At the risk of showing my age......

[Benoit Rochon]

he clapped his hands in front of her eyes, of coarse she would blink, the best way to test someone hearing are with tuning forks behind the head, if you feel a breeze on your head then you will respond

I know. They had to changed doctor because he also misdiagnosed something else for over a year. They think of maybe suing him, but out here in Quebec it's not that easy to come back after a doctor.

[julian abram]

Ken, I realize this thread is kinda old but read it and wanted to tell you how much I appreciate what you have shared about your hearing loss and experience with CI. After 55 years of perfect hearing I experienced major hearing loss. I started having severe nauseating vertigo on a Sunday morning, by the end of the week I had lost all hearing in my right ear and had significant loss in my left. Emergency room Dr. diagnosed me with and an ear infection, gave me antibiotics, sent me home. A week later ENT diagnosed me with Sudden Sensorial Hearing Loss. I think this is the same thing Rush Limbaugh had. Anyhow, it's certainly been a life changer. I hear fairly well with one hearing aid if people are close to me and no background noise. Now at age 60, my remaining hearing has remained stable for 5 years. I'm hoping not to lose anymore but it's good to know CI is an option if needed. In most cases ENT's have no explanation for sudden hearing loss but I will always fear that I did this to myself with too much unprotected hearing while target shooting and operating machinery. I now appreciate so much what little hearing I have left, I can understand your experience at night when you take your "hardware" off and hear only the white noise. Fellows, protect your hearing!

[Michael Weber]

Julian, in general, the sooner you get an implant the easier and faster the recovery. If you truly qualify and you want to get a CI, you should start the process sooner rather than wait. The brain begins to loose it hearing memory and makes rehab an more difficult process. I'm not telling you to do it. It's a very personal decision with some downside results. I was implanted last July and still struggle to understand speech, but I began to lose my hearing as a child. It grew worse over the years and my brain totally forgot to how to process high frequencies. That makes my recovery more difficult. There is lots if information at a forum called HearingJourney.com Its sponsored by one of the cochlear implant companies but fairly generic in nature. Be aware, if you go there, that most of what people post is great news and easy activations and "WOW moments". There is not a lot of posting by people who are struggling with their implants. FYI, I believe that UAMS has a facility in Fayetteville that performs CI implants. Not 100 percent sure about that. Had mine done in Little Rock at UAMS.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Mike,

First I want to say I am sorry to hear you are still struggling! I hope you continue to improve over time. You have seen me post at HJ when I caution everybody to not get their hopes too high! The potential emotional crash can be disastrous!

Julian,

My hearing loss was similar to yours. I lost most of the hearing in my right ear 12 years or so ago. The residual hearing in that ear is so distorted, the ENT at the time didn't recommend an HA. Then July 8, 2010 I awoke to find my left...my "good" ear had died while I was asleep. It took some time to get through convoluted testing and qualification for a CI. My surgeon prescribed a HA for my right ear as I chose to wait for a US manufacturer to regain FDA approval for their CI following a self-imposed recall. For 10 months I lived with just the HA and I couldn't function with it. I had to resort to a whiteboard or pen and paper.

I have taken a diuretic to prevent reoccurring vertigo attacks that started around the time of my right ear's hearing loss. I take those diuretics today. The theory is it reduces the fluid level in the inner ear. My surgeon has diagnosed me with Meniere's disease for which there is no definitive diagnostic exam but is diagnosed by the patients historic symptoms. Patients with Meniere's disease often have vertigo attacks and a loss of hearing though typically it's a gradual loss.

As Mike pointed out, late deafened adults appear to do better with adapting to using a CI. The theory is that the auditory nerve has been more recently stimulated and the brain is used to hearing and has a hearing memory to which it can reference.

Here's a link to a website that isn't sponsored by a given CI manufacturer http://cochlearimplanthelp.com/ . If you poke around there you will find my story there. I would not allow myself to be involved in a manufacturer's advertising. I believe the decision of which brand of CI is too important and too personal to be involved in that type of hype. I think it is important for each of us to make our own decision.

I would recommend concentrating one's research on the internal implant and it's capabilities. The externally worn sound processor (that looks like a HA) can be replaced or upgraded with a minor financial inconvenience. The internal implant's upgrade could be more difficult due to further surgery. Two of the 3 brands of internal implants have unused abilities that could be made available once the software is developed, FDA approved and simply loaded onto the sound processor which would then download it to the internal implant. Do your research if you decide to have a CI.

I was definitely one of the lucky ones. Keith Outten met me for the first time face-to-face a few weeks ago in his shop. He can attest I do quite well with face-to-face conversations. But I was a lucky one and have stated that numerous times.

All CI recipients travel on a journey to an individual generic destination of better hearing and we all progress at our own individual pace.

Mike has seen me post at HJ........Hope for the best......prepare for the worst.......and celebrate any improvement.