Gayle

[Guest guest]

Hi Flora,

I live here in CT and had a balloon dilatation five years ago after having

symptoms for two years. I had trouble swallowing and them, began to choke

on food at every attempt to eat. After being told that it was anxiety, and

" all in my head, " I had two endoscopies and finally was referred to Dr.

Traube by my gastroenterologist here in Stamford. When I got to Yale-New

Haven I was given a motility test and scheduled for the next day for the

balloon procedure. It was done on an out patient basis and I went home six

hours later. That night I ended up in the ER where they thought that my

sphincter had a tare. I was given a shot for pain and some tests.

Everything was OK but that started the cycle of spasms.

I went to the ER many times with symptoms of a heart attack. I was given

Procardia under my tongue (I was taking it regularly at the time) and shots

for pain. The spasms seemed to come at anytime day or night, awake or asleep.

Some were so bad and lasted for hours that I felt as if I had been hit by a

train.

I am now taking Nexium and haven't had a spasm for three weeks.

Flora, I might add that I have been on so many different medicines like

calcium channel blockers, nitroglycerin, antacids, antidepressants, and pain

pills. Now, I feel as if I can relax a little.

I have included an article on Dr, Traube, who did my procedure. He

seems to have a great reputation, and there were many patients from all over

the country and the world there for treatment and consults.

If you need any more information or if I can answer any questions, please let

me know.

Regards,

Gayle

Departments of:

Internal Medicine / Digestive Diseases

333 Cedar Street (LMP 92)

New Haven, CT 06520

phone: 203-785-4795

email: morris.traube@...

Clinical Interests:

My interests are clinical aspects of motor disorders of the gastrointestinal

tract.

A major interest is disorders of the esophagus, such as achalasia, esophageal

spasm, and other more poorly described disorders. Major referrals for

consultations or manometric evaluation allow for ongoing or planned studies

in patients with these disorders, with emphasis on modes of presentation,

aspects of diagnosis, comparison of radiographic and manometric aspects,

controlled treatment trials, and long term follow up studies.

Another major interest is motor disorders of the stomach. Referrals for

evaluation allow for studies in patients, with emphasis on relationships of

dyspeptic symptoms of gastric emptying and radionuclide assessments of

gastric emptying in general.

Research Interests:

Evaluation of natural history and treatments for esophageal motor disorders.

Selected publications:

Seeman H, Traube M. (1991) Hiccups and achalasia. Ann. Intern. Med. 115:

711-2.

Goldenberg SP, Vos C, Burrell M, Traube M. (1992) Achalasia and hiatal

hernia. Dig. Dis. Sci. 37: 528-31.

Schwartz HM, Cahow CE, Traube M. (1993) Outcome after perforation sustained

during pneumatic dilatation for achalasia. Dig. Dis. Sci. 38: 1409-13.

Ciarolla D, Traube M. (1993) Achalasia: short term clinical monitoring after

pneumatic dilatation. Dig. Dis. Sci. 38: 1905-8.

Tracey JP, Traube M. (1994) Difficulties in the diagnosis of pseudoachalasia.

Amer. J. Gastroenterol. 89: 2014-8.

Panzini L, Burrell MI, Traube M. (1994) Instrumental esophageal perforation:

chest film findings. Amer. J. Gastroenterol. 89: 367-70.

M, Deckmann R C, R C, Burrell M I, Traube M. (1997)

Differentiation of achalasia from pseudoachalasia by CT. Am. J.

Gastroenterol. 92: 624-8.

Chu P, West A B, Stagias J, Traube M. (1997) Diffuse pagetoid squamous cell

carcinoma in situ of the esophagus: a case report. Cancer 79: 1865-70.

[Guest guest]

Sorry, . I am copying this from the internet.

" The cochlea is the most important part of the ear in terms of auditory

perception. The cochlea is a small bony structure, about the size of your

thumbnail, which is narrow at one end at wide at the other. It is filled with

fluid. The membranes inside in the cochlea respond mechanically to movements of

the fluid (this is called sinusoidal stimulation). Lower frequency sounds

stimulate primarily the narrower end of the membrane and higher frequencies

stimulate only the broader end. Each different sound, however, produces varying

patterns of movement in the fluid and the membrane. "

Alice

The cochlea is about the size of a pea. Picture a frozen pea, that's

the size the cochlea is. VERY tiny.

