Big Kid has had his first cochlear implant for almost 12 years. We've had absolutely no problems with his cochlear implant whatsoever, internal or external parts. Other than using them so much that some physical parts wear down a bit. We've discussed with him the option of getting a second implant for years, and he's finally now going for it. He knows he'll be able to hear better with the second "ear" (after much habilitation). It will also be nice to have another ear to hear with if the first one ever does stop working for whatever reason. We also now have the insurance to cover the surgery, while my husband is still on active duty in the Army. These are just a few of the considerations that we have discussed when thinking about a second cochlear implant.
Big Kid also wants to hear while he's in the pool, so he's been looking at and thinking hard about the Neptune processor. He would go for one Neptune processor and then hopefully hold onto a certificate for a second processor later. As an adult, I'm not too sure that's what I would lean towards, as I see some other huge advances coming with the AB processors, and I would probably choose two of the new ones, but this isn't solely my decision. My boy is now a teenager and wants to hear what the other kids are saying at the pool, go to a water park and be able to hear, so he very much likes what the Neptune has to offer.
The process is moving along quite quickly for us, and his surgery is now only nine days away. Looking back through my posts (I started with the oldest posts and read through most of them in the past couple days), I was reminded that after his first surgery it was almost a week before his balance improved enough for him to walk around again. Big Kid's balance is definitely an issue, with his inner ear malformations and whatever other issues he has. We have to be prepared that this may be a problem after this next surgery.
Big Kid also understands that once his second CI is activated, it will take a lot of work for his ear to really understand what it will be hearing. I know Big Kid is a great boy, willing to work hard when necessary, but reality is that he's also a teenager. I'm not sure what to expect.
How's he doing otherwise? He's had his first implant for almost 12 years. We are an Army family and move quite a bit. He's lived in 8 homes and is in his 11th school. Last year as a freshman in high school, he was fully mainstreamed w/o even an FM system and received all As and Bs, with mostly advanced classes. He received a B in Arabic, and I am not kidding about that. The class would use computers for part of the class. The headphones he used rested easily over his t-mic, giving him great access to the sound. Big Kid tested out of speech therapy in fourth grade. As for the FM system he's used in the past years, he chose not to use it this year at all. I don't know if it's because he was self-conscious about using it or not, but as long as he kept up with his classes, I supported his decision.
On the other end of the spectrum is my youngest son, T-Man. He is now in fourth grade, using his CI, but still prefers to communicate mostly through sign language. T-Man is deaf but also has some additional challenges. His receptive language with his CI is pretty good, but he is not good with his expressive language, and doesn't use much speech at all. His speech is still improving small bit by small bit, and we keep working on it. In my book, though, any and all communication is great.
My two boys have the same medical diagnosis for deafness, and both of their CIs are helpful to them, but they are each very unique in their own skills and abilities. Their cochlear implants are not a "cure" for their deafness, but definitely a tool that helps them to access sound. Our whole family continues to use and learn more sign language, too.
I'll post more later, especially re: the upcoming surgery, activation and habilitation. Big Kid has also said he wouldn't mind posting in the future, too. ;)
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