Right ear is activated!

Activated and rolling!  We got to the clinic bright and early, mom was just far too efficient and on the ball.  Finally the clinic opened their door and we sat in the waiting room for a bit.  Audiologist came out and got us, and led us to her office.  Started with unpacking some of the stuff from the Naida kit.  Both Naidas came out, and we started programming one for the left ear first.  Took the headpiece off the Harmony and attached it to the left Naida, no big deal.  Got the left Naida programmed, and then started on the right one.  Went through the whole process of checking each electrode and setting comfort levels and all that fun jazz, and then she turned it on.  Oh man, the whole world sounds weird!  I did hear right off the bat, but everything had a high-pitched quality to it, like as if everyone (and everything) has sucked in some helium from balloons.  Audiologist kept making some tweaks here and there, and eventually got 5 programs installed onto the right Naida (P1 is what I'm currently using, P2 is same as P1 but with UltraZoom; P3 is louder P1; P4 is P3 with UZ; and P5 is louder P3).  Left Naida is essentially programmed the same as the Harmony, so P1 is normal, P2 is with UZ (P3 & P5 are the same as P1, P4 is same as P2).  Confusing isn't it?  Left ear is stabilized and I wasn't too concerned about making any tweaks/adjustments.  She also reprogrammed the Neptune to be used as a back-up for my right ear (same P1, P3, and P5 programs from the Naida).  Also, each of my Naidas has 2 sets of programs so it can go on either ear.  And my right Naida is already at IDR 70.  Audiologist wanted the IDR to be the same with both processors, and since I'm at 70 on the left, she boosted me up from 60 to 70 on the right.  I'm able to tolerate it so I was fine with that.

starting with the left ear first!

 

ready to get the right one going

whoa that sounds weird

We discussed upcoming MAPping appointments.  She would like to see me before Christmas if possible, but is aware of Wyoming's crazy weathers during the season so there is no guarantees we'll make it down.  Will see though.  She said she was even willing to get me in during a weekend, not a problem.  And if we absolutely can not make it down, I can always Fed-Ex a Naida to her so she can boost the levels.  Also said to definitely schedule an appointment with her when I schedule an appointment with the surgeon for 3 months out, not a problem.  We also checked to make sure the ComPilot was working, which it was, then we were sent out to wait for my appointment with the surgeon. 

Did a bit of waiting, I was called back, spoke with the surgeon's assistance (we talked about the vertigo and that it was indeed resolved, etc.).  Then more waiting, until the surgeon came in.  Talked about the recovery, the vertigo set back, he checked my ear, took stitches out... I brought up my concern of the top part of the incision looking off, and he said it looked fine to him.  Okie dokie.  Said to see him in 3 months, and then off to the scheduler's office I went.  Scheduled for January to see both surgeon and audiologist (follow-up to make sure ear still healed up nicely, and another MAPping).

Done, and done!  Mom and I hit the road to head back home!  At one point, I tried fiddling with the ComPilot, but couldn't get it to work, oh well.  We got back into town before 4:30, so I even had time to go to the ASL class at the college.  I did finally get the ComPilot to work after class at home, with my laptop!

the AB goodies!

all the parts and pieces in a box

marked, so I know this headpiece has 2 magnets (for the right side)

Now that it's been a few days, things still have that helium quality sound.  But then again, since I have been sick in the last few days, I haven't always been wearing my processors. I was sick and tired and miserable and just didn't care if I heard or not.  Now that I'm feeling better, I'm ready to do some auditory rehabilitation and hoping the helium quality fades away soon enough and things start sounding more normal.  The day after activation, when I was back at work, I got sick of listening to the air conditioning that I had to take the right Naida off for a bit (sounded like an ongoing whistling/feedbacking that wouldn't stop!).  Wind sounds like whistling, even my own breathing sounds like whistling.  Ahh, annoying!  At times I temporarily forget I now have a right cochlear implant, and I get to thinking "why is my hearing aid feedbacking so much?" and go to adjust it, then I remember "oh that's just the implant sounding weird!"  It's been a weird adjustment period.  But it'll get better!  Just wish the high pitched/helium quality will go away already, I'm quite annoyed with that by now. 

my activation video!