[Guest guest]

>>Only 4 1/2 days now!<<

Gayle,

Congratulations!! I'll be counting the days with you!! Whoo-hoo!!

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 9/22/2004 5:56:06 PM Alaskan Daylight Time,

bchief@... writes:

>

> Hey Gayle,

> Only 4 and a half days for me too! I'm counting the hours. Larry

Definitely will be thinking of you too Larry! Important events are happening

around here!

Pam

[Guest guest]

Hey Gayle,

Only 4 and a half days for me too! I'm counting the hours. Larry

[Guest guest]

Hi, Gayle!

So thrilled you came through surgery with flying colors!

Congratulations! I know waiting for hook-up is maddening, but you have a much

shorter

wait time than most. The usual amount of time between surgery and hook-up is

anywhere from 3-6 weeks! So, RELAX and take advantage! This opportunity is

not gonna' come too often! <smiles) Prayers for continued good recovery and a

fascinating hook-up day!

Jackie (Flash)

[Guest guest]

Hi Gayle!

I am thrilled for you that your surgery has gone sooo well and you are

feeling great! Hook up is right around the corner for you! I can't believe

how soon it will be. I had a 6 week wait. Best of luck to you for a

continued smooth recovery and a happy hook up day!

Patti

Surgery Day 11/25/02 (What A Day!)

Hook Up Day BWP 1/2/03 (A Happy Day!)

3G 1/31/03 (An Even Happier Day!)

[Guest guest]

Hi Gayle!

Soooo happy to hear you are doing well! Can't believe you get the

staples out and hooked up on the same day! Take some tylenol before you go.

It's phycological -if you know you took it, you won't feel a thing! I felt

every one of my 1000 (ok - maybe it was 20 or so! LOL) non-disolvable

stitches

as they were cut and pulled! AND, while I had no bleeding following surgery,

those darn stitches, minus the thread, " weeped " for a week and a half!

I looked just terrific with blood dripping down the side of my face but

didn't know ti until someone looked horrified!

[Guest guest]

Gayle,

(As long as you don't have any health conditions that prevent you from using

it), you may want to take two extra strength Excedrin (or another brand like

Tylenol, etc.) an hour or so before your staples are removed, I bet you

*won't* feel a thing. Extra strength Excedrin is strong stuff and can make a

bad headache go away in 15 minutes.

[Guest guest]

Haha Flash!

All I can say is DARN IT! And I was soooooo looking forward to

Halloween with my metal staples and enstein looking head. A

little bloody touch would have been perfect!

I will take your advice....not sure how it feels to have staples

removed. I have the large incision and I know there are at least 15

staples because I counted them. Thanks for telling me about the

weeping...I'll be on guard.

--Gayle

> Hi Gayle!

> Soooo happy to hear you are doing well! Can't believe you

get the

> staples out and hooked up on the same day! Take some tylenol

before you go.

> It's phycological -if you know you took it, you won't feel a

thing! I felt

> every one of my 1000 (ok - maybe it was 20 or so! LOL) non-

disolvable stitches

> as they were cut and pulled! AND, while I had no bleeding

following surgery,

> those darn stitches, minus the thread, " weeped " for a week and a

half!

> I looked just terrific with blood dripping down the side of my face

but

> didn't know ti until someone looked horrified!

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Thanks ,

Excedrin was one of my old standbys until Advil came along. I love

Advil and have had lots of experience with it and oral surgery. It's

fantastic,

--Gayle

> Gayle,

>

> (As long as you don't have any health conditions that prevent you

from using

> it), you may want to take two extra strength Excedrin (or another

brand like

> Tylenol, etc.) an hour or so before your staples are removed, I bet

you

> *won't* feel a thing. Extra strength Excedrin is strong stuff and

can make a

> bad headache go away in 15 minutes.

>

>

[Guest guest]

Gayle,

I'll have to give Advil a try sometime when Excedrin no longer works for me.

