Dan Solcher's Bionic Ear Blog

See pics of Dallas

2009-10-30T14:48:00.000-05:00

This is the view from my office!

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Hello from my iPhone

2009-10-30T14:47:00.001-05:00

Hello! Trying to jumpstart my blogs...

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Deaf College Football Players in NCAA and NICA

2009-09-15T09:37:00.001-05:00

Great article from USAToday:

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/2009-09-15-deaf-athletes_N.htm

I'm back!!

2009-09-10T21:24:00.002-05:00

Hello!

It's been a while I made a post to this blog - and it is certainly been a wonderful journey with CI's. It is already more than five years being a bilateral and I am very pleased with it.

I've had a "re-mapping" of my CI several times and my hearing gets better. To tell the truth, the hearing gets better; but later on it goes back to the same state as it was before the re-mapping. So I need to "trick" my cochlear to hear better....

And there are some quirks that I learned from accidental or by expermenting the CI mapping. For example, one would expect to hear better by turning up the volume. Not the case for CI's - I actually hear much better by turning the volume down! By turning the volume down, my cochlear becomes more sensitive to the sounds so I am learning to hear new sounds.

As for my AB's Harmony with 120 virtual channels, I am certainly a lucky person to hear better everyday and I hope many more will get CI's when their times comes.

Happy Hearing!!!

Dan

No, this is not a bluetooth earpiece

2008-07-14T18:01:00.002-05:00

Just a heads-up to look out for the sneaky people stealing the bluetooth - err, the cochlear implant ear piece. Makes no sense, but I've been approached several times to remove the earpiece - until I showed the magnets headpiece. They got spooked as I showed how to put it back on.

How to Fight a Health Insurance Denial

2008-03-26T18:19:00.001-05:00

Here is an link on fighting the "denial of benefits" by health insurance - and I think it is very common thing to do these days....

http://www.divinecaroline.com/article/22291/43737

New web site about hearing loss

2007-12-04T21:04:00.001-06:00

A friend of mine who went to my old school, Sunshine Cottage School for Deaf, made a great informative web site about hearing loss. It is intended as an informative source on hearing loss and is for everybody. It is at http://www.nolimitstexas.org/ Please check it out and get well-informed on hearing loss!

Rude Telemarketer to a deaf person

2007-12-03T19:36:00.001-06:00

This was found at digg.com:

"I recently received a “cold” call from a web marketing firm that suddenly took a turn for the worse.

Also, a little background: I have what is medically described as “profound” hearing loss in one ear, and “severe” hearing loss in the other. For the most part I can do OK with telephone conversations, but occasionally need to ask a person to repeat something. This is especially true when the caller has an accent (relative to mine), or the call is coming from an IP phone.

http://www.automateyourworkflow.com/telemarketer_insult.html

(transcription of the call is found here)

Thanksgiving for hearing new sounds...

2007-11-20T22:18:00.001-06:00

It is thanksgiving time, and there are many that we are thankful - and for the sounds of life around us.

We are thankful for the engineers and their leadership to invent and improve the cochlear implants we wear today.

We are thankful for the amazing doctors who put the implants in our heads and become a part of hearing world.

We are thankful that we have friends and family that supports us during our cochlear implant journey.

AMEN!

Laser Cochlear Implant???

2007-09-03T21:10:00.000-05:00

Very interesting and daring research using lasers instead of electrcity for cochlear implants....

http://www.technologyreview.com/Biotech/19206/

Latest Studies about bilateral hearing

2007-09-03T21:03:00.000-05:00

More new studies that confirm "Why we hear with two ears...."
http://www.physorg.com/news103857821.html

How to get 8 "394" batteries from a 12V battery

2007-08-24T20:58:00.000-05:00

http://www.flixxy.com/replacement-batteries.htm

For those we use 394 batteries in many electronic items... and save $40!!!

Dan

Two Heads are Better than one...

2007-06-12T08:37:00.000-05:00

From AT&T Corporate Archives:

For Bell Labs, two heads are better than one when it comes to researching the ways people locate the direction of sound. Practical results of the "double dome" research — the improvement of stereophonic radio and TV programs — are transmitted nationwide over telephone facilities. In the experiments, two microphones in the ears of the dummy, "Oscar II," were substituted for human ears. Oscar's head reproduced the "shadowing" of sound by a human head. Persons participating in the tests — such as Mary Lou Hartig, shown — wore the extra head so that motions of their heads would be reproduced, for even very small movements influencing hearing. The natural sounds received in each microphone were altered electronically by acoustics scientist R.L. Hanson, and were delivered to the earphones. Listeners were asked to point to the apparent direction of the altered sound. Normally, the ear that is closer to a sound hears it earlier and louder than the other ear. Murray Hill, N.J., 1961.

Sophia's Cousins at my home & Hearing

2007-06-01T23:11:00.000-05:00

This is one experience that I would never forget - and I hope all deaf parents read this:

One day, Sophia invited her 3 cousins into my house. Then my wife had go to store, an now I am in charge of the kids.

Sophia is 2 1/2 years old, LJ is 5 years old, Lindsey is 8 years old, and Larry is 13 years old. I let them go have fun around the house - and then I took off my implants when my wife left. I did that on purpose to prove that I can locate all 4 kids without my hearing. 8 minutes into the test, I gave up ! I was wrong!!!! I can't keep track of all four kids who all are in the different rooms and are either downstairs or upstairs. I had to walk around to look for them and check if they are fine.

