I love this

I don't have much to say today, but I LOVE this :)

Snap, Crackle, and Pop

David found out today that Rice Krispies really DO Snap, Crackle, and Pop when you add milk.

He commented to me today after a co-worker ate them for breakfast.

THAT is a CI moment for sure!

Simply Exhausting

I debated posting today, but this sight pushed me over the edge.

I went with David to speech last week. It was exhausting for him. He concentrates so hard and works very hard to make sure that he's forming the words correctly, and hearing them correctly. It's really shining a light on this whole process that I didn't fully understand. Never in a million years did I think that 45 minutes of therapy could make a 28 year old man so worn out. (Granted, he does work a very physical job for 8 hours before going...)

This past week I've been super impressed by David. He's worked harder than I've noticed before. Maybe something clicked, or maybe it was because I was finally understanding a little bit of what he's going through.

David has been self correcting this week. Normally, if he mispronounces a word, or letter, it is my job to repeat the word slowly and correctly, then have him mimic what I did. This past week David would say something, then correct HIMSELF repeating the word slowly and differently than he had before and looking to me to see if it was right. If it was he repeated it several more times so that he could feel, and hear the correct sound of the word. If it wasn't I would correct him and he would soak that in the same way.

It's lots of little things like the self correcting that I'm starting to notice on a day to day basis. I've also noticed that he's reading to Jaime a lot more these days. Taking time to make sure every word is read correctly. Jaime LOVES the attention, and is addicted to books. Reading bedtime stories has turned into a wonderful bonding and learning time for father and son to have together.

Once again I find myself bursting with pride at how well David is adjusting to his cochlear implant. Of course there are ups and downs, but at this point it has been far more ups, and it's making a huge impact on our family's daily life.

Free shipping (and life as usual)

Cochlear is offering free shipping this month for web orders. It's usually $9.95 for shipping and it's shipped FedEx 2 day.

I'm sorely tempted to buy David a Hatis system for his phone, but even on sale with free shipping it's pricey. It's worth it right?

So, Jaime corrected David yesterday when he mispronounced Ballerina. We all got a laugh out of that.

I honestly can say that I never appreciated how difficult the English language is until David started speech therapy.

Listen is pronounced liss-en, not LIS-TEN. I never realized that certain letters have the same mouth position, just different vocalizations. Why would you if you're hearing?

When you grow up as a hearing person, it's second nature. You learn to speak that way and you don't really have to work at it. It's much easier to learn when you're young. David is working very hard to learn it at 28.

Jen, if you read this, I'd like to congratulate you on your recent surgery, and David and I wish you all the luck in the world with your upcoming activation :)

(and news of improvement...)

Me, not David.

David continues to rock his implant. He's in speech therapy now, working with Rebecca once a week. He's making progress, though it's slow and frustrating at times.

Right now they're working on recognizing vowels sounds in closed sets of words, and working on l,r,w for consonants.

As far as how the implant has improved his hearing, here are the before and after audiograms!




The first one is pre-surgery from his CI evaluation. I left the info on the bottom so that you can get a gist of what it all means.

The second image is from ONE MONTH post activation. ONE MONTH. That is HUGE.

He went from 43% accuracy with his hearing aids on his HINT test with only auditory cues, to 76% correct with his implant. He scored 100% with auditory and visual cues in quiet conditions.

I can't wait until his next audiogram to see how things are changing.

We both continue to work hard, and it is paying off in a major way!

This says it all.

Mickey Mouse and Cell phones.

Mickey Mouse. Apparently when David was first activated this is what I sounded like. I asked him yesterday if I still sounded like that. He said "no, you sound normal now." I asked what normal was, he said I have a pitched voice (not high, not low) and that it sounds like it did with his hearing aid.

He's hearing everything "like a hearing aid" now. It sounds the same, not so mechanical, but sharper, clearer. It's amazing. I can't wait to see how he does with speech therapy, and what changes that brings about.

The good thing about the speech is that Martha (audiologist) and Rebecca (speech therapist) will be working together and communicating to better map David's implant. If he's having a hard time with a certain sound, Rebecca will let Martha know and she'll tweak that electrode so David will hear better.

Cell phones. David was able to talk to me and carry on a clear conversation with the HOUSE PHONE. From the cell phone it isn't as clear. In fact, he had to switch to talk on his left ear, with the hearing aid. I don't know what his current phone is rated. We're about to both switch cell phones. I'm looking for phones with a T4/M4 rating for David.

Maybe someone can answer this question for me...

Would it make a difference if he was on a T4 and I was on a T3? Should we both be on T4's? Would that make things clearer?