Yes, I'm still hear

[Guest guest]

Hi, CI Friends,

I'm sorry I haven't been posting much or responding much, although I am

following everyone's progress with interest. One reason is that I have not been

feeling very lively. My husband caught a cold kast weekend up in the chilly wet

mountains at the CI retreat, and since we share and share alike I got it a few

days later. I am pleased to say that I have not noticed any significant loss of

hearing due to the stuffiness of my head, but I have certainly been aware of a

lack of vitality. I have been going to work almost every day for part of the

day, and this is such a busy time for us at the library that I am quite wiped

out when I get home (as is everyone else on my staff; they are not recovering

from surgery but they are working long hours flat out and they all deserve

wonderful rewards for their efforts).

At my last mapping I received four new maps. Three of them were gradually

ascending Speak programs, and the last one was an Ace map. My audi thought I

could spend a week or so at each of the Speak levels and then try the Ace for

the last week before my return on July 8. I moved fairly quickly from P1 to P2,

which were both basically the same map I had originally been given. Then I

decided to try the Ace, just to see how I liked it. In a word: WOW!

My first impression was negative. It is a much faster program, and it sounds

much different than the Speak map. I knew this would be true from what others

have told me, but I could not really understand what that meant until I actually

heard the difference. The Ace sound is very crisp and very much clearer. The

downside is that there is a definite sibilance to the sounds I am hearing. I

don’t know if that just means I have to take more time to get used to it, since

it does seem to be getting less noticeable, or if this is something that will

need to be programmed out at my next mapping. The “s” and “sh” sounds come out

as hisses, very separate from the main stream of sounds, and there is a tendency

toward a small stream of hissing overlaying the lower tones. This is more like

what I was getting at the very beginning, when my brain had not yet sorted out

background noise from foreground, which is why I think it may continue to

improve as I continue to hear with it. Some voices are hissier than others;

women’s voices, naturally, more so than men’s.

Last Wednesday we went to the theatre again, and I found there was no comparison

between the two maps. Even with the sibilance, I heard the play much more

clearly with the Ace map, and I have not returned to the Speak map since then.

Our seats are in the second row, but there was a lot of action in the aisles and

on the sides of the audience as well as on the stage. With the exception of one

actress who played her role in a constant (and painful!) shriek, I was able to

catch a good deal of the dialogue. The play was Shakespeare’s Comedy of Errors,

which I have seen many times and had re-read just prior to attending the

performance. That is my standard procedure whenever possible. For the past

year at least, even that kind of preparation was nearly useless. I could only

primarily follow the actions, not the language. This time, especially with the

two main male characters, I could understand clearly what was being said. This

is a considerable improvement over my experience even two weeks earlier.

Since then I have been using the Ace map all the time, at work and at home.

There is still a bit of hissing overtone, even to the clack of my computer keys,

but I am able to hear my husband call me from two rooms away. Last night, I was

reading in one room with the washing machine going in another, and I could hear

his half of a phone conversation in the bedroom. I am really impressed, I must

say. I can’t wait to get back to my audi and try some of the other options on

the Ace program (Adro, Whisper, etc.).

So, even though I am not yet leaping even very small buildings at a single

bound, I am still making stupendous progress with my implant. O brave new

world, that has such creatures in it!

Hugs to all,

Marcy

Nader

rnader@...

EarthLink Revolves Around You.

[Guest guest]

Marcy,

You really have a way with words! Have you thought about writing a book

about your CI experiences?

I'm glad you're having fun experimenting with new speech strategies and have

found one that works well for you!

Although I've never had the opportunity to try anything other than ACE (my

audi and I don't see the need since I'm doing really well with ACE), I'm

quite pleased with its sound quality. Everyone's experience/preference is

different, but like you, I find the sound quality of ACE to be very crisp

and clear.

Would you mind explaining what is meant by " sibilance? " Sorry...I'm not

familiar with that term.

Glad you're still " hear! " <smile> I look forward to reading more about your

CI moments, so please keep them coming!!

Implanted: 12/22/04 Activated: 1/18/05

Deafblind/Postlingual

BTE hearing aid user 20 years

Severe-profound hearing loss 10 years