I was so stressed out so I gave up. So I put implants back on and the whole sounds came alive in my mind. Now I can hear where they are, what they are doing, and how they are. I did not need to see them visually, since they are talking and making noises so I can tell what is going on. so I just sat down and watched TV without being stressed at all.

I am a true believer in total parental responsibility and that hearing is the most important part of the parenthood.

Blind Man sees world with hearing (Video)

2007-06-01T23:09:00.001-05:00

So cool and incredible!!! This is about a young man, who is blind, uses echolocation to see:

http://www.flixxy.com/extraordinary-people-seeing-without-eyes.htm

To tell you truth, I do use echolocation to 'see' the world around me, and getting better over the time.

Dan

So many medical researchs being done on bilateral cochlear implants!!!!!

2007-05-20T09:46:00.000-05:00

Go to google and use phrases for search:

abstract bilateral cochlear

and I found so many medical researches being done on bilateral cochlear implants. I can't even find one research that does not support the bilateral advantages.... YEA!!!!!

I have never seen so many medical research being done on the bilateral cochlear implants today than in the last few years.

I also added more links to the "LINKS" section at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/bilateralCI/links

for us to use with insurance appeals and filings. The insurance agents can then use these winning medical research abstracts to convince their bosses for the approval of the funding towards the second cochlear implants for their clients!!!!

Thanks!!!
Dan

Bilateral Implants to be "Gold Standard"....

2007-05-19T16:58:00.001-05:00

This is an interesting and "turn of time" article about the difficulties in acquiring second cochlear implants for bilateral hearing....

Click this to read the article

I am hoping someday soon that two cochlear implant will be mandatory instead of single implants. The best way to make that happen will take an act of Congress to change the Medicare guidelines. Most insurances go by Medicare guideline as health care standard.

Comparing the bitrates in iPods

2007-04-30T20:49:00.000-05:00

Found an interesting article on comparing the amount of bitrates used in mp3's (128 vs. 256, etc...) and how we can tell the difference, especially as we hear through our cochlear implants.... check here

Amen to Harmony!!!

2007-04-26T16:19:00.000-05:00

I have Harmony for two weeks and I love it!!!
Big discoveries:

1) 2 Year Old's: I can understand much better of what my 2 years old said. 2 years old's voices are pretty much in high range so discerning these pitches apart are extremely difficult for me to understand using hearing aids or other processors. With Harmony, I can finally understand what she said!

2) Nature sounds - Heard so many new sounds such as bird songs, crickets, leaves falling, winds blowing, and more. Harmony has widen these sounds even greater and it is amazing to hear more!

3) Conversations: I am very comfortable to make the conversations in very loud places and never a loss for the words.

4) Noises: All the noises (background, white, etc...) is no longer a bottleneck in listening. These goes away when I can focus on listening the conversations or radio.

5) Myself: I am no longer an tired person after 10 hours of listening through the old processors. Harmony helped me greatly to understand the sounds easily!!! I think Harmony helped my brain to process the simulations faster and with less energy, therefore no more being a tired person!!

Happy Listening!!!

Harmony Harmonics, Part II: Inside Concrete Building

2007-04-19T12:15:00.000-05:00

BEFORE HARMONY: Being inside the concrete building, is the harshest place for listening. I am in a corner cafe - and I do not like this place, because the walls, floor, ceiling are concrete, which is it is very harsh on my ears. All the echos, talking (actualy they talk loud to get message across) the noises from counter, and more so I do not like being inside of it.

NOW WITH HARMONY: No more unpleasant hearing. It is very bearable to be in the concrete building. I have been inside for almost two hours, working on my laptop without any discomfort and distraction. I am very pleased and and really enjoying being a part of the "cafe" scene.

Harmony Harmonics, Part I: Going Down the Freeway

2007-04-19T12:09:00.000-05:00

This is my summary of Harmony experences, which I will be creating over the time:

BEFORE: As I was driving my SUV, I can't even hear the radio or conversation because of all the noise such as road, turbulence, and more.

NOW WITH HARMONY: I can hear the music from the radio very clearly as I drive down the freeway at 70 mph - no more turbulence or road noises at all.

DOUBLE DARE HARMONY: To up the ante on the Harmony's prowess, I rolled down all four windows and I still can hear the music very clearly, and not hearing the sounds of roaring 70 mph winds at all. Is that amazing?!?!?!?! Now I can hear better than anybody!!! Yippee!!!!

Day Three on Harmony Processors

2007-04-19T12:05:00.000-05:00

Hi,

This is Day 3 with Harmony Processor. Here are my observations:

Very pleasant to hear
Very wide spectrum of sounds
No backgrounds noise
Can hear people taking very clearly
Very light and easy on my pinna (ear lobe)
Not tired at all during evening after hearing all day

My summary of experiences follows this.....

Thanks for reading this!!!

I got the HARMONY Processors!!!

2007-04-14T23:44:00.000-05:00

To all,

I just got 2 Harmony processors, which can be programmed to use HiRes120, a program to use 120 virtual channels on my 16 channels. That's about hundred times more powerful and also can hear thousand more new things everyday!!!!

Yes, I will start making posts to this blog about my Harmony hearing experiences, techinical details, and more.

I am waiting for an appointment with my audiogists - hopefully on Monday morning.

I will be posting images of Harmony processors in a few hours....

Thanks!!!

Dan

My Sophia at 24 months

2006-10-29T08:20:00.000-06:00

Hi,

Sophia is now two years old and she is taking over the house. She is talking very much, but she can listen more words that what she speaks, too.

