I am eagerly anticipating my post-op appointment where the surgery site will be checked out – doing VERY well now. I’m also looking forward to activation day – April 1st!!!
Right now, I’m still in the recovery phase. I’m glad to be moving around more now. But the whole team in the hospital was wonderful and very nice. I am very lucky to have received such a high level of care. But I’m getting anxious for the future of course!
My ear feels numb and there are tingly feelings at times.
Today, I’ve been very paranoid about low frequency hearing preservation. The outcome varies in this regard – even if I lose residual low frequency hearing, the implant can fully compensate for those sounds electronically as it would already for the high frequencies. I am on a high dose of steroids to preserve the low frequencies as the hybrid is designed to optimize. There is no guarantee. Either way, I will be fine.
As for the day the implant is first turned on, I am expecting a bunch of mechanical sounds and beeping. That day and quite a while after that, the sound often sounds mechanical while the brain makes sense of the new sound. It’ll be very important for me to follow a rigorous retraining program – formal auditory-verbal therapy (AVT) as well as informal training (books on tape, for example, where I would follow the text in the book and listen to the audio simultaneously).
I am thrilled I have given myself time for this process, as the beginning, especially, is essential to the best possible outcome. The best outcome is different for everyone and nothing can be known for sure.
I do feel confident things will be better – but how much better remains in the air. But I’m okay with that as I am glad I did this surgery no matter what!
If I hadn’t done the surgery, I’d be thinking “what if?”
There may be an activation video or there might be one after the activation. The doctor doesn’t encourage such videos because they can promote unrealistic expectations when it is still the very beginning of the process. I feel I have a good grasp of expectations: my knowledge that it won’t sound normal yet. But I will want to do what feels best for everyone. That may mean I keep the day low-key and write about it afterwards.