Bilateral!

 I now have two cochlear implants, bilateral bionic ears! Now I just have to wait until the 28th to get the new one activated and get my Naida CI processors programmed. Can't wait!

We left late Monday morning and made it to Denver around 4ish. Got checked into the hotel and hangout for a bit. Visited with an aunt and cousin, then we all had dinner at Piccolos. Mm tasty dinner! I sure was stuffed when we finished dinner. Made a quick stop at King Soopers for a few things, then headed back to the hotel for the night.

Got woken up bright and early, ew. I got dressed, joined mom and stepdad downstairs and had a small bowl of yogurt. Went back up to room for a bit, then we headed out. Drove round for a bit until stepdad dropped me and mom off at Swedish Hospital area. Mom and I went up to the CI clinic, I checked in, and we waited... And waited.... And waited even more. An apprentice audiologist called me back and it was decided I didn't need a new hearing test, since my last  one was in August and I hadn't noticed any changes in hearing. Back to the waiting room and waited some more. 

Surgeon's assistance called me back and led me to an exam room. I answered her questions, then she left. I waited even more until Dr. Kelsall came in. We talked, discussed the plan, that sort of thing. I didn't have any questions for him to answer since I had already done all this once. He did say he would try to put the new implant in a similar spot as my left, try to make them symmetrical, but no guarantees. Fine, that's understandable. Then I was taken to the surgery scheduler's office. Was given a copy of the paperwork I had filled out, post op instructions, and prescriptions. Then I was sent on my way. 

Mom and I headed over to the hospital for the pre-admit/pre-op appointment. Checked in, we quickly checked out the gift shop, and then I was led to an office. Handed over drivers license and insurance cards, answered questions, yada yada yada. Then was led to pre-admit clinic. Waited a bit, nurse came and got me. She is a bit hard of hearing herself, and was completely understanding of my need to be able to lip read her. Went over medical history, confirming I am getting a right cochlear implant, that sort of thing. Then she prepped for. Blood draw. I warned her that I could be a tricky stick. She checked my right arm first and didn't see anything. Moved onto the left and she found a vein. She stuck me, which hurt! Two vials of blood taken, then I was done.

Mom and I walked over to the Walgreens inside the other end of a medical building on the campus to get the scripts filled.  Mom called stepdad to see where he was, he was still getting his haircut. Alrighty then, mom and I walked over to The Copper Pot across the street for lunch, since we were starved! Had some southern grilled cheese sandwiches and split a Mac and cheese. Lunch was excellent! More phone calls, stepdad now on his way. Mom and I went back across the street to wait. Got picked up and we went back to the hotel for a bit. Hung out in downtown Denver for a while with the cousin, and ended up having dinner at Fado's Irish Pub. Shepherds pie was awesome, mmm! Then back to the hotel for the night.

Wednesday morning, bright and early, mom got me up. I got ready and played with my iPad until it was time to head over to the hospital. Drove to the hospital and went up to the third floor. I got checked in and didn't have to wait for too long until a nurse got me. I followed her to the pre-op area, and got changed. Answered more questions, another nurse took vitals and got an IV started in my right hand. She made a bit of a mess of my hand ice, and both nurses tried to figure out how to best secure the line, since it was kind of a funky place to stick the IV. She mentioned it looked dangerous, where it was! Haha. They got it secured as best as they could, and I had to lay back for a bit as I was feel queasy. Started feeling better again and was sat up again. Mom and stepdad were brought back and we hung out. Kelsall stopped by for a few minutes, wrote his initials on my right ear, then he was on his way. Anesthesiologist came in, spoke with us, then went to check on the OR. An OR nurse came and got me, and I was taken to the OR. I scooched over to the table, and the nurses got me all strapped down while the anesthesiologist worked her magic. I was out!

