35th entry ~ February 21, 2024

Today was the third session with my speech pathologist, following activation of my cochlear implant on December 5th, some eleven weeks ago (11 weeks and 1 day). Since the previous session two weeks ago, I have not practiced the word/sentence lists that she gave me – not even once. I have, though, been practicing my own sentence list, reading aloud with only the cochlear implant, with the hearing aid turned off, still in its case.

Other listening experiences include conversations with friends in small group situations, piano practice at home, listening to news casts and other programs through my laptop speakers or on the car radio, and, yes, even a few telephone calls – all of those with the use of both the implant and the hearing aid. The phone remains my nemesis and I only use it when there is no alternative. As I have learned from other CI users in some of the support groups I belong to, returning to regular phone use is often the last hurdle in our race to improved hearing.

I shared with my speech therapist that I have experienced improved hearing as I practiced piano over the past few weeks. In fact, this coming Sunday I will be playing a beautiful new arrangement of the hymn Wayfaring Stranger, written by David Gale, a composer in Tucson, for the morning worship services at our church.

I have to rely on my hearing aid to get me through the music, though, as I’m still not able to make much sense of music without it. With only the implant in use, music sounds quite strange to me. Even following along in the score of a piece of music while listening to our church choir rehearse, the music often makes no sense to me, and I’ve been unable to understand the directions given by our director. I’m not worried, though; it will get better over time.

As my speech therapist and I reviewed the assignments and practiced a few new ones in her office this morning, I turned my hearing aid off but left it in my ear. Effectively, it functions much like an earplug, so that I am forced to hear only the sounds coming through the implant. My success rate was quite good – I’d say phenomenal, actually – and she was quite pleased. When we finished practicing, we went on to discuss other things. I left my hearing aid turned off.

After a few minutes, I came to the sudden realization that I was, for the very first time, able to carry on a conversation with a person, with very little misunderstanding and relying solely on my implant. This may seem a simple thing to my hearing friends, but for me it is a major step forward in my journey toward better hearing. It provided quite a boost in my self-confidence, certainly.

As I’ve written before, it’s a long and winding road – but it’s getting me where I need to go! I feel like I’ve just rounded a bend in the road and the scenery is pretty nice!