[Guest guest]

Hi Gayle,

I was waiting to read your report and decided that you would share it when you

were ready. I know the activation can be an emotionally draining time and it's

very rarely what you expect it to be. When you are ready to share, we are

here.

Alice

[Guest guest]

Hi Gayle,

Sorry, I didn't mean to rush you! <smile> I'm

still in hearing aid mode so I was expecting you

to report that day. I should have known it would

be an emotional time and you'd tell us about it

when you were ready. No rush but of course we

want to know how you are making out when you are

ready and able to tell us.

Janet

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Alice.......Shhhhh.....that was a supposed to be a secret! LOL I

think your analysis is probably what is happening....I've always been

complimented on my speech...even by audiologists, they just don't

understand how I have the clarity and inflection that I do. I

maintained it even when my hearing aids no longer worked for me so to

now sound awful and getting nervous about the sounds is apparently my

main problem at this point. I've been practicing talking aloud to

get accustommed to the louder sound and gauging that loudness by

touch on my throat. I believe I will eventually be comfortable with

it and need to relax and just " be " . Thanks for your terrific advice.

--Gayle

> Gayle,

>

> Can I make a suggestion? Don't try to change your voice. Go back

to the way you were talking and it will all come naturally. Your

voice is the closest to the mic so it naturally sounds louder. At

your next mapping, let the audiologist know that your own voice is

annoying to you and then let the audiolgist do what is necessary to

make it more pleasant, even if it's only done on one map.

>

> BTW - you and I are the same age.

>

> Alice

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Gayle,

You can also judge the loudness of your voice by feeling the vibration of

your vocal cords in your throat. (I couldn't tell by your message if this is

what you were referring to.) The stronger the vibration, the louder

your voice is. The softer the vibration, the softer your voice is. This

advice was given to me by an ENT I had years ago.

CI candidate awaiting insurance approval and surgery date

[Guest guest]

Hi Gayle!

Alice gave you great advice, when she told you to let your audie know that

your own voice is annoying to you. I got my first " ahhhh, now this is

nice! " map based soley on my youngest sister's voice. I couldn't stand her

high

pitched voice! So, my audie made me a map with more bass in it and rounded

off the highs and lows and after that her voice was the easiest for me listen

to from the next room over. And that's when speech discriminationfinally

started seriously kicking in for me....three months into my hook up!

Good luck to you, Gayle!

Patti

Surgery Day 11/25/02 (What A Day!)

Hook Up Day BWP 1/2/03 (A Happy Day!)

3G 1/41/03 (An Even Happier Day!)

" Can I make a suggestion? Don't try to change your voice. Go back to the

way you were talking and it will all come naturally. Your voice is the closest

to the mic so it naturally sounds louder. At your next mapping, let the

audiologist know that your own voice is annoying to you and then let the

audiolgist

do what is necessary to make it more pleasant, even if it's only done on one

map.

BTW - you and I are the same age. "

Alice

[Guest guest]

Hi, Gayle,

Ahhh, now I " M crying! LOL I didn't come right out and ask, but I

surmised from your posts that you were as normal as I am. Those overachievers

who write in are sooo obnoxious, aren't they? LOL JUST KIDDING!!! Those

" overachievers " are the ones who let us know there is more out of this

technology

to be had. We may not get it as quickly, or even as fully as they do, but

it does give hope that improvement is ours for the patience in time passing,

as well as practice, prayer, and, yes, phooey! LOL Sometimes we can wish our

lives away saying, if ONLY the time would pass and I could be THERE! And

then we turn around and say, " but where did the TIME go?? " Your feelings

about some days dispirited and others just knowing we can do this is probably

universal among us " textbook " cases. Of course, I thought I was the only one

to

feel that way! LOL And don't worry about tests! On any given day or in a

certain circumstance, they mean nothing. It's real life that counts!

By the way, Gayle, how about ditching the bandanna and going for a long

flowing scarf gypsy style for a change. It feels so " cool " and you will

NEVER get away with it again! LOL

Anyway, thanks to you and others who have written to let Joanne know

that while this technology is amazing, nothing is perfect. (except for you and

me, of course! ROFL)

Hang in there, Jo, and others! You WILL get through this!!

