Re: A CI moment at this stage of the game?

[Guest guest]

On September 28th of this year, I will have been implanted for 7 years. I

don't have the same kind of CI moments like I used to, probably because I have

heard so much that nothing is surprising anymore. I do have CI moments -

big ones - just not the same as they used to be.

For example, today I went into Manhattan after work to have dinner with 2

friends. As I was walking down the block I saw that there was a Chicago Blues

Reunion at BB King's. I love the blues! Neither of the friends I was with

wanted to go so I simply bought myself a ticket and enjoyed the most fantastic

blues music. I could NEVER have done this pre-CI! I have so many more

choices now. Every time I choose to go somewhere because I know I'll be able

to

hear - it's a CI moment.

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[Guest guest]

Hi Judy-

I am impressed!

Accents are HARD, so give yourself a pat on the back!

I am happy that you enjoy listening to music, as I have been told that CI's

don't translate

music that well...I just got implanted and have not been activated yet so I am

curious...

Do you remember how music sounded before you were activated or were you deaf?

-Terri

>

> I've had my CI since January 2006 so I don't know if you could

> call this a " CI moment, " but for lack of better words that's what

> I'll say.

>

> I was sitting at my computer working and listening to music from

> Pandora.com when a singer from the 1940s came on (before my time).

> It was Vera Lynn, someone I remember vaguely as being in the movies,

> but not as a singer. I became aware that she had some sort

> of accent. I am aware of accents generally, but not when someone

> is singing. I began to listen more carefully and realized it sounded

> like a British accent. I looked her up on IMBD and sure enough, she had

> been born in England. I was also amazed that I picked up that

> very slight difference. So I went to tell hubby who smiled and

> nodded absent-mindedly. See? Even he has started to take my

> greatly improved hearing for granted. So, I thought I'd come here

> to tell folks who would understand. :-)

>

> Do many of you, who've had implants for a number of years, still

> find " CI moments occurring? "

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Judy

OH yes! CI moments abound for years to come. My first CI is almost 16yrs old

and my other is just a bit over 2yrs. These precious moments do keep happening.

Either the conditions are just right to " hear " a sound you may not have been

aware of, or a new map can open your hearing to other pitches you were not

hearing before. If you eventually go bilateral the entire process starts all

over again. Takes about 3 to 4 yrs for most CI hearing to level out, to what you

can pretty much expect to hear. Then every once in a while a word or sound just

reaches you.... I always smile and pause to savor yet again my return to the

hearing world. What a grand journey we are taking!

Michele Shields

Bilateral 1992 & 2005

" Judy G. " <judy40@...> wrote:

I've had my CI since January 2006 so I don't know if you could

call this a " CI moment, " but for lack of better words that's what

I'll say.

I was sitting at my computer working and listening to music from

Pandora.com when a singer from the 1940s came on (before my time).

It was Vera Lynn, someone I remember vaguely as being in the movies,

but not as a singer. I became aware that she had some sort

of accent. I am aware of accents generally, but not when someone

is singing. I began to listen more carefully and realized it sounded

like a British accent. I looked her up on IMBD and sure enough, she had

been born in England. I was also amazed that I picked up that

very slight difference. So I went to tell hubby who smiled and

nodded absent-mindedly. See? Even he has started to take my

greatly improved hearing for granted. So, I thought I'd come here

to tell folks who would understand. :-)

Do many of you, who've had implants for a number of years, still

find " CI moments occurring? "

[Guest guest]

Judy,

That was certainly a CI Moment. I believe we have these moments

ongoing no matter how long we've had the implant. It just shows you

how willing the brain is to absorb. Many of us don't even stop to

think about these types of experiences as CI moments. I guess we

reach a point where we don't have the appreciation we had in the

beginning and just take things for granted and that's sad.

Thanks for sharing!

Alice

http://www..com

>

> I've had my CI since January 2006 so I don't know if you could

> call this a " CI moment, " but for lack of better words that's what

> I'll say.

[Guest guest]

Thanks, Terri.

I wasn't deaf, but had a profound/severe hearing loss and

have worn two hearing aids for many, many years. (Now I wear

both implant and hearing aid. Listening to all kinds of music,

but especially classical, has always been a priority in my life.