I just can't image what I would do if I did not get the cochlear implants at this time. I would have a very hard time doing that with hearing aids and more. And my voice quality with my hearing aids at that time was not clear so Sophia would have hard time understanding me!!! With my cochlear implants, my hearing is so good I can understand every word except for Spanish words, which she picked up from her mother. And my speech is very good and I can teach her new words with clarity and correct punucation that she can follow from me.

Sometime Sophia would say a word, three words at a time, or in a complete sentence. She is absorbing all the words into her mind, and she says it later. When we watch an animal cartoon show, she would say 'elephant', 'lion', 'hippo', and more. If she does not know a word for an animal, she would point at it and goes, "hmmm?? " and I help her out.

For Sophia, our main emphasis is the 'language development', is very important at this time of her life and I am so glad to be doing that for her!!

Dan

Iraqi girl gets cochlear implant

2006-08-25T08:27:00.000-05:00

Read an article of a Iraqi girl who received the cochlear implant in USA!

Sophia

2006-08-21T23:57:00.000-05:00

IMG_5754, originally uploaded by texdanny1.

Hi,

This is Sophia showing off her new Dora outfit that her mother made personally for her. She loves Dora and checks anything that has Dora!!!

I'm back!

2006-08-09T22:39:00.000-05:00

Hello fellow blog readers!!!

I am back, and I did not forget to post - there is no time for me to sit down and collect the thoughts for me to write on. I've been busy at AT&T and also at home with my 22 month old daughter who demands me very much.

My daughter Sophia is talking and starting to add two or three words together, and I am enjoying listening to her. I am grateful to have bilateral cochlear implants, since there are so many sounds in her voices, there is no way I can hear it with my hearing aids. That is whole reason why I had the cochlear implants.

I think it's important to have a good hearing, and one reason as being a parent raising the children. The language development is very important during the first three years of child's life. That's when the child's brain starts to form the language development in order to speak and listen. Most people do not realize what it takes to understand what was heard and how to say it, and it does not come out naturally, either. It is the encouragement and understanding the world around them makes the difference to become a good communicator.

Have a great day!

Dan

Download this information to your ear....

2006-04-19T13:24:00.000-05:00

I just learned something for fun today:

The most remarkable feature of AB's Hi-Res processor is that it processes the incoming sounds at a rate of 90,000 times a second. In turn, its processor and implant chips does the math to pass the sound information in my cochea - at a rate of 83,000 times a second, in form of electrical simulation or "pulses"!!

So I did my math to figure out how much I "downloaded" the pulses in terms of "byte" as a digital file size, to my brain:

One Implant:
1 second: 83,000 pulses
1 minute of hearing:4,980,000 pulses
1 hour of hearing: 298,800,000 pulses
1 day of hearing: 7,171,200,000 pulses (similar to 7.1 GB of file size, about size of a DVD )
1 Week of hearing: 50,198,400,000
1 Month of hearing: 200,793,600,000
1 Year of hearing:: 2,619,280,800,000 (2.6 Terabytes of information about 366 DVD's in all!!)

Two Implants:
In 1 second: 166,000 pulses
1 minute of hearing: 9,960,000
1 hour of hearing: 597,600,000
1 day of hearing: 14,342,400,000, ( about 2 dvd's of information a day)
1 week of hearing: 100,396,800,000
1 Month of hearing: 401,587,200,000
1 Year of hearing: 5,238,561,600,000 (5.2 terabytes of information, about 732 DVD's worth!)

That is a lot of information to download.... it will take more than a few month for me to download a terabyte worth of information on my PC. Good news, I don't wear the implants when I go to sleep... thank god!!!

Smiling!

Dan

FYI: in computer parlance, a byte has 8 bits of information to resemble a character that you type. Also for DSL or Cable Modem, the rate of download is in "bits", not bytes!!! (lower case b stands for bit, capital letter B stands for byte) In reality, a pulse should be one bit of information, but I substituted the "bits" with "byte" for conceptual purposes like the size of a digital file instead of download speed.

Meet Timo

2006-02-08T22:23:00.000-06:00

Meet Timo -

Timo is a computer generated talking face program designed for autistic, deaf, and other language-challenged children, Animated Speech Corporation produces software that increases the rate of learning—and retaining—speech and language skills. Backed by 15 years of university research, tested and refined in pilot school programs, and designed to accommodate individual needs, our products provide learning environments that children want to return to again and again.

This is an excellent program for young kids learning the vocabulary, reading, and learning comprehesion. I really enjoyed taking a spin with Timo, and I think it is great for kids to have an interactive computer to learn along. They have a demo program available for downloading - and I hope you can give it a try!!!

Have a great day!!