 

marked and ready to go!

Woke up in recovery some time later, head and ear hurting, and still feeling drowsy. Nurse gave me an injection for the pain, andu dozed in and out for a bit. Then I was given some ice chips, oh that was nice. Also noticed a sock was off my right foot. Was helped to the bathroom, then into the wheeled recliner to be taken to the post recovery area. Mom and stepdad were brought back. Nurse went over instructions with mom, and I asked if I was getting a copy of the x-ray. She told my stepdad where to go to get the X-ray and he went and got it! Should be interesting to see this X-ray. Then he went to get the truck while I changed back into my clothes and was wheeled down. Pre-op nurse even came by to check on me real quick too, which was nice of her. Was wheeled down to stepdad's truck, loaded in, and off to the hotel we went. Off and on I would doze off some more, feel like I would be getting sick, meh.  Mom was concerned and kept watching over me, making sure I was ok.  Aunt sent over some munchies with my stepdad when he went to go get something for him and mom to eat. I tried a saltine cracker, ick.  Mouth was much too dry, the cracker just crumbled everywhere in my mouth. I eventually did have a few small bites of ice cream, then I crashed out after taking more Dramamine to help with nausea.  Rest of the night was fine, got up only once to use bathroom.  Played with iPad for a bit while I waited for the vicodin to kick in, then went back to sleep.

heading back to the hotel

 

Thursday morning, up and at them.  I slowly got up and dressed, packed up my stuff, and hung out.  Eventually we all loaded up the truck and checked out, and were on the road again.  We drove straight home, no stops anywhere. Yay, home sweet home!  well, it was mom and stepdad's home but home nonetheless. Mom helped me get the headwrap off, and oh did that feel good!  Ear was free and able to breathe.  Had some Wisconsin cheese soup, which was pretty tasty, and some crackers with peanut butter.  Eventually mom did take me to my apartment, as I really wanted to be in my home, camping out in my recliner, full control of my TV, that sort of thing. I can always text mom if  I need anything. Yep, nice to be at home where I can be comfortable and relax.  Even popped in the disc from Radiology with the X-rays, and they're pretty cool to look at.

on the road!

free of the headwrap! 

 

I did finally get some homework done for the online computer class today, and will do bits of other homework here and there.  Have a review paper I need to do for psychology, which I should get started on.  I have the article I want to review saved, just need to read through it, make notes and that sort of thing.

Not feeling too bad.  Still some minor pains and aches from the right ear/head area, which is to be expected.  Have had tinnitus 24/7, no surprise there.  I kind of figured I'd have all this tinnitus going on.  For a while last night it sounded like a tea kettle was whistling, that was fun.  So far so good, just taking it easy, taking the antibiotics every 6 hours, and the vicodin as needed.  Can't wait until October 28th to get the right implant activated!

Denver Trip #2!

Sunday morning rolled by, and I was up and at them early once again.  We were on the road at 9 a.m. heading back to Denver!  Quick stop in Cheyenne, made it to Denver.  After getting checked in at the hotel, mom and I stayed while stepdad went to the Rockies game with his son and grandson (hey hey, the Rockies won!).  Mom and I had lunch at Chili's, got a few things at King Soopers, and just hung out in the hotel, relaxing and taking it easy.  After the game, we all headed over to Casa Bonita for dinner.  I remember my first time going with the middle school class 13 years ago for our Spring Trip, and the fun I had with my friends.  It was fun watching a gorilla pick on a lady and a zoo keeper guy trying to catch the gorilla running amuck in the restaurant (there are several performances in that joint!).  Lady ended up off a cliff into a pool... haha.  I don't really know what the story was, I couldn't hear a word!  It was so noisy inside, it was nuts.  After we finished eating, we got up and roamed around, did some exploring.  There's a cave to explore, which was fun!  We watched another performance (Black Bart and a sheriff), which resulted in Bart ending up in the pool.  More exploring, and we hit up the arcade so my nephew could play some games for tickets to redeem for prizes.  It was pretty fun!

on the road!

