Activation Day of my 2nd implant!

Today was my activation appointment for my second cochlear implant. Surround sound is amazing! I was nervous but excited going into my appointment. I kept reminding myself all morning to go in with no high expectations. I didn't want a repeat of the very first time my first implant was turned on. Oh my goodness, this went so much better than I expected! Having gone through this before and going in with a different mindset made all of the difference in the world. We started slow with listening to the the soft beeps to develop my comfort threshold level. We went through all 22 electrodes before turning it on. I was bracing myself before she turned it on. Keep in mind I had my left implant turned off. She switched my new one on and everything sounded cartoonish. Everything was coming back to me of how it sounded two years ago. But the only difference was I was much more comfortable and relaxed this time! A few minutes went by with my audiologist talking to help me get used to the new sound.  My brain was like, whoa that's a lot of high pitch sounds! The more she was talking, the speech sounds were coming through. Her voice was coming through. I kept looking at Todd because I knew he was experiencing my emotions with me. Once I got comfortable enough, my audiologist said, go ahead and put your other processor on. I can't even begin to describe that moment. That was the pivotal moment of my appointment. It was just AMAZING to hear surround sound! Then the tears started flowing. I was just beyond grateful for this moment. I looked at Todd and he was crying too....which doesn't happen too often! I knew instantly he was happy that my experience was much better this time around. He is my rock and supports me in everything I do. He hurts when I hurt and he has joy when I am happy. I am very blessed to have a husband that is in sync with my emotions. I could not have gotten through all of these experiences of my implants without him. Technology is so amazing and I am thankful for the gift of it happening in my lifetime. I have much work ahead of me with my brain adapting to all of the new sounds on the right side but I am so excited! And I think this will be a much smoother transition than my left side. One thing I'm really excited about is the new phone clip. Since I have the new upgrade processors, it is now wireless. I have a phone clip which is connected to my phone by Bluetooth. Instead of listening through my phone with the handset,  the conversation is streamed through my implants wirelessly! That eliminates the background noise for me so I can hear the conversation better. I couldn't wait to try it. When I came home from my appointment, I talked to my children at home. They were happy to see that I had a better experience. After talking with them,  I couldn't wait to call my son, Matt at UC with my new phone clip. WOW! I could almost understand every word he said without lipreading! And his voice....sounded so like Matt. I was happy nothing changed with the sound of his voice. Very cool! My Mom was in awe listening to me have a phone conversation without too much effort. This phone clip will allow me to have practice listening without lipreading. What a great first day it has been today! I am elated. The best is yet to come and I can't wait to experience the gift of bilateral hearing!

One week post op.....

Well, it has been one week today since my right ear cochlear implant surgery! Sometimes I have to pinch myself that I really went through with this. The night before my surgery, I had a little bit of anxiety. Actually, a lot. I had many emotions....realizing I was getting rid of my hearing aid forever and the sound/hearing I've known since I was three years old. Even though I knew I was gaining something so much better, it was still hard letting go. I prayed about it before I went to bed and I had a peaceful night of sleep. When I woke up, I was a little nervous but I was ready! The surgery went much better than I expected. Although, the first day was rough with being sick from the antibiotic, I was able to get it changed the next day and felt much better. I am very grateful that I have no dizziness or balance issues. With my last surgery, I had numbness in my tongue and change of taste for several weeks. With this surgery, I had none of that! The implant is also thinner and smaller than my left implant so I have a much smaller bump behind my ear. It's amazing how much technology has advanced in two years. My doctor did an excellent job and I am very thankful. My Mom stayed with me for two days....there's nothing like having your Mom take care of you...I am never too old for that! Even though I was recovering and resting most of the time, I was very grateful for my Mom's presence. It kept me at peace knowing things were taken care of.  It also happened to be Mother's Day weekend. I loved having all four of my kids hang out with me all day Sunday in the TV room while I was on the couch. I think they all wish they could've done more by taking me out but just being with them and talking all day was the best gift. My children are growing up too fast and I cherish my time with them even more so. My one week post op appointment was yesterday. My doctor said it is healing very well and to limit my activity for one more week. My energy level has been very low all week but today was the first day I felt a little bit of my energy returning. So I have hope tomorrow will be even better! It has also been quite an adjustment hearing out of one ear. The last two and half years, my hearing aid balanced things out somewhat even though I didn't get much benefit out of it. Now that I'm just relying on my left implant, I feel like I'm hearing or picking up more sounds. It's been an interesting week. As I continue to heal, I am really looking forward to my activation date in two weeks.....June 1st!! I know I have a lot of work ahead of me but I'm excited to see what life will be like with two miracle ears! Amazing to even think about it....