While I was feeling sad that music might not be so enjoyable

anymore from what I had heard, I didn't let that stop me from

having the surgery that I was sure would help me hear better.

After I was activated, I continued to attend the symphony,

the opera, concerts and listening to my CDs.

Here's a couple of sentences I wrote in my journal that will

give you an idea of what it was like in the beginning.

" We went last night to hear Emanuel Ax play the piano with

the Jax Symphony. While listening to music, I always am

experimenting. The music is still very " in outer space " sounding,

echo-y and drawn out and downright weird. It's hard to explain,

but at the same time I can hear the regular music. I turned off

the CI first and then the hearing aid. Without the CI on, the music is

quite fuzzy. Now I can't remember if that's the way I always heard

it, or if the CI is now picking up the sound of each individual

instrument! At any rate, I get the best musical impressions with

both hearing aid and CI on. "

That was written March 2006 about six weeks after activation.

Since then, I have continued to listen to a lot of music as I

believe that is very important if one wants to get the fullest

enjoyment eventually.

So there you have it. As far as music is concerned, in 17 months

it went from " weird " to " wonderful. "

I look forward to hearing about your experience upon

activation. Keep us posted.

Judy

> I am happy that you enjoy listening to music, as I have been told that CI's

don't translate

> music that well...I just got implanted and have not been activated yet so I am

curious...

> Do you remember how music sounded before you were activated or were you deaf?

> -Terri

[Guest guest]

Michele, what a great thing to hear I might continue to have

some improvement for a while. 16 years! I wish I'd had the

foresight that many years ago; however, I'm guessing my hearing

was not bad enough back then. I just barely made it this time. I can

imagine that it is hugely gratifying to be bilateral. I know how

many benefits I get from wearing both my processor and aid.

Judy

>

> Hi Judy

> OH yes! CI moments abound for years to come. My first CI is almost 16yrs old

and my

other is just a bit over 2yrs. These precious moments do keep happening. Either

the

conditions are just right to " hear " a sound you may not have been aware of, or a

new map

can open your hearing to other pitches you were not hearing before. If you

eventually go

bilateral the entire process starts all over again. Takes about 3 to 4 yrs for

most CI hearing

to level out, to what you can pretty much expect to hear. Then every once in a

while a

word or sound just reaches you.... I always smile and pause to savor yet again

my return

to the hearing world. What a grand journey we are taking!

> Michele Shields

> Bilateral 1992 & 2005

>

[Guest guest]

Alice, I think that is exactly what happens, we take it for

granted. It's almost as though I suddenly woke up and

said, " Hey, wasn't that amazing. " That's why I always

like to hear the experiences of the newly-activated.

Judy

> That was certainly a CI Moment. I believe we have these moments

> ongoing no matter how long we've had the implant. It just shows you

> how willing the brain is to absorb. Many of us don't even stop to

> think about these types of experiences as CI moments. I guess we

> reach a point where we don't have the appreciation we had in the

> beginning and just take things for granted and that's sad.

[Guest guest]

Are you saying that even if music doesn't sound good initially it gets better

over time if

you " practice " listening?

What type of CI do you have?

I plan on wearing my hearing aid with my CI as well, as I have good speech

discrimination

in my HA ear and two ears are better than one!

>

> Thanks, Terri.

>

> I wasn't deaf, but had a profound/severe hearing loss and

> have worn two hearing aids for many, many years. (Now I wear

> both implant and hearing aid. Listening to all kinds of music,

> but especially classical, has always been a priority in my life.

> While I was feeling sad that music might not be so enjoyable

> anymore from what I had heard, I didn't let that stop me from

> having the surgery that I was sure would help me hear better.

> After I was activated, I continued to attend the symphony,

> the opera, concerts and listening to my CDs.

>

> Here's a couple of sentences I wrote in my journal that will

> give you an idea of what it was like in the beginning.

>

> " We went last night to hear Emanuel Ax play the piano with

> the Jax Symphony. While listening to music, I always am

> experimenting. The music is still very " in outer space " sounding,

> echo-y and drawn out and downright weird. It's hard to explain,

> but at the same time I can hear the regular music. I turned off

> the CI first and then the hearing aid. Without the CI on, the music is

> quite fuzzy. Now I can't remember if that's the way I always heard

> it, or if the CI is now picking up the sound of each individual

> instrument! At any rate, I get the best musical impressions with

> both hearing aid and CI on. "

>

> That was written March 2006 about six weeks after activation.