Dan

Exciting News from Advanced Bionics

2006-02-08T22:21:00.000-06:00

I just got this annoucement from Advanced Bionics:

HiRes 120

On the horizon with Advanced Bionics is an enhanced HiResolution strategy that enables 120 channels of information! This would be like being able to have access to all of the keys on a piano and not be limited to hearing a small subset of them. The 120 channels processing is designed for better music appreciation and hearing in noise. This is a huge leap in technology so its very exciting to be at the point with HiRes 120 where we can look beyond basic speech understanding and really work towards the best possible hearing in the most variety of listening situations. Here’s how it works. Since the AB HR90k (and the previous generation CII implant) has what we call “independent output circuits”, where each electrode has its own power source and control, we can stimulation two (or more) electrodes at a time. This is unique to Advanced Bionics implants. We also know that the normal ear processes pitch information according to precisely where on the hearing organ the stimulation is occurring, just like on a piano with the lower pitched notes on one end progressively moving to the higher pitched notes on the other end. To achieve 120 channels, we weight the stimulation on adjacent electrodes so that the current is steered (or guided) to a neural population that falls in between the actual electrode contacts. So we are no longer limited to providing pitch information only at the location where the electrode sits, and we can provide more precise pitch information to the user by steering it to specific locations in the cochlea. Now, with these “virtual” channels (avenues of pitch information that are created at places where there are no electrode contacts) that are created in the 120 strategy, we can provide pitch information via other neural areas to take better advantage of the person’s surviving neural populations. With more pitch information, there is the potential to hear better in noise and to better appreciate music as these are the most complex listening situations.

The 120 system runs on the current PSP body processor. It will require a new BTE processor which is also in development. The 120 strategy and new BTE processor have undergone in house trials and are currently in field trials out at specific clinics that have agreed to participate in the study. Since the process is subject to FDA review, the time of release is tentative, but we are anticipating it may be sometime later in the year, pending no unforeseeable delays. This strategy and BTE processor will be backwards compatible to all HiRes 90k users, and all CII users (those implanted since about April 2001). No surgery needed for these folks that are already using the CII and HR90k! A processor and software upgrade, and likely some adaptation time, is all that is needed! There is a processor trade in program available and anyone interested should speak to their cochlear implant center about this. For those that will be implanted in 2006, they will be able to trade in an unopened Auria processor (for those that get two processors, and the used one for those that get one processor) for the new processor free of charge as soon as the new processor is available! For details, people should check with the clinic.

Smiling Big (no more feedback)

2006-01-28T07:36:00.000-06:00

As I was growing up with hearing aids, I am often the "feedback" guy. When I smile big, I make a feedback from the hearing aids. The sound of the feedback is a shrilling whistle noise.

This happens when my hearing makes "a looping feed back to hearing aid" - when its microphone picks up the its output of amplified sound, it makes continous loop of sounds and increasing up to its limits in loudness and frequency (the loudest sounds, with highest frequency, the shrilling noise). When I put earmolds in my ear, the feedback stops unless it "leaks" or exposed and the feedback begins all over again. The ear changes its shape when my jawbone and facial muscles moves, and it opens up the feedback. And I can't hear the feedback myself, but all hearing people can! I have lots of embarassing moments, too.

So when I smile, I used to make a half-smile and nodd my head to express my "big smile". After I had the implant, I turned the hearing aid on and I heard the feedback for the first time ever. It is really annoying!!!

Now that I have cochlear implants, the feedback is impossible - the output is in electronic form instead of ampfied sounds. Lo and behold, no more feedback - and I am able to make the biggest smile as I can - and that made a big difference about myself! I'm very happy that I don't have to "suffer" the feedback moments anymore.

What it takes to hear in noisy places...

2006-01-14T07:46:00.000-06:00

Human ear is very remarkable device! The human ear, can hear voices that is quieter than the noises in the background by just 5 decibels!!! For the cochlear implants like Advanced Bionic's Hi-Res, can hear the voices at about 5 decibels louder than the noise. So that means if there is noisy around me during the conversation, I'll have to ask them to talk louder, because I can't even beat the human ear. It's a very polite thing to say, because the speaker wants to you to hear what he/she said.

For example, if I am listening to the music in the car, I'll have to turn music up a bit more so I can hear it beside the turbulence, tires, vibrations, a/c, engine and transmission, etc... as I go on. If I am in an airliner flying at 30,000 feet, I would prefer to hook my implants to XMRadio player. I even can turn my implants off and enjoy a nice, quiet ride. If I am at a rock concert, forget hearing it, but do wear the ear plugs, even though you have implant, but you don't want to rupture the ear drum and its middle ear parts.

Here are the examples of noise levels:

Points of Reference
*measured in dBA or decibels
0 The softest sound a person can hear with normal hearing
10 normal breathing
20 whispering at 5 feet
30 soft whisper
50 rainfall
60 normal conversation
110 shouting in ear
120 thunder

Home
50 refrigerator
50 - 60 electric toothbrush
50 - 75 washing machine
50 - 75 air conditioner
50 - 80 electric shaver
55 coffee percolator
55 - 70 dishwasher
60 sewing machine
60 - 85 vacuum cleaner
60 - 95 hair dryer
65 - 80 alarm clock
70 TV audio
70 - 80 coffee grinder
70 - 95 garbage disposal
75 - 85 flush toilet
80 pop-up toaster
80 doorbell
80 ringing telephone
80 whistling kettle
80 - 90 food mixer or processor
80 - 90 blender
80 - 95 garbage disposal
110 baby crying
110 squeaky toy held close to the ear
135 noisy squeeze toys

Work

40 quiet office, library
50 large office
65 - 95 power lawn mower
80 manual machine, tools
85 handsaw
90 tractor
90 - 115 subway
95 electric drill
100 factory machinery
100 woodworking class
105 snow blower
110 power saw
110 leafblower
120 chain saw, hammer on nail
120 pneumatic drills, heavy machine
120 jet plane (at ramp)
120 ambulance siren
125 chain saw
130 jackhammer, power drill
130 air raid
130 percussion section at symphony
140 airplane taking off
150 jet engine taking off
150 artillery fire at 500 feet
180 rocket launching from pad

Recreation

40 quiet residential area
70 freeway traffic
85 heavy traffic, noisy restaurant
90 truck, shouted conversation
95 - 110 motorcycle
100 snowmobile
100 school dance, boom box
110 disco
110 busy video arcade
110 symphony concert
110 car horn
110 -120 rock concert
112 personal cassette player on high
117 football game (stadium)
120 band concert
125 auto stereo (factory installed)
130 stock car races
143 bicycle horn
150 firecracker
156 capgun
157 balloon pop
162 fireworks (at 3 feet)
163 rifle
166 handgun
170 shotgun

What I learned from bilateral...

