an update

It's been a while since I've posted, now hasn't it. October has basically been a pretty busy month for me. Early October, I flew out to Columbia, SC to stay with a friend for a few nights. We both attended the Hanson concert that was in Charlotte, NC, on the 11th, which was a blast. I took my hearing aid off again for this concert. I'm telling you, when I leave the hearing aid on, everything is just pure noise, I can't tell what is what! But with the hearing aid off, I was able to hear the music well enough. It was a bit quiet for me, but it was still enjoyable. And my friend was able to tell me what song Hanson was playing when I didn't recognize it. It was pretty fun.

After I got back from South Carolina, of course, I had to get my wisdom teeth out. Now that was not a pleasant experience at all, but I got through it and am still slowly healing up today. Also have been keeping busy with work. We have new press machines, so I had to be trained on how to work the machines and on the new system we are to use for printing the newspaper pages. No more negatives! How nice is that?

And now... insurance stuff. Open enrollment for insurance for Lee Enterprises stared last week. I still have no enrolled yet, as I am still trying to find out more information and details. There was a meeting about the benefits that are provided, and I did attend it, but I was just even more confused than ever. So I left the meeting early. Am still awaiting a response from Human Resource with answers to my questions. Also, I did get a hold of, uh, was it WellMark? Lemme go pull up my email. I might as well paste it into this blog post, for progress purpose in terms of the cochlear implant process.

Thank you for your email inquiry. We appreciate you contacting us via the Internet to resolve your questions and concerns.

We have researched your inquiry that is attached to this email reply and have made the following determination:

Please be advised prior approval is recommended for cochlear implants. The medical policy can be found at http://www.wellmark.com/e_business/provider/medical_policies/policies/cochlear_implants.htm
If approved, deductible would apply and once that is met, the coinsurance percentage to the out of pocket maximum. Then Wellmark would pay at 100% of allowed charges. Best benefits if provided by in network providers. If you would like more specifics please advise which plan you are considering, by email, or by tty 888-781-4262.

I got the wellmark.com link through Lee Enterprise's employees website, and contacted them from there. There is also Blue Cross Blue Shield, which I have heard good things about in regards to covering the implant, and that is the actual insurance company Lee uses I guess. I don't know, I'm still a bit confused but am working on getting my confusion straightened out.

I'm getting there, very slowly. The plans/benefits will start on Jan. 1, 2008 and from there, hopefully I can get a move on. The insurance would cover most of the implant, but I do have to pay a copay. Once I figure out what that copay is, then I could work on getting the funding for that. But first, get my confusion straightened out, enroll, GET the insurance... then get the CT scan done and make an appointment with the surgeon so he can look at the scan and we'll go from there.

Deaf alumni saddened by school's fate

Deaf alumni saddened by school's fate

By MEGHAN WATT
Star-Tribune staff writer
Note: Meghan Watt attended the Wyoming School for the Deaf from 1991 to 1998. She graduated from Kelly Walsh High School in 2004 and is a community news clerk for the Star-Tribune.

The Wyoming School for the Deaf building in Casper will be torn down as part of the Natrona County School District's plans to build a new elementary school to replace Pineview Elementary.

Deputy State Superintendent of Public Instruction Joe Simpson announced the news Thursday in Cheyenne. He told a small group of deaf community members "both buildings have lived out their life expectancy" and that a new school is necessary, as Pineview is beyond repairs. The Natrona County School District owns the land on which the School for the Deaf was built, and the district wants to use that space for the new school.

Some deaf alumni are upset or shocked over the plans, as the deaf school was important in their education and lives.

Kathleen Holmes, one of the first students of the deaf school, told the Star-Tribune in an e-mail message, "It's indeed sad that all the memories and the historical site of the Wyoming School for the Deaf will be wiped out when it's torn down! We held our 50th Anniversary Reunion at WSD last summer."

Catherine Burns of Casper, who also was a student, said, "I think Casper should not tear down the building because it represents us (the deaf students/community) and our memories. Every time I go to WSD, it brings me back to the old time to keep memories alive. Once it is down torn, people will think it never existed."

