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 :)