 

Casa Bonita!

the water fountain in front of Casa Bonita

got a new light saber from Casa Bonita!

Next day, up and at'em early on, once again!  Made our way down to Swedish Hospital and got to the clinic.  I filled out some paperwork, updated information, blah blah blah... Then I was called back and led to a room.  I chatted a bit with the surgeon's assistant while she got some information from me and verified stuff (and confirmed I did indeed get the Prevnar 13!).  Then she left, and I sat and waited.. and waited... and waited.  Good thing I had my iPad with me, I played on games on it while I waited.  Finally the surgeon came in, and we discussed implanting the right ear.  He's all for it (good candidate and all).  Mentioned that since he did run into some ossification with the left ear, there is that possibility of it happening again with the right ear (MRI and CT scan both didn't catch the ossification of the left ear).  Confirmed that it'll be Advanced Bionics again, he mentioned the newer implant (the Mid Scala), and I told him I was thinking maybe October would be a good time to do all this.  He was cool with that.  Then we were done discussing, and the surgeon's scheduler walked me to her office, and from there she scheduled everything!  Pre-op for Oct. 14, surgery morning of Oct. 15, activation and post-op for morning of Oct. 28.  Whoa!  She wrote down all the times/dates onto a dark pink sheet of paper and handed it to me, and told me to call if I had any questions, and then I was free to go.  Mom and stepdad certainly weren't expecting for everything to have been scheduled already, I wasn't either. 

ready for the day!

everything's all scheduled and on this piece of paper

After we left the clinic, we headed back to the hotel so my stepbro could follow us as we made our way to the Denver Zoo. It's been 13 years since I last visited the Denver Zoo, but I enjoyed it.  Lots of walking, seeing all the different animals.  We even rode the mini train as well, which was fun!  My request was to see the primates, which we did last. Yay!  Didn't see very many monkeys/primates though... Oh well.  Was still fun anyway.  After spending a few hours at the zoo, we exited and sat on the benches and chatted for a bit with stepdad's sister and niece (his niece joined us at the zoo).  I scoped out the gift shop, and even bought a stuffed Gorilla. I collect monkeys, and wanted to add a gorilla to my collection!  From there, mom, stepdad, and I hit the road to head home, finally.  It was a long day, and a long trip home.  We did stop in Cheyenne to have dinner at Chili's, and to fuel up.  Ran into some rain storms, but we made it back into town at about 9.  Ooohh it was a long day.  Was really nice to get back home... of course I had to go to college classes the very next day!  I missed the first day of classes due to the appointment with the surgeon, but first day is usually orientation stuff, getting familiar with the class, that sort of thing.  So I wasn't worried about missing anything important.

Denver Zoo!

about to be kissed by a bronze snake!

new gorilla friend!

Denver Trip #1

Got up at about 8:30 in the morning yesterday, and rushed around to make sure I had everything I needed packed for the first trip to Denver of the week.  Drove out to the vet to drop  off my dog for boarding, then drove over to my mom's.  We loaded up our stuff into my stepdad's truck, and we took off (after making three stops before we got on the highway). Did a stop at a gas station in Cheyenne, and continued on our way.  I pulled out my laptop and watched Flubber (the Robin Williams version), using my FM system to listen to it.  Was nice!  We arrived to Denver before the movie was over, but with the traffic and such on the highway, I was able to finish watching it before we got to the Colorado Rockies stadium.  Stepdad bought 3 tickets to the Rockies game for himself, his son and grandson (boys' afternoon out at a ball game).  Got to the hotel and got all checked in.  Drove around quite a bit, hit up a Macy's so stepdad could do some clearance shopping.  Then we went to the hair salon stepdad's sister works at.  While mom was getting her hair cut, stepdad, his niece, and I walked around a bit and ended up at Wizard's Chest.  I had never even heard of Wizard's Chest.  It's a neat store full of a variety of toys/games/gadgets.  Headed back to the salon, hung out until mom was done getting her hair done.  We all went to dinner at Patxi's Pizza, which was pretty good.  Back to the salon so stepdad could get his hair cut, then we headed back to the hotel for the night.