Josie Wedlock, a former student who now lives in Fort Collins, mentioned that she was shocked when she heard of the news. "I really don't want them to take down the school. I'm just hurt about this. This school meant a lot to me."

While the deaf school building will be torn down, the Services for the Visually Impaired and the Outreach for the Deaf Library will still be available at another location, Simpson said. An archive or a small museum will be added on to the library and resource center for those who want to share their memories.

The design of the original portion of the Wyoming School for the Deaf building is unique. Mark Bennett, a former school for the deaf student and a member of the Deaf Association of Wyoming expressed that he would like to see the new location for the library to have the same "roundness" that the deaf school has.

He also would like to see a meeting room of some sort within the new location, but that will depend on how much space is provided for the library and archive.

Before the School for the Deaf was built, deaf students were educated in temporary classrooms at Casper College and East Junior High. In 1959, a house across the street from Pineview Elementary was purchased and used as a school for the deaf. By 1961, the state legislature appropriated $250,000 so that a more permanent school for the deaf building could be built.

The deaf school was built adjacent to Pineview Elementary so deaf students could be integrated with hearing students whenever possible. It was on January 3, 1963, when the staff and students moved into the new building. The School for the Deaf was closed the summer of 2000, as only one student was enrolled and other deaf and hard of hearing students were mainstreamed into public schools with services.

The original building continued to be used as a library and resource center for the deaf since the closing.

Once the new elementary school has been built, a memorial bench, plaque or other type of recognition will be created and placed on the location where the deaf school building stood. Janine Cole, an outreach consultant for the Wyoming Department of Education's services for the deaf and hard of hearing, thinks it is important that a memorial is placed on the property to honor the School for the Deaf.

Simpson is encouraging the School for the Deaf alumni and the deaf community to get creative and share ideas of what the memorial should be as their ideas will be taken into consideration. The state will try to organize a committee for the alumni to discuss memorial ideas.

An archives Web site for the deaf school is in the works. Until then, Cole will see that a Web site is added to the State Department of Education's website. This site will be updated as information becomes available, and will include a way for people to express opinions about the demolition plans.

Casper Star-Tribune

article

Have most of the article written up, and the editor is happy with it so far too (took me a couple of hours before I could actually start writing though, as I was stuck). Am awaiting more responses via email about the deaf school being torn down. One says it's sad they're tearing down the building, and another was angry and wants to protest. I myself am not happy, not exactly ANGRY but not haooy either. But I can understand the school district wanting their land back. Hopefully I'll have more responses by tomorrow so I can use some of them in the article, just so the community knows how the deaf community or alumni feel about this situation. That school was extremely important to a lot of us, we all have memories in that building, the school was a big part in making us out to be who we are today.

I've also gotten the guestbook up on my WSD website so visitors can leave comments about the school being torn down. But the rest of the website is not up, and probably won't be for who knows how long. The website is http://wyodeaf.5gbfree.com for anyone that may be interested.

Tearing it down...

Well... my friend Jo and I drove down to Cheyenne to attend a state
department of education meeting about Pineview Elementary and the
Wyoming School for the Deaf buildings being torn down. This is not the
state's doing, but rather, Natrona County School District's. It is the
school district that wants to demolish the buildings, and build a new
elementary school to replace the old Pineview. The State of Wyoming owns
the school for the deaf building, but the district owns the land on
which the building is. And since Pineview is so old, they want to
replace it with a new and upgraded building. So now, where is the
library and resource center going to move to? No one knows yet. All I
can say is, I'm not happy the deaf school is going to be demolished. But
what can we do, really?

