Earlier today I said goodbye to forced uni-lateral hearing. It was a tough goodbye, really. "Hey, I hate your guts, Don't you ever come see me again...EVER. No.....really, I'll call you. It's not me...it's you."
The single best thing about my 2nd hookup today is that this time I KNOW where this is going, and that's a good thing. In my last post I mentioned some "1st day" sounds and thoughts from my right ear hookup back in January. But not even my 4 month recollection could prepare me again for these 1st initial sounds. Instantly I remember things sounding just like what I'm hearing for the first time today, and THAT puts it in perspective how amazing of a process this has been. But today, starting over on the left....things don't sound so great:
Imagine every sound you hear having a triangle reverberating "effect" on it.
I'm spending as much time as possible listening with only my new CI today, because that helps speed the process. Attempted conversation is practically a joke..."I hope you don't mind if I stare...your mouth is moving, but why are you whispering? You're not? Oh.........Why am I yelling? I'M NOT YELLING, I CAN BARELY HEAR MYSELF! AND WOULD SOMEONE PLEASE STOP RINGING THAT DANG TRIANGLE!!!"
I can hear every click of the keyboard and mouse (probably the closest thing to a realistic sound today). I didn't know these things made sound before CI's.
Every time I take a deep breath, it sounds like soft ocean waves crashing in the distance. I couldn't hear myself breathe before CI's.
I mentioned before that sounds become much more normal and realistic once you "see" what you're hearing, and this still holds true, however it's nothing close to the "realistic" way I remember the sounds...not yet anyway. But there's something in my brain that clicks a little and starts to understand what it is I'm hearing once I see it.
After a 3 year hiatus, I got a slight taste of just how much I've been missing today. Again, I've only been wearing my right CI for 4 months, but going into the appointment today I felt I could hear extremely well and things sounded very realistic to me. So they hook up my left CI, I wear it for 15 minutes getting nothing but strange metal-clanging-God's-gift-to-Triangle-beating in my head....then I take it off and WHHAOOAOAooaaa. Who turned out the lights? The volume seemed to nearly cut in 1/2 when I went back to only my right CI; the same one I thought was so GREAT just minutes earlier.
You CAN NOT underestimate the significance of hearing out of both ears. Cover up an eye and play dodgeball. Stick a hand in your pocket and weave a basket. There is SO MUCH information that comes to your brain from bi-lateral hearing, even when it's of the poorest sound quality. And this time I have the benefit of knowing how much it will progress in a short time. Quite frankly, I'm stoked. 6 months ago I could never have dreamed of hearing some of the things I do this very moment.
I've got much more to share on this journey. Thanks for reading. This is not as good as it gets.
Andy, I seriously can't express how gratifying it is to see (and now read about; I love this blog idea, BTW) your experiences these past few months with the implants, after all those discouraging years of gradual worsening.
ReplyDeleteI remember the dinner at Mom & Dad's when I learned you weren't wearing one of your hearing aids because your right ear had just stopped working completely. And that it would probably happen to the other one soon enough too. The holidays last year where you just sat in the room and couldn't understand anyone. It all absolutely crushed me. But now you're able to have like-normal conversations again, hang out and watch movies/sports, and it's especially wonderful to see you able to interact (well) with Lydia finally.
And to think your hearing is only going to get better as you add an entire other dimension to it with the left CI. It is about damn time some things started working out for you; we are all so happy and excited about this!!
Thanks brother, equally exciting on my side.
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