2006-01-14T07:42:00.000-06:00

The biggest thing I learned from bi-lateral is that I can hear more than just one implant alone. Remember the right ear is for music, and left ear is for voices, and in the mind, the brain put these information from two ears together and create a great auditory perception of the hearing world around me. I just can't go on with one implant alone.

Popcorn

2005-12-26T23:45:00.000-06:00

Hear the sounds of popcorn...

I am learning to hear more new things everyday. Tonight I made popcorn - and it was so wild to hear that - it sounded like a stream of explosions, as loud as machine guns kept going off for a while. I recalled hearing that popping sounds with hearing aids - it only sounded like just some toy pop guns popped once a while.

Yes, we CI don't have complete hearing range as normal ear does, but it is alot better than hearing aids alone. What's the difference? It is the amount of information flow into the ears!!!! I had hearing aids for about 36 years. Then CI for more than a year. Wow, what a difference I heard in a year than my lifetime of hearing through hearing aids!!!

I've got some people asking me if someday the ear can be replaced or restored back to natural hearing. I tell them that is a bunch of hokey, because down the road in my life, I don't even expect to see a perfect replacement for ear or cochlear, since it is a nerve, which cannot be repaired or healed. So I had to take my own intitative for my life.

Two hearing aids vs. Bilateral Hearing

2005-11-15T13:25:00.000-06:00

Two Hearing aids as compared to bilateral cochlear implants: There are virtually no benefits of continuing to wear the hearing aids when comparing the benefits of cochlear implants. Today’s cochlear implants technology is superior to hearing aids in every category as possible. Therefore, bilateral cochlear implants have huge advantage over the hearing aids, no question at all.

Noise: I can greatly hear better in very noisy areas such as bar, diners, and more. This is very impressive to me and many people told me that I am very different person since I am more responsive than I was with hearing aids. With bilateral hearing, I was able to “cut” and “slice” the echoes and noises across the room and just to hear a person talking in the crowd, just like focusing with telescope.

Speech: My speech has improved greatly, and I had no problems hearing others and speaking as well. I just realized that bilateral hearing helped me to clear out the confusion in understanding the spoken words! I rarely had any confusion understanding the words, even repeating my speech, which is very common with hearing aids. I plan to take speech therapy to greatly improve my new found bilateral hearing and my speech.

Telephone interaction: Wearing the hearing aids, I had to deal with several barriers using the telephones. One of the barriers is the electromagnetic interference from the cellphone. Another barrier using the landline phones is the feedback. Feedback is always constant and challenging when the handset and hearing aids gets too close. With cochlear implants, all the barriers are gone and all I need to do now is learning how to listen the caller. My wife and I are starting talking on the phone more and more than ever because my speech has more clarity and I can understand what she said. I prefer to use speakerphone mode because I can hear much better with my bilateral cochlear implants.

Social Interaction With Strangers: My experience of communicating with strangers are always awkward with hearing aids because I never understood what they said. Now I was able to understand the strangers’ speech better than before. Hearing aids does not help me to hear most critical sounds that speech produces such as /s/ and /sh/.

Family: I live in two-story house with no carpets, and I have a 13 month old daughter. With hearing aids, I recalled that there is so many echoes in the house and I was not able to hear my wife calling me downstairs. All has changed with bilateral implants that my house is very quiet so I was able to hear my wife calling me. One time I heard my baby talking downstairs, too. All and more experiences have assured me I am able to hear these critical sounds with bilateral hearing.

Environmental Surroundings: I recall many experiences that I had hard time hearing the source of the sounds by echolocationing. Now with my bilateral cochlear implants, I was surprised and impressed that I can echolocationing on the first day of bilateral hearing. All the sounds around me such as nature (birds singing, etc…), retail stores (squeaky carts, talking, echos are less distracting), driving (hearing cars around me, listening for 18 wheelers, motorcycles), and many more that I do take granted with bilateral hearing.

My left ear

2005-11-10T20:52:00.000-06:00

Hi,

I am still continually adapting a new hearing in my left ear. It is only 5 months since first activation so some progress is made but not as fast as my dominant right ear did.

My left ear still has to learn to discriminate the distortions of sounds such as echo and noises. But I still can hear the voices in noisy environments, which is an very important progress. But I am still not able to understand these voices yet, so that is another challenge I need to work on.

But, I really like to be bilaterally and it does makes a lot of difference hearing with both ears.

Thanks for reading my blog!!!

Dan

Michael Chorost is at it again in Wired 13.11 (Nov 2005)

2005-10-24T21:52:00.000-05:00

Change of subject, there is a great article in Nov 2005 issue of Wired about upcoming Avanced Bionics's cochlear implant, the virtual 121 channels by Micheal Chorost. He also wrote a book, Rebuilt (http://www.michaelchorost.com/).

This article by Chorost is now posted at the website:
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/13.11/bolero.html

2005-09-15T22:26:00.000-05:00

hear this sound: http://buzz.ifas.ufl.edu/863sl.wav

that is the sound of cicada - that dominates sounds of night....