It is thanks to that deaf school that I am where I am. If it hadn't been
for that school and for the staff that worked there, I wouldn't be who I
am today. The deaf school has been the best thing that's ever happened
to me. It was where I started talking again with my voice, and learning
sign language and all. They improved my speech, taught me how to
socialize with others, how to care for my hearing aids the properly way
and of how to be a self advocate. It was also the teachers at the deaf
school who really made sure I understood English, and of how to use
proper language and grammer skills. Most deaf people's English skills
are not as well developed, but of course it varies from person to
person. I was the only one in that group of same-grade deaf students who
was able to do school work at the normal grade level, instead of being
behind. I even did advanced math in 6th grade, and got started on 6th
grade English while I was still finishing the 5th grade year. The
teachers have really worked hard with me. Yes, they worked just as hard
with the other students. Perhaps I just did better because I had heard
language the first couple of years of my life before going deaf, and
that worked to my advantage. I don't know.

I will definitely be sad when the building is torn down for good. But it
is nice to know the school district is willing to place a memorial of
some sort, like a bench or a plaque, as evidence that a school for the
deaf did exist in that location.

I better get going on that website, huh. Yeah. I very slowly started to
work on a website for the Wyoming School for the Deaf in June. An
archives website, with a news archive of news articles of the school, a
photo gallery, a comments area for people to share comments or memories,
etc. Just only this month I figured out how to work the gallery, but I
can't even access it right now as there are new owners for the website
host (5gbfree.com) and there's a lot of issues. Hopefully those issues
will be resolved soon or I'll have to find another host. But I do
definitely need to get going with the site. There are tons of old
articles I need to type up (the more recent ones, I'll just use the Star
Tribune site links, I have gotten permission from the editor to use the
articles for the site, and we agreed the more recent ones I'll just link
to, while the more older ones I'll post myself).

Wow, 11:03. I should get some sleep, afterall it is WYHI day tomorrow.
Wow, hard to believe WYHI has bee going on for 25 years.. Wow.
--Meghan

whoooaaa

Oh wow ok. Last week I called the audiology to make an appointment, and that appointment was today at 4. I arrived just in time and within a couple of minutes Shane and I were in his office. I told him I had been audiologically evaluated for a cochlear implant and from the results, that I was a candidate. So he's excited about it. I made copies of the audiogram and test results that Allison had given me so that he could have it in my records. He hooked up my hearing aid to the computer and brought up the lower frequencies gain. I also had him activate the FM+M mode too, so that I can listen to music AND also hear what is going on around me for when I take my music to work with me.

Now, I'm hearing my computer buzzing once again. And when I got into my car after the appointment and started it up, whoa! I was hearing stuff I hadn't heard before, or maybe I did hear it before but just don't remember it. Anyway, yeah. Everything sounds slightly different, and a bit louder, but I'm sure I'll get used to it over time. And ever since I got back from Denver, I've been forcing myself to deal with the background noise that bother me, instead of turning off my hearing aid. If I can't deal with the background noise NOW, then how will I deal with them with an implant? If I absolutely have to, I'll turn off my hearing aid for only just a few minutes, then turn it back on.

Shane is happy for me though. He says Allison is a great audiologist, and that Dr. Kelsall is an excellent doctor. And he has a patient that is going to get his implant turned on soon and he's pretty excited about that. Shane told me this patient was his first adult patient with an implant, so that's pretty cool.

Also recently found out that the Star Tribune gets their insurance through BlueCross BlueShield. Human Resource wants to be sure I'll continue working the "full-time" hours that I have been working so that I can get the benefits. Things are happening within the prepress department, hence the unsureness of the hours. Hopefully I can continue to work in that department, but I'll talk to the prepress supervisor and see what he says. Hopefully all this gets worked out.

more on today's evaluation

Ok, here's a bit more from today's evaluation. I made a post at hearingexchange.com and mentioned some stuff that I didn't even mention in the earlier post. Basically, here's a copy/paste from that particular post.


Did the hearing testing, blah blah no surprise. They even put a hearing aid on my left ear but that ear still had no results at all. But I got a 52% score for the repeating/word recognition/sentence recognition testing part, which is good haha. So I am a candidate due to the audiological testing. Next, the CT scan to see what the cochleas are like. Mom said when they considered an implant for me when I was a very young child (this was in the late 80's), they wouldn't do the implant on my left ear due to ossification; apparently half of my cochlea was ossified at that time... So it's probably FULLY ossified now. So that basically leaves me with my right ear for the implant. The audiologist believes I will do very well with an implant in the right ear.

