Post Cochlear Implant activation appointments are all completed. All adjustments have been made...what now? It doesn't end there. It gets even better! Over the next three months to a year, my brain will continue to adjust and learn new sounds. By now you can see, this isn't a procedure you have done and you can miraculously hear. It takes effort. It takes work. It takes time. This actually scared me at first and was a reason I didn't do it sooner, but now that I have gone through it, it makes complete sense. (No pun intended...ha!) I actually wish now I hadn't let that fear or misunderstanding stop me from taking the plunge.
My last audiogram with the Cochlear Implant processor on, I tested 52% in hearing words correctly and 82% in hearing sentences correctly without lip reading or seeing a face. If I added lip reading, I'm pretty sure I'd score 100%. Here's the thing, the more effort I put in, the more words I am going to get correct overtime. That 52% can increase. Just like reading, it is always easier to understand words in context, which is why I got 82% of the sentences correct. That, too can increase. It's a process. I'm a 3 on the Ennagram: Acheiver and in Strength Finders, Achiever is in my top 5. Any 3's out there? You get this...so that 52% to me is a challenge to do better, to score better, to hear better. It doesn't depress me. It motivates me. An 0% to 52% is like an A in my book. I wanted to frame my last audiogram, but I also know there is more to attain.
Soooo....Here 3 Things I am doing...
Starting to listen to Podcast. I've never been able to do this until now. This pushes me completely out of my comfort zone because obviously, there are no lips to look at, which is my security if I miss anything. Usually, I'll pull up a message on my iPad and run and watch it at the same time with captioning. I've listened to 4 of Steven Furtick's audio messages in the last 3 days because I can now listen and do something at the same time without lipreading. Empowering. Multitasking, which I love. It streams directly to my processor like AirPods. Technology is amazing...thank God for the advancements because it has given me a better quality of life. Again, listening to audios without lips helps in learning how to hear without looking.
Continuting to Read Outloud...this helps my brain hear the words via my own voice and puts together what I know I read and what I am hearing, which helps recognize the words.
Continuing to Listen to music while reading the lyrics. Same reason as above except hearing music is different than hearing words, but once you read and listen, your brain starts to recognize the sounds.
This goes for anything in life. If want to get somewhere, if you want to change, if you want to do better, you have to put the effort and work in to get to where you want to go. You have to take that next step. So often, we want the easy fix or the easy way out, but in most cases in life, we have to do our part if we want life change.
One Change a Day,
Aime Beth