> Since then, I have continued to listen to a lot of music as I

> believe that is very important if one wants to get the fullest

> enjoyment eventually.

>

> So there you have it. As far as music is concerned, in 17 months

> it went from " weird " to " wonderful. "

>

> I look forward to hearing about your experience upon

> activation. Keep us posted.

>

> Judy

>

>

> > I am happy that you enjoy listening to music, as I have been told that CI's

don't

translate

> > music that well...I just got implanted and have not been activated yet so I

am

curious...

> > Do you remember how music sounded before you were activated or were you

deaf?

> > -Terri

>

[Guest guest]

, how right you are. Even after only 18 months, I

sometimes read or hear about an event that I would like,

then think, oh, I won't be able to enjoy it because of my

hearing. Then I realize that I WILL be able to hear it. That

is my pre-CI thinking. It's just the same when I have

something planned in February. I still worry that it might be

snowy and icy that day -- in ville, Florida! It will

take a long time for the New Yorker in me to die and it

will probably be the same way with my CI.

Judy

PS I don't miss the snow and ice at all, but I miss Manhattan

dreadfully!

> For example, today I went into Manhattan after work to have dinner with 2

> friends. As I was walking down the block I saw that there was a Chicago

Blues

> Reunion at BB King's. I love the blues! Neither of the friends I was with

> wanted to go so I simply bought myself a ticket and enjoyed the most

fantastic

> blues music. I could NEVER have done this pre-CI! I have so many more

> choices now. Every time I choose to go somewhere because I know I'll be

able to

> hear - it's a CI moment.

>

[Guest guest]

That's what happened to me, Terri, and I couldn't be happier. In my

case, wearing both the processor and the aid have given me hearing

beyond what I could have expected in my lifetime. Since you have

such good discrimination in your aided ear, you might expect the

same. I wear a Cochlear Freedom.

Judy

PS In the beginning, your audi may ask you to wear the processor

only. During the first two - three months, I went without my

aid for 5 - 8 hours per day. I may have gotten to my present

state more slowly than others who wore their processors only

all the time, but get here I did.

..

>

> Are you saying that even if music doesn't sound good initially it gets better

over time if

> you " practice " listening?

> What type of CI do you have?

> I plan on wearing my hearing aid with my CI as well, as I have good speech

discrimination

> in my HA ear and two ears are better than one!

[Guest guest]

I agree with the other posts, I am almost two years acivated (next week!) and I

regularly

have those CI moments. I don't yet take them for granted, although I don't

always shout

them from the rooftops anymore--which I suppose is also sad...

From the word or phrase of a song that I've been listening to over and all of a

sudden I

HEAR it! or an environmental sound, or that sense that I suddenly realize I

wasn't fully

hearing the nuances of a person's voice until now...it's all a joy.

Deb

> >

> > I've had my CI since January 2006 so I don't know if you could

> > call this a " CI moment, " but for lack of better words that's what

> > I'll say.

>

[Guest guest]

I have had my first CI 7 years and the second CI 2 years. The other day I

heard a soft sound and wondered what it was. I moved closer to a just

crumpled bag, and it was the sound of it unravelling or whatever the word

may be.

[Guest guest]

Oh yes, CI moments can occur any time. I was taking a friend to a Dr.

and when he started to talk, I noticed he had an accent that I couldn't

place. I'm usually pretty good with accents. So he said to guess. I

told him he learned English as a second language, but his first language

was either German or Dutch. Here he was from South Africa, and Afrikaans

(a Germanic language very similar to Dutch) was his first language. He

laughed and said people with typical hearing can't even distinguish his

accent.

That's the beauty of the CI. You never know when a CI moment is going

to occur. And I've been implanted 10 years now.

So I went to tell hubby who smiled and

nodded absent-mindedly. See? Even he has started to take my

greatly improved hearing for granted. So, I thought I'd come here

to tell folks who would understand. :-)

Do many of you, who've had implants for a number of years, still

find " CI moments occurring? "

[Guest guest]

I just simply adore reading these CI moments. I can't get enough of them!!

-Abbie

http://contradica.blogspot.com

Implanted on August 27, 2007

Activation on September 17, 2007