One night I was in the garage doing the woodworking. The garage is filled with sounds from humming fans, screaming power tools, and rackets of hammer. Then a sound came into my ears, via electrodes, and it goes like this - sshhh sshhh chhhh chhhh kkiaa kkiaa kkiaa sshhh. I turned around, and I can tell that these sounds are from outside. I walked out of garage and into a darken driveway, and I can hear it again. I follow to the sounds and lo and behold, I found the singing cicada. I have never heard like this ever before, even with hearing aids. The sounds of cicada are long and shreking, and I liked hearing that. Whoa!

675 Batteries

2005-07-22T15:20:00.000-05:00

Today, I just walked by an aisle at Walgreens' and I noticed the button sized batteries called "675". It is the biggest battery we can buy for the behind the ear hearing aids. Typically it lasts for about 2-3 weeks. It costs about $6 dollars for a set of six batteries. It's been about 4 months since I bought these to replensh my stock, as if it were a checking account that my life depends on it.

When I was growing up, every morning, I was trained to use the battery tester to ensure that I have ample "juice" in the battery for the day's use. Later on, I stopped doing the testing and listen for the sounds to see if it is working fine. I usually talked to myself to check if my battery and hearing are working. Then I start my day from on. I used to keep a stock of 675's in my car, bedroom, and at my office.

When I was a kid, you can only buy these batteries from a hearing aid places, and it would go for about $10 a set. We buy a few sets of these 675's and we always count our battery supply everytime, to ensure that I will not run out of it on weekends. These 675's used to come in many codes like AAA675, 234675, etc... but eventually years later, all became one code - the 675, and then became available at drug stores everywhere.

If I go on a long car trip, all these noises from car would drain the battery. When I was kid, I kept forgetting to take the spare 675's for the trip. By the end of the day, I would have to tell my folks that I need a new 675. My father will get mad at me, telling me why I did not pack these batteries and giving me some "life lessons" examples not to repeat that "stunt" again. (It didn't help at all, thanks to Dad!) He would go on and on telling me, too. .. Then my frustrated mother had to get out of the car and walk to a drug store to see if they have any 675 (in many variations of 675 codes) for sale. Even I did tried to explain them that you can now buy it at drug stores instead of at hearing aid center, but they still believe that 675's from hearing aid center are the only ones that works with my hearing aid.

Now, I no longer have to buy these 675's, since I am now using the rechargble battery. I keep spare rechargable battery in my pocket, because it lasts for about 14 hours. But sometimes it can go dead unexpectly, bringing me back all the memories of my father on the subject of not carrying any spare 675's....

Lessons Learned....

2005-07-12T12:01:00.000-05:00

Three things I learned as bilateral:

The volume settings on each implant goes up and down all the time for "balancing". For example, I turn down on left, and turn up on right, and vice versa. The brain sorts all information out and balances it out beautifully.

I cannot go on for one minute with one implant off. I get a strange sensation that there is something wrong. It is like there were no sounds coming in from one ear while other ear is getting information, then my mind starts doubting about it. In my opinion, what really happens is that the brain cannot tell if each ear is working or not - it simply process all the information and place into the perceptual world in your mind. If the brain senses some missing information, it alerts the emotional state as an warning message.

Don't talk to strangers without implants on - your speech is not same as with implants on. :-)

Rebuilt, By Michael Chorost

2005-06-29T22:16:00.000-05:00

REBUILT, by Michael Chorost

I am reading a book by Michael Chorost - he has a CII implant (as shown in his xray image of his head on cover). He writes as he describes his experiences of having a computer inside him and how it changed his life forever.

I am on chapter 3 now, and I am really enjoying reading it. He has a wonderful thoughts and brilliant perspective that I can relate.

A must read!

Author's website

Read first chapter (pdf format)

Purchase at Amazon.com Now!

My Comments on this book is coming shortly... ( still reading!!!)

Been only 18 days being bilaterial... and it is working!

2005-06-20T23:22:00.000-05:00

Hi,

It has been only 18 days since the activation of my left implant - and things are getting stranger and more interesting. Read on:

I can now understand some of words in the song - which I never heard that before.
I can understand more new words over the radio, which is unexpected to me.
I can understand what people said, more than ever.
Even in extreme noisy places, it is so unreal to hear and understand people talking very clearly and without any problems...
I cannot use one implant anymore - I believe that my mind gets frustrated when that happens. Ergo, I have to use both implants all the time. For example, several times as the power in the left implant battery ran out, I get "weird sensations" inside me as if my body is telling me to change out the battery fast, fast, fast!!!...
I really can locate the source of sound much better than ever - and I just spotted a noisy cricket in the dark tonight.
I really can "see" the room of people talking with my eyes closed...
I have never felt this confidence this huge ever before in my life...
I am talking and listening more over the phone than ever, too...
The noisy places like Wal-Mart, HEB Grocery Stores, downtown, airports, and many more are no longer distracting anymore and was able to take more time there...

The best part of all, is that the sounds around me are even more pleasant and sounded very natural to me all the time!

Thanks for reading this blog!

Dan

Ultimate 3-D Surround Sound System... in my head!

2005-06-14T21:36:00.000-05:00

I just had a second remapping of my left bionic ear and 23rd mapping of my right bionic ear ( I think so) - and my hearing is much better than before. I am no longer hearing any beepings in my left ear, but now I am trying to hear more new sounds. But -

The best thing of being a bi-lateral is hearing the world in 360 degrees and 3-D SURROUND SOUND. Whoa!!! This is way better than anything else I have tried before.