Now mom's all worried and concerned and scared. Scared that once I start this, that I'll give up at some point. I keep trying to tell her I WON'T give up, that I know it takes a lot of effort and time for the implant to work and all, and even before t She's just worried, and sometimes it drives me crazy. She gets a bit over protective with me at times.

So, yeah. Also, the audiologist wants me to go to my HA audiologist and have him adjust my hearing aid again so I can hear more of the lower frequencies. When the recognition test was done, it's a loop instead of a decline, and the CI audiologist said it was more common to see a decline, not a loop like mine. I didn't hear the lower frequencies (I heard TOM instead of THUMB, and YOU instead of YOUTH, etc.). That's the first thing she wants me to do. Then get a CAT scan, then make another appointment for a visit with the surgeon.


Funny how I forget some details. Eh, it happens with everyone at times.

The evaluation.

Finally, Allison came and got me. Mom and Rob left and I went into a
room with Allison and an intern. We talked about the implants, and I
gave her some information. Then we did the hearing test. Beeps, tones,
repeat words and sentences, three or four times. Without hearing aids,
right ear with hearing aid, left ear with hearing, both ears aided...
Turns out, audiologically I am a candidate.

She showed me what the internal and external components looked like of
the Cochlear device. She also told me that their center is more biased
towards Cochlear over AB and MedEl. They prefer Cochlear as they have
the best reliabilty with their devices. MedEl and AB both have had their
devices pulled off the market a few times due to reliability issues.
Turns out there are 2 manufactures in charge of the internal device for
AB, and the 1 that does the covering of the internal device doesn't
always seal the "package", so fluid gets inside and ruins the device
after a couple of years or so. I didn't know that abou AB, so I
definitely learned something new.

Then Mom and Rob comes into the room. More talking and discussing.
Allison says I should have Shane bring up the bass levels on my hearing
aid to hear more of the lower frequencies. Also get a CT scan done, so
they can see what the cochleas look like. There is a major concern with
my lft ear. I've had abolsutely no responses at all, and they are
concered of the ossification. So I may have to do the right ear, and
I've realized that in the last few years. But, I am willing to take that
risk and lose whatever I have left in my right ear to get the implant,
if it will help me to hear better. And Allison thinks that the implant
would benefit me greatly. She also said that if there is no ossification
in the left ear and I choose to have the left implanted, that it could
take up to 2 years before I may even understand any speech and such. But
there's a good chance of ossification in the left ear, we just don't
know how much. So I may just do the right ear. Lots of things to
consider.

She also mentioned that I'm the only one they're working with that has
no insurance. She gave us a number to call, and said to try SSI again
and such. So when we get home, we'll see what we can do about the
insurance. $105,000ish is what the entire thing costs. I'll definitely
talk to Huma Resource about the insurance some more, for sure.

Now, my mom is really scared. She's scared that I may stat the process,
then quit at some point. Yes, I may be really strongwilled, but I am
very determined to do this and to make the implant work for me. I know
it takes time and effort, but I feel like I can go through with this. I
don't see myself giving up, I really don't. But then again, there is
never knowing what will happen in the next month or week even. There's
never knowing what I'm going to do and what my mind decides, usually. I
know, my mom is being a mom, but sometimes I feellike she doesn't truly
think I can do this. She assures me that she is 100% behind me on this,
whatever I decide, but she is still scared of the outcome. Will I give
up after a few weeks or will I keep working away? That's what worries
her. We already have had a small fight over this.

Well, now I've got this book of materials to sift through and share with
my mom. Do a lot of thinking and considering... And get my hearing aid
bass levelsback up, CT scan done and a meeting with the surgeon to
discuss the C scan results. Great, lets find out how much a CT scan
costs.