI truly is and will look forward to mapping sessions and interacting with everything around you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RachelM Posted October 26, 2015 Report Share Posted October 26, 2015 Well it only took one month to find someone! I am 35, I lost all my hearing and got an implant this year. It is weird being 35 and suddenly deaf, but I think that my hearing loss was taken more seriously by doctors, and the people in my life are more patient (including my job) because it was seen as a scary and tragic health issue. I think when hearing loss coincides with age, it is too often judged to be part of a wider health and cognitive decline. I notice that when I ask people to repeat something they generally think it is their fault for mumbling rather than being annoyed with me. The other side of that is now that my hearing is a bit more functional people don't believe me when I tell them I am deaf, and that I really just can't hear what they are saying. Being early/mid career is not the best time to go deaf. I am worried about job prospects and advancement. But hopefully as I continue to adjust to the implant it won't be an issue. I bet I have to struggle through more loud bars and restaurants than if this had happened when I was older. What are you finding challenging that is particular to our age group? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christa Posted October 27, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 27, 2015 Hi Rachel I have experienced alot of what you have said. The biggest thing for me is that when I tell people I am deaf, they don't believe me. They get annoyed when I asked them to repeat themselves. The thing I find right now, mostly at my place of work. Is that with the cochlear, people think I should hear everything. Get frustrated when at that rare times I don't hear what's going on or being said. I guess explaining that it is not 100% but that it is 100% better is confusing for most. How long have you had your implant turned on? Did you go deaf overnight? Gradual? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RachelM Posted October 27, 2015 Report Share Posted October 27, 2015 I'm relieved someone else if having the same experience with people not believing they are deaf! Its super weird to have to reiterate "no, really, I am deaf, I cant hear." I lost my hearing in my left ear overnight when I was 18. It had no effect on my life. Being deaf on one side just became just a weird factoid about me. I lost the hearing in my right ear this winter. I had a dramatic loss on Christmas day, then an amazing doctor got it back, then I woke up in the middle of the night in early february and could not hear my voice in my own head and I knew it was over. My husband found me Googling cochlear implants when he woke up. The docs at Georgetown and Johns Hopkins tried everything (I even got hyperbaric oxygen treatment!) and it did not help (I gained a few decibels, but never gained functional hearing again.) I was implanted at the end of May and activated at the end of June. so I have been activated for 4 months, and it is going very very well. I listen to podcasts, can talk on the phone, and I can listen to some music if it is simple and I knew it fairly well before I went deaf. I had a phone interview for a job without having to tell the person on the other side about my deafness. Nothing has come of this, but I don't care. That was my main hurdle in my job search that got sidetracked by my hearing loss. As for people getting annoyed with me on the job, I think people are nicer and more patient with me now that I am deaf. Before I was just kind of a pushy loudmouth who thinks they know better (I started my career in NYC city politics!) and now I am the deaf pushy loudmouth who thinks they know better. No one wants to mean to the deaf girl. The person who is mean to the deaf girl is a bully who everyone will turn against. How did you lose your hearing? How long have you been activated? What are some of the other hurdles you are facing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Kara of Canada Posted October 27, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted October 27, 2015 Well Christa I am 38 and have four kids. I will be implanted a week from Thursday. My kids don't give me too much trouble with my deafness unless they are in a hurry!! Mumbling and running out the door etc. I will let you know how that goes with implantation and activation in about a month. December 1 to be exact. My kids are all in school and range from 10-15. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Ivana Marinac Posted October 27, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted October 27, 2015 Hello Rachel, Interesting question you've raised in front all of us here. I am not deaf but moderately to severly hard of hearing since my birth. So, I don't really know how it is to hear perfectly although I have different kind of hearing loss - a conductive. When I put down my hearing implant, which is not cochlear than a bone conductive implant. In general, all I hear is - average mumbling or I can hear muffled sounds if I put it very loud. Regarding your question, when I ask people to repeat themselves they feel little bit awkward. They retreat themselves and conclude - it doesn't matter... Then I started to close myself into my shell - situation became even worse: you don't track a conversation - are you dumb?!? - No, they didn't tell me that but looking into the eyes of people solve the riddle and give you an answer which you knew it would be like that... No surprises. By profession, I am a medical doctor who used the moment in our history of existence and used technology to achieve my dreams. Eventually I became more interested in the field where I can add value to both sides and be sort of - an interpretator. Like someone say: there are 2 things in your life: time when you are born and time when you meet your future (understand what would make you happy to do in your life). But still, I am pretty much aware of the fact which hasn't changed for centuries. Lots of work should be invest to change this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Kara of Canada Posted October 27, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted October 27, 2015 This is the life of people who have trouble hearing. It is just an area in our world that many don't know about. Thinking about it hearing aids and such haven't really been around that long only in the last 40-50ywars maybe? So don't be surprised that people don't know about it. It's all new to the world. So speak for us!! Tell everybody you know about it. It's the only way people will change. So heard to what we have!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Ivana Marinac Posted October 29, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted October 29, 2015 Actually - no. Hearing aids are much older - stigma and borderline usebility didn't allow wider penetration into society. Not to mention costs etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Kara of Canada Posted October 29, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted October 29, 2015 Cost for sure. Maybe the stigma of "different" or "odd". The way society used to view people as different as "freaks". Or in some way we caused this to ourselves. But it's still new and we need to educate. Like you said Ivana. I have been educating everyone I know. Even my regular Audi. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Adam Posted November 3, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted November 3, 2015 I chose a color opposite of my hair color for both processors. I have had a number of people ask about them. I enjoy educating people about them as many have never heard of cochlear implants Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Kara of Canada Posted November 3, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted November 3, 2015 That's right Adam. I am getting black I have light brown hair. I refuse the skin colour. It's boring and yellows with age. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Adam Posted November 4, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted November 4, 2015 I agree!! There was no way I was going to get a tan color. Of course whatever works for each person. Some people want to be a little more discreet. I opted the other direction but not too bold. I have seen some that are VERY colorful. Pretty neat to look at, just not my choice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Mary Beth Posted November 4, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted November 4, 2015 And you can a,ways splash them up with skinits too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Adam Posted November 4, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted November 4, 2015 This is true. Haven't looked at the skin it site in quite a while Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christa Posted November 4, 2015 Author Report Share Posted November 4, 2015 I got a black one, and change the magnets to bright orange, and bright green Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Kara of Canada Posted November 4, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted November 4, 2015 Can't wait!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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