One night, I had a dinner with a large group, I learned that I can hear lots of people talking around me - my mind was able to tell me where they are, how far they are, and more. Then I closed my eyes for a moment, I still can see the whole room just by hearing. Even they moved around, I still can follow them, too. Whoa. I did not even realize to experience that. It was one wild moment for me.

One time, I heard the incoming footsteps in my left ear - and I went to that direction to check it out. But I passed the stairway and then I can hear it again in my right ear as it was from the stairway. I didn't trust my mind, so I waited to see if my mind was right. Yes, these footsteps was coming down from the stairway as a gentleman was stepping down. It was only 6 days of hearing with my left ear and as bi-laterial.

I am learning that I can hear many more by being bi-laterial! Whoa. Sweeeet!!!!

Back from Advanced Bionics

2005-06-10T21:24:00.000-05:00

Hi,

I am back from California - and I really had a blast being with Advanced Bionics staffs and also with volunteers like me!

I am an volunteer with Advanced Bionics - the reason I am doing this is that I am giving back to the company for everything they worked so hard for my hearing. And the best thing of all is that staffs at Advanced Bionics are are SO COOL!

The volunteers who came to the meeting are from Canada and United States - and they are awesome! They really gave me lots of pride in being a volunteer. Some volunteers have own cochlear implant and some are parents of children with their own cochlear implants. All of volunteers really enjoyed doing helping patients and parents with cochlear implants and more.

We had a presentations, meals, dinner, beers, and even we had a tour of the plant where they manufacture every piece of implant and processor. These were handmade, done American Way, and often labor intensive. The production staffs do have pride in every single cochlear implant that goes into every patient like me.

It was a great experience being with Advanced Bionics. I am still thinking of it, too.

My left bionic ear, day 6

2005-06-07T09:58:00.001-05:00

It's been only 6 days of hearing with my left cochlear implant and it's great. The hearing is still coming, still beeping. It is time for another cochlear implant re-programming (aka re-mapping) - and it gets better with every re-mapping.

This afternoon I am flying to Valencia, California for an advanced volunteer's meeting with Advanced Bionics, the maker of my cochlear implant. I look forward to meet the company staffs and those volunteers who are invited to come. The purpose of this meeting is to extend our skills and share experience among other volunteers for helping bionic cochlear candidates and patients.

Also we have an opportunity for a tour of the plant where they manufacture the cochlear implant, too.

Listening to the Mass Media...

2005-06-03T12:39:00.000-05:00

Hi,

Today is my second day of hearing with left cochlear implant and 435th day (1 year, 2 months, 9 days) with my right cochlear implant... and I really enjoy listening to music more than ever.

The "Great Hearing Adaptation Process" is underway for my left ear. I still hear all those beeps and booppps in my left ear.... very nice, very sweet. SWEET!!!

I always know that hearing the music can help me to learn more of what these the beeps, beeeeeeepppps, and boooeeepps represent... so I can get more out of my bionic cochlear faster and much sooner than I want to. (Being in silence won't do any good!) I listen to many downloaded MP3's, radio, CD's, TV's and more. (try without closed captioning,too!)

Also I like to listening the talk shows - it does not matter if I misunderstand some words I heard, but it helps me to understand the differences between musical and voiced sounds. This is very important and critical for better listening skills.

Someday soon, all these beep's will go away in my left ear, but I will be hearing normally as much as my right ear does. Our minds are so adaptable!

Enjoy!

Hearing Downtown San Antonio

2005-06-02T16:05:00.000-05:00

I work at headquarters at world's largest communication in downtown San Antonio, right on the Riverwalk. I decided to take a long walk at lunch break because my doctor advised me to work on my balance by taking long walks.

The cochlear implant surgery has affected my balance in a small way, but it is "recoverable" by doing more activities like walking and exercising. It is no big deal, and what a great reason to spend the lunch hour by walking on the Riverwalk.

As I went outside on a sidewalk I can now tell where all the sounds is coming from! I can tell a incoming motorcycle on my left side, behind me, and is approaching very fast. Cool. I guess I really can see everything behind my back by hearing!!! And the buses are noisy - and even worse when it brakes to a stop.

When I was on the Riverwalk, I can hear and spot the crackles, mallards, and robins... hearing people talking around me and everywhere is great, and it gave me a new sense of perspective about my surroundings... And I can hear tapping of feet and clatter of dishes in a diner... and too many to pay attention to!

I think I am going to learn more about my hearing perception than hearing the new sounds!

Second Sounds!!! (Left Bionic Implant ACTIVATED!)

2005-06-02T11:15:00.000-05:00

Beeeeooppppp..... beeeeeeoooooppppp!

I just got my left implant activated this morning. Wow!! It is so nice to hear it again, too. It is so pleasant to hear, and no more virbration at all. The sounds (actually "beeps") are smooth and crispy to hear it. It is very different from what heard the first time on my right ear a year ago. But I really like it!

My daugher, Sophia, almost 8 months old, has been very helpful with me with my "Second Sounds" experience. She made lots of voices, clapping, and banging to be sure that my implant is working. She is right! She smiled big, too! And my wife Lizzie videotaped this moment.

Wow, I really like to hear both of my bionic implants at same time... wow... and I can even tell where all the sounds is from... and I am very pleased. In my left ear, I am still hearing beeps, but it does not matter today because I am learning to hear all over again, with help from the right ear... and I am not yet overwhelmed, but I think I will be very pleased all the way!

