Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Yay!

With all the excitement of the new Naida CI being FDA approved and now available for purchase/upgrade/etc, oh how so badly do I want one!  I would love to get a Naida, but unfortunately, I got my implant before AB started giving out vouchers for the new Naida.  I've got another 3 and half years before Medicare would cover an upgrade, so I'm stuck with the Harmony in the mean time.

I did order 2 new Slim Cel batteries (AB told me Medicare will cover 4 new batteries per year!), a new T-mic, a pack of O-rings (since my T-mic likes to twist around easily on my Harmony... hopefully a new O-ring will help with that), and a pack of T-mic savers from AB with Medicare covering the batteries and T-mic as part of the DME clause (the O-Rings and T-Mic savers were thrown in for free).  FedEx dropped off the package yesterday, with the apartment's office.  And I didn't get home until after 5 so I had to wait until today to get the package.  But I have my new stuff!  Now need to get the Slims charged up, and the T-mic stored away safely (figured it'd be a good idea to have a spare T-mic on hand, so whenever my Harmony or Neptune one goes bad, I already have a new one ready to go).  Am hoping the Slim Cel battery will lighten the load of the Harmony on my ear a bit.  With the Plus Cel, it's kind of heavy and my ear will hurt after a few hours.




Also, HealthyHearing.com featured my blog among others on their website today! For the month of September, they're focusing on cochlear implants, and selected several blogs to be featured throughout the month.  It's pretty cool.


The other sides of hearing loss | Featured bloggers

During the month of September, Healthy Hearing will be featuring different bloggers in the hearing loss community. From individuals with cochlear implants to parents of children with hearing loss, we'll take a closer look at some of the top blogs and resources available to you! On Thursday, we highlighted bloggers with 'Hearing loss in adulthood.' Additionally, each Friday we will have a featured author, an individual who has published a book about their experiences with hearing loss. Make sure to visit Healthy Hearing's Facebook and Twitter pages to enter to win a copy of each book!
A common misconception about hearing loss is that it only impacts older individuals or infants born with the disorder. Unfortunately, there are numerous factors and conditions that can contribute or cause hearing loss, including: Waardenburg syndrome, Stickler syndrome, Usher syndrome, Alport syndrome. In addition, certain medications, tumors and traumatic head injuries can all be a catalyst to hearing loss or deafness.
There are a number of causes behind hearing loss. While many people are familiar with presbycusis, or age-related hearing loss, most people don't know about the other sides of hearing loss. The following bloggers have suffered from hearing loss due to an illness or condition. Their blogs provide readers with an insight to the various ways hearing loss can develop and the impact it's had on their lives.
Another Boomer Blog is written by a 'baby boomer,' someone born between 1946-1964 during the post-war baby boom, whose hearing loss was the result of a traumatic head injury suffered at the age of 18 months. The injury not only crushed the left inner ear, but severed the nerve and took away virtually any ability on that side. Additionally, the right side was impacted as well, although the total hearing loss wasn't discovered until the blogger was three years old. Because the blogger never remembers having bilateral hearing, it's something that seemed normal through the years. Another Boomer Blog not only gives readers the perspective of a baby boomer who developed hearing loss, but one who has lived with it since a very young age. Written with a fond stroll down memory lane, this blog helps readers understand the impact of hearing loss while enjoying some nostalgia as well.
The blogger behind Eye Can't Hear You has been afflicted with Usher syndrome since birth, although the hearing loss wasn't noticed until she reached the age of three and didn't react to the loud crashing of pots in the kitchen. Having noticed she didn't flinch to the bang, her grandmother banged a wooden spoon and pot together to see if she would react, when she didn't the mother made a few arrangements with the doctor. It was then discovered the blogger's one-year-old sister also suffered from Usher syndrome. The blogger details the numerous ways hearing loss has impacted her life, from feeling separated from her peers to delaying her wanting to date. Eventually, as another symptom of Usher syndrome, the blogger also lost her eye sight. Now, she takes readers into her world that isn't just silent, but dark as well. Eye Can't Hear You is written so any reader can understand and relate, which makes it enjoyable and informative.
CD's Ear Blog is written by Meghan, a blogger who was born hearing, but went deaf in 1987 after contracting HIB bacterial meningitis. The disease left her with a very profound hearing loss in her left ear, in addition to a severe to profound loss in her right ear. She wore hearing aids for most of her life and now has a cochlear implant for her left loss and a hearing aid for her right ear. CD's Ear Blog not only provides readers with a glimpse into this once-hearing woman's life, but also includes product reviews and online resources for individuals with hearing loss. She recently enrolled in fall semester at college and has since detailed her journey to get a degree while combating her hearing loss condition. CD's Ear Blog is the perfect marriage of understanding about an individual's life with hearing loss, in addition to learning about the products and devices which help make this condition less challenging.