Another miracle I am about to receive.....

It's been a whirlwind! I haven't had time to process my thoughts until this week. With my last implant, it seemed like it was a long wait to get insurance approval. Almost six months. This time it only took two weeks for approval! And now, I am scheduled for surgery on May 7th.  At first, I was like, woah.....let's slow down! Last time, I had much more time to process my thoughts while waiting which at times led me to feel more anxious. I feel very much at peace this time around. I've had several discussions with my audiologist and surgeon about going bilateral. I feel very good about my decision. I have complete trust in Dr. Turner and he is an excellent surgeon. I am very happy he is doing my surgery again.  The butterflies in my stomach have started as I realized I am just days away! I am feeling excited about being able to hear out of both ears. Very excited. During my quiet moments when I reflect on my daily thoughts, I am always grateful for the gift of hearing. Words cannot even begin to express my gratitude. I love hearing all of the beautiful sounds in this world and hearing SO MUCH MORE. I am ready to do it again. I know I have a lot of work ahead of me but I feel like I will be better prepared with my second implant. I will know what to expect during the process of training my ear and brain. Plus, I have the best support system....my family! I couldn't have done it without them the first time and I am thankful they are excited to do it with me again. Ahhhh....it's almost here! I am so grateful God knows my heart and He is able to do more than I could ever imagine ~Ephesians 3:20

Beautiful sounds are everywhere!

I am loving my life with my cochlear implant. I can't believe it has been two years already. I never imagined I would be where I am now with the beautiful sounds I hear. It is miraculous! I was reading through my past blog entries and I am just amazed at how far I have come. The beginning was an emotional roller coaster as I struggled with adapting to my new world of sounds. My whole world changed the day my "ear" was turned on.  It was a very trying few months and I can remember there were days when I thought I would go into sensory overload. I was exhausted to no end as my brain soaked up all the energy I had trying to make thousands of neural connections. There were times I wanted to take it off and just retreat back into my quiet comfort zone.  But I never gave up. I remained steadfast in my walk with The Lord and He lifted me through my trying times. I am so grateful for that. Fast forward to two years later....I cannot imagine my life without my "ear".  I cannot stand it when my battery dies so I always keep my spare batteries recharged at all times. Without it, I realize how deaf I really am. I thought I had good hearing with my hearing aids before but having a cochlear implant really blew my aids out of the water! It is amazing when I think about how well I thought I could hear with my aids when now I hear SO MUCH MORE.  In adults, 0-25 DB hL is considered normal hearing. I am now in the normal hearing range with my cochlear! The world is full of beautiful sounds everywhere! Many new sounds I hear now that I didn't hear with my aids are: birds chirping (my favorite), the ocean waves, the crunching of leaves in the fall, my dog licking out of his water bowl, the sizzling sound of food cooking, my refrigerator kicking on, the oven timer from the next room (!), the microwave buzzer, crickets chirping, the crackling sound of the wood in the fireplace, the squeaking sound of wet shoes across the floor, tree frogs, annoying sounds of cicadas, understanding my pastor's sermon, the many instrumental sounds of music, my kids laughing or talking in the other room, the telephone ringing.....the list goes on! I've always been able to hear people's voices but what is most profound to me now is voices are now clear and crisp with speech sounds. I don't have to struggle as hard to understand. I still lipread because that is very natural to me but it is not such a struggle anymore. Two years later, I still continue to learn new
sounds. It is amazing. And now, I cannot imagine going the rest of my life without giving my other ear the same opportunity to hear! I've thought a great deal about this the last several months and I've prayed about it. I would love to be able to have surround sound hearing. Two weeks ago, I decided to consult with my ENT doctor who did my surgery. He said I was a candidate for the other ear and thought I would do well with bilateral hearing. I had a cat scan done this week to make sure my ear has no signs of infection. This week, I have an appointment to meet with my audiologist to go over everything and sign papers to get the process rolling for insurance approval. This is an exciting time as I start a new leg of my journey! Now, the waiting game begins.....but I am trusting in God's plan for me.