Read this Interesting Interview

It has now been a week since I had surgery. I went back to work on Wednesday and am feeling almost back to normal. I still can't lift heavy things or do crunches because those little muscles in my head and neck are still healing. I never knew I used those muscles as much as I do. I found this great article I thought I'd share with you. It's actually a radio interview that involved a well-known researcher, a cochlear implant recipient, and the producer of "Sound and Fury." This movie displays the controversy of cochlear implants in Deaf culture. It's a great film if you have not yet seen it. Click here to see the interview.

Activation day is 5 days from today!

Day 3 of Recovery

I am now on my 3rd day of recovery after surgery. I was able to take off my bandage on Saturday and to my surprise, none of my hair had been shaved off! It is amazing how far cochlear implant surgical techniques and technology has come since their first clinical trials in the 1980's. It is even harder to believe cochlear implants have only been around for about 30 years. The incision used to be large and they would have to shave the area around the site. My friend, Michelle (who spent most of Friday and Saturday graciously doing a bunch of nothing with me and my family), has a sister (also named Stephanie) with a cochlear implant. Stephanie got hers 10 years ago. In comparison to her surgery 10 years ago, Michelle was amazed at how good my incision looked and how quickly I was recovering. Maybe I just have a really good surgeon...

Saturday, my head was sore but couldn't really feel it since I was taking painkillers so I decided I felt good enough to go out to lunch. It probably wasn't the best idea since it was cold, windy, and my first day after surgery....But I was getting tired of sitting and watching everybody else sit. I couldn't pass up going to Hoffbrau's, which was a good german restaurant my dad and I had discovered last time he was here. I was so tired afterwards, I ended up sleeping for the rest of the

day.

It's now Monday, my family has gone back to the Midwest, and I am resting in the comfort of my apartment. The swelling around the incision has gone down and I was able to wash my hair today. The weather is gorgeous outside so I may go for a walk to get some fresh air. If you know me well, you know that I don't do well sitting for more than 5 minutes in front of a TV. At least I have these beautiful 'Luck of the Irish' flowers that my wonderful boyfriend, Brian, sent me. I wish he could have been here too.

I do not yet hear anything with my cochlear implant, but that day will come on March 31st when my external device is programmed and activated. I decided to get Cochlear America's Nucleus 5 device which is the newest and smallest speech processor on the market.

You can find out more about the Nucleus 5 at this website: http://products.cochlearamericas.com/cochlear-implants/nucleus-5-system

You can also find out more about how cochlear implants work at this website: http://www.hearinglosseducation.com/treatment-implants/how-cochlear-implants-work.asp

Peace out, time for a nap :)

Surgery went well

Well I just had cochlear implant surgery for my right ear, which is the ear I've heard pretty much nothing out of for 25 years. I have been waiting for 17 years to actually have this done. I am not a typical cochlear implant candidate but could benefit from using one in addition to hearing with my hearing aid on the left side. I know many people are curious to know how I'm doing and how I will do with a cochlear implant so I decided to start this blog.

Anyhow, I'm sitting in my apartment with my parents and brother, Alex, watching the NCAA basketball games. The games aren't too interesting and I have I dozen movies to watch, but I'd rather let you all know that I'm doing really well after surgery. Much better than I thought I'd be. I went to the hospital at 11 AM and and it was 1:15 PM when I got put to sleep. All the nurses and doctors were very nice and spoke very clearly, which was much appreciated! Surgery took about 2 hours and the surgeon said everything went really well. I have a little bit of pain behind my ear but I'm relieved that my balance was not thrown off. Recovery should take about 2 to 3 days but I''m pretty sure I'll be up and moving by tomorrow. Thanks everyone for all your prayers, I appreciate it! Back to watching basketball and picking which movie to watch first...