) Jackie

[Guest guest]

,

Thanks for your input to my question. I am currently researching

music therapy and know of a couple of people who have used it. They

tell me that when you learn to discern the different notes on the

musical scale that that ability reinforces and helps you notice more

sounds when listening to speech. I don't really need AV therapy as

I'm doing above average in speech discernment so far. (91%

understanding in open set sentences at normal volume). I also cannot

afford a therapist, AV or music. So, I take every opportunity I can

to " listen " ...without lip reading and trying to understand what is

said. I find I can usually get the gist of what is said without too

much effort. I'm sure it will get even better as I work at it. May

I ask just exactly what an AV therapist would do? I'm well beyond

listening to lists of words and will be listening to books as well.

I've not done very much in the way of formal exercises due to lack of

anyone to work with me. My next mapping will be in 3 months time and

I hope to improve my speech understanding before I see my audie.

Gayle

N24C, 3G Postlingual

Implant: 09/27/04

Activated: 10/06/04

>

> Hi Gayle,

> If you haven't received any Audio Verbal therapy (AV) see about

> getting some. Children are given this as a matter of course, while

>

[Guest guest]

Thanks, I want feed back like yours to help me decide which I should get.

Gayle <gayle227@...> wrote:

Hi ,

I know you've received a couple of answers already but wanted to say

that my audiologist discourages use of the BWP. Most of her patients

much preferred the BTE over the BWP. I started with the 3G and

received a certificate from Cochlear Corp. to be submitted for either

a 2nd 3G processor or a BWP, whicever I prefer. I will be getting a

2nd 3G and that's my backup if anything should happen to my original

3G. Like many other CI users, I do not want the BWP as it's a

reminder of those cumbersome body hearing aids I had to wear.

Gayle

Somewhere I got the idea that everyone had to start with a body worn

processor then would move to the 3G.

[Guest guest]

HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY GAYLE!!!

Hope you had a good one!!! Sorry for being so late...

((( Birthday Hugs )))Helen

(V) (V) (V) (V) (V)\|/ \|/ \|/ \|/ \|/^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ THINK SPRING !!!)

[Guest guest]

Happy Spring to you and everyone you love, Its freezing and snow everywhere! The calendar tells me that it is spring though!

Your pad sounds like mine, the house is up higher than the back field and stream, that stream was just a little brook 30 years ago, now it is getting to be a small river..

Right now it has anchor ice on it, do you think that stupid Fella minded, he rushed it, broke the ice and went swimming, he got out a different place where there was no ice, smart huh? Just wanted to look for the trout who should soon be in there!

The willow will not break again unless we have a snow load on it, and not likely this year.

Leaf time they are the menace. Please do not fret about it Helen!

My tummy is fine, getting sick of yogurt though, a part of every meal!

Try to keep well Helen and do not overdo it, my prayers for you all .

Hugs Anne

[Guest guest]

Yes, my diet has been out the window today. Hugs, VickieGpatricia wrote: Oh that pie sounds heavenly, oh the sweet tooth is hitting hard lol. I love the black jelly beans most and I love jelly bellies. Swimming sounds good this humidity is nasty here. hugs...pat

Yahoo! oneSearch: Finally, mobile search that gives answers, not web links.

[Guest guest]

Yes, my diet has been out the window today. Hugs, VickieGpatricia wrote: Oh that pie sounds heavenly, oh the sweet tooth is hitting hard lol. I love the black jelly beans most and I love jelly bellies. Swimming sounds good this humidity is nasty here. hugs...pat

Yahoo! oneSearch: Finally, mobile search that gives answers, not web links.

[Guest guest]

Yes, my diet has been out the window today. Hugs, VickieGpatricia wrote: Oh that pie sounds heavenly, oh the sweet tooth is hitting hard lol. I love the black jelly beans most and I love jelly bellies. Swimming sounds good this humidity is nasty here. hugs...pat

Yahoo! oneSearch: Finally, mobile search that gives answers, not web links.