| Patchwork Girl's Rambling Warps | ||||
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Monday, August 11, 2014 ( 2:41 PM ) Jessica A few people have asked me if the cochlear implant would completely restore my hearing... the answer is probably not and also, it won't be an immediate fix either. When the implant is turned on, chances are that everything will sound weird at first. I'm not sure what level of weird it will be, but others have reported that they only hear beeps and are not able to recognize the sounnds as speech right away. Some have reported that they do recognize the sounds as speech, but everyone sounds like a cartoon character, like Mickey or Minnie Mouse, or like chipmunks. It takes time for the brain to sort this out and turn it all into recognizable sound. The people who have the best immediate or close to immediate results with cochlear implants are those who were late deafened and probably had their cochlear implants somewhat soon after losing their hearing. I lost my hearing when I was around 2 and wore hearing aids from age 4 on. When I was around 12 or 13, I was at camp and realized that I did not notice that the battery had gone dead, so I decided to stop wearing it on the right side. I tried one or two times later, but did not give it enough time to get used to it... everything was just too loud on that side and too confusing... Anyway, I kind of fall half way between late deafened and born deaf... I already knew how to talk when I lost my hearing (and sing) and had enough hearing with my hearing aid to be able to continue my language development and was also able to talk on the phone. I stopped talking on the phone a bit over 10 years ago because relay systems made phone calling easier... I guess this is kind of a use it or lose it sort of thing... and maybe with the CI, it will come back to me like riding a bicycle except there will be some sounds I have not heard in many years. This will be interesting and hopefully knowing that it will be weird will be what I need to keep the frustrating aspects at bay... What I'm trying to say in a roundabout sort of way, especially to those who know me: good hearing will take time and it probably won't happen right away... Thoughts about the surgery and recovery: Last week, someone asked me what I thought people should know about surgery and recovery... I already had a list of possible things that could happen: The usual aftereffects of surgery: dizzyness & nausea: I had this... the doctor should give you a pain medication and an anti-nausea medication... I did not need a lot of it and after about a week or maybe half a week, I only needed tylenol/acetiph.. however it is spelled. I threw up once. Totally unexpected, but I was glad I was in our room when it happened, ewww... this was not one of my "oh my gosh I am going to die" type of nausea attacks, but more like "burping feels SOOOO good"... Numbness around the surgery site is normal. The tip of my ear still feels numb. I'm told it will take a while to go away and it's not that bad to me... others may be bothered by it more.. My voice felt weird & my throat felt sore... from the breathing tube. I missed knowing about this part. My voice still feels weird because I don't hear the same way from my implanted ear... I don't know if this will resolve or not when the processors are off. It's not a big deal. Ringing/Tinnitus: I've always had a stream or waterfall and whooshing "air" in my head of varying intensity as long as I can remember. It wasn't as noticeable with my hearing aid. After surgery, it was louder, like Niagara Falls... with occasional beeps and bells. A few days ago I noticed it was quieter than before surgery. I even have moments of NO water sounds in my head and that was awesome... I could actually hear myself think! Facial nerve paralysis: I did not have this complication, but people getting CI surgery need to be aware of this possibility... Changes in taste: I didn't have this complication and this is another one people need to be aware of. Enhancement of other senses or other ear: this seems to have happened to me: I seem to be lipreading better and also I am much more aware of the sounds in my right (non implanted) ear than I remember... I was told to be careful about sneezing (mouth OPEN) and blowing my nose (gently!) and have not had problems with this as far as I know. It didn't hurt, but may affect the implant? I think my first sneeze was about half a week after surgery and it didn't hurt... blowing gently has not been a problem and if I think I'm going to sneeze, I try this, but it usually sneaks up on me. The period between surgery and activation: I've mostly been goofing off online and watching videos... I finished season 1 of The Fosters on Netflix last night.. freaky cliffhanger... maybe I'll go back to Orange is the New Black, but it doesn't grab me the same was as The Fosters, Switched at Birth and a few others... I have some things to work on and will go and do them... I'm trying to decide what tapestry weaving project to do as well...probably the abstract on the big loom... Labels: advanced bionics, cochlear implant, cyborg #
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