Melody and I are ready to go!

watching Flubber on my laptop

Melody's just chilling

Colorado Rockies vehicles on display

checked in at the hotel

The Wizard's Chest!

giant lady bugs in trees in the Cherry Creek area

Today, mom got me up bright and early, of course!  Stepdad and I grabbed some breakfast from the continental breakfast set up in the hotel lobby, then headed out to Swedish Hospital for my appointment with the CI audiologist.  Mom and I went in while stepdad went to get some stuff for the flower mart.  I checked in, and receptionist mentioned that my appointment wasn't until Monday.  I had to tell her I was seeing the audiologist.  Short wait, then I was led to a sound booth.  Audie did some quick testing.  Hearing aid alone, CI alone, then both devices off but tested with the headphones on.  I failed!  I got a few words and one full sentence with the hearing aid; few words with the CI but none of the sentences, and listened for the beeps/tones.  Then the audie went and got my mom so we could talk, and she could do some counseling.  She said I qualify for the second implant, since I did poorly with the left implant.  Should be no problem with Medicare covering the second implant.  She talked of the Naida and the Mid-Scala array which can help preserve residual hearing of the implanted ear (though it's not always the case).  Mom had some concerns of my going bilateral and the implant destroy what little hearing I have left, which is understandable.  Audie said I should do much better with the implant in the right ear, since I've worn a hearing aid on that ear since shortly after becoming deaf and having usable hearing (whereas with the left ear, it was a dead ear, no usable hearing, didn't wear a hearing aid since 4th grade, etc.) so doing the left ear was a big gamble.   But with the right ear being implanted, we should see improved results more quickly.  She also recommended that I get 2 Naidas, instead of one Naida and one Neptune.. I was already considering getting two Naidas myself, it just makes the most sense.  I would put a Naida on my left ear, one the right, and be able to take advantage of the newer features and bilateral features of two Naidas.  My thinking is that I would have the current Neptune that I have programmed to be a back up for the right ear, and leave the Harmony as is for the left.  Just have to decide which color, battery types, and accessories (which I will get all figured out at a later date).

in the sound booth!

being tested

After that, we were on our way.  Mom and I chatted some more about all this while we waited for stepdad to come pick us up.  After being picked up, we hit up Hobby Lobby, then we hit the road (after navigating traffic jams due to road work and all that insanity!).  Ended up in Loveland and had burgers at Red Robin (I had a crispy chicken sandwich instead), and roamed the promenade.  Mom and I went into Barnes & Nobel while Rob went over to Macy's to check out their clearance racks.  She and I also hit up Famous Footwear before meeting with Rob.  Headed over to the Outlet Mall... Rob hit up the Tommy Hilfiger store, mom and I went to Dress Barn and Rocky Mountain Chocolate.  Then back on the road again! We stopped in Wheatland to gas up and grab a quick bite from Taco John's, and kept going until we made it home.

bought a Stephen King book!

hanging out at the Dress Barn, waiting for mom.

corn fields!

uh, there's a buffalo on the hill...

Yay!  Denver trip #1 is done!  Home for a couple of days, then we take off again Sunday morning for Denver, for appointment #2, to meet with the surgeon and take it from there.  I would like to get the second implant done this coming fall, before November if possible (mom and stepdad both have November birthdays, and with holidays coming up meaning busy schedule for stepdad at the flower mart, and winter = icky winter weather for driving so best to avoid that...) I don't know, we'll see.  Let's at least meet with the surgeon and we'll take it from there.

Just nuts... to go all the way down to Denver for a short audiologist appointment...  But surgeon is out this week, and audie isn't on office on Monday, so there was just no way to get both appointments done in one day (like was originally planned).  ah well, things happen.