: My Educational Experience w/CI

October 17, 2006

,

My educational experience since getting the CI has been quite positive..

There's nothing like the feeling of being able to comfortably listen to a

lecture or class discussion without the fatigue of using interpreters or

captionists. (All of my lectures are in the 3 hour range, so you can imagine

how tiring it can be on one's shoulders and arms when using tactile sign or

one's fingers when using Braille captioning.) I'm also able to easily

converse with other students without having an intermediary to facilitate

communication.

Although I was able to make friends on campus prior to my CI, it's so much

easier now because I can simply turn to someone and strike up a

conversation. I love talking to people and couldn't do that easily with an

interpreter or captionist.

Getting around campus is also easier. If I become distracted or disoriented,

I no longer have to spend time looking for tactile landmarks -- I can use my

hearing or ask someone for help. (The university I attend is quite large

which makes it easy to get lost!)

I also love the fact that I'm able to interact with my professors on a

one-on-one basis. I no longer have to worry about my professors talking to

my captionist or interpreter instead of me!

It will be interesting to see how well I do this semester. I'm hoping to

receive a 3.5 GPA or higher. (Speaking of grades, I received a " B " on my

statistics midterm. Yay!)

When I attend graduate school in another year or two, I'm sure the

experience will be that much more rewarding thanks to my CI. Some of my

friends have been in grad school and have told me about the group work

involved with most class assignments. It's a relief to know that will no

longer be a concern of mine.

I plan to pursue my P.h.D. as well -- a goal I thought would be out of

reach given my deafblindness. Thanks to my CI, now all I see are countless

possibilities!

Left ear - Nucleus 24 Contour Advance with 3G

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

Right ear - Nucleus Freedom

Implanted: 2/1/06 Activated: 3/1/06

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