I am ready for hearing new sounds!!!

2005-05-27T13:03:00.000-05:00

This is an audiogram of my left ear... but the green dashed lines is what normal hearing should be... is where I am hoping for!

2005-05-21T22:22:00.000-05:00

Now Healing!!! Sophia and I having fun with ear bandages!

Successful Left Bionic Cochlear Surgery!!!

2005-05-19T20:23:00.000-05:00

Hi, I am home! I just had an successful bionic cochlear implant surgery this afternoon - it went so well and it took about two hours. I am up and walking but carefully. But I am taking lots of nap so my ear can heal fast.

I wish I can go to see "Star Wars: Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith" today, but I decided to wait until I get my "Second Sounds" (left bionic cochlear activated) in two weeks! It will be so cool to hear all these sound effects in THX format!!! I'll let you know what I think of the movie soon...

Thanks for all your support and prayers!

Dan

Tomorrow is the big day....

2005-05-18T10:23:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow is the big day for my left ear bionic implant surgery...

And I am trying hard not to think of the bionic cochlear implant procedure that is still going on in my mind. Aaaauughhh!!!! ha ha ha

:-)

Three more days....

2005-05-16T16:33:00.000-05:00

Wow, I have three more days for my bionic cochlear implant surgery on my left ear. I'm not that nervous, but I am eager to get this surgery experience behind me. I am still wearing amplifed hearing aid in my left ear - and there was a loud talking going on behind me and it hurted my ear drum so I had to turn it down. What a bummer. But that won't happen again after my "Second Sounds"....

Learn to Listen the sounds around us...

2005-05-16T16:30:00.000-05:00

This webpage includes every sound possible - and this is a good listening practice, too.

http://www.findsounds.com/types.html

How to restore your hearing...

2005-05-12T14:49:00.000-05:00

Two people asked me a good question today - how much of my hearing can be restored with my bionic cochlear? Would the hearing becomes 'Normalized" ?

The answer is "in theory", that 100% of hearing can be restored. But in reality, to achieve a remarkable 100% of hearing, it all depends on how well a person adapts to hearing these beeps", the bionic cochlear programming, placement of the bionic cochlear, and the environment
around the patient.

In my case, I felt that I reached about 90% of normal hearing. For example, I have a few more phonemes I need to learn hear - they are "p", "k", and "t"; these sounds are so soft spoken and lasts very briefly, so I have to pay more attention to it. Even there are some sounds has occurred around me that I missed because I did not paid attention or recognized it.

It's fun to learn new sounds every day... gotta listen to music now!

8 more days to go for my left ear bionic cochlear surgery...

2005-05-11T21:38:00.000-05:00

It is 8 more days - and I finally decided to put my left hearing aid
back on after 3 days of silence in my left ear. Yes, hearing with both
ears is better. And I can spot the source of sounds, too. But it is not
comfortable, either. But I will miss these hearing aids because it is a
part of me and it was wonderful. I

Dan

Why I think it should be called "Bionic Cochlear"

2005-05-05T16:03:00.000-05:00

I am calling my implants as "bionic cochlear" instead of "cochlear implant" for many reasons. Here's why:

Reason #1:I am not getting my cochlear transplanted, replaced, or removed. It stays there.
Reason #2: An ear has many tiny parts, each part is no bigger than size of a pea. Image how a tiny part can affect a person's lifetime of hearing, personality, and well-being. Pretty sobering, so please wear ear plugs all the time if it is loud and everybody should have a hearing test often.
Reason #3: My right cochlear was upgraded to "Cochlear Version 2.0"
Reason #4: I have a serious hi-tech device, called bionic cochlear, implanted inside me.
Reason #5: Nothing can repair or replace a cochlear.
Reason #6: Nothing in the world, even in distant future, can create something to help one to hear more and bring a very natural hearing experience instantly. It all relies on the ability of a person's mind to perceive the surroundings.
Reason #7: Today's bionic cochlear gives me a very "close to natural" hearing experience than amplified hearing aids can do.
Reason #8: The bionic cochlear does not replace the ear, it merely supplement the current cochlear and uses electrical pulses to represent the hearing simulation.
Reason #9: With the bionic cochlear, I have to re-learn the hearing all over again, and the advantage is that hearing will be much better, million times over.
Reason #10: What is like to hear with implant...? Not much different from what you hear. "It's all in the ear of the beholder"... it means it's all in the mind. All the information from the bionic cochlear to my mind is all beeps. Using my mind, I try perceive these beeping sounds as an impression of a source. By doing lots of concentration like telling my mind where and what these beeping sounds represent... And time will tell when I can finally understand these impressions as natural hearing. Enough said!

Surgery Date Scheduled for my left bionic cochlear implant!

2005-05-05T15:26:00.000-05:00

I am getting another bionic cochlear implant! It is for my left unaided ear. I will become a bi-laterial Bionic Cochlear patient. The long draw-out process for getting insurance approval was a success. The motto is "Never give up, never give up!!!"

The date of implant will be May 19th, 2005 in San Antonio. My doctor, Dr. Wesley Krueger, (210-697-0880) will be performing the surgery. I am so looking forward to it.

2005-03-24T10:23:00.000-06:00

Audiogram of Before and After Bionic Cochlear Implant on my Right Ear. Notice huge gains in hearing!

Audiogram Example

2005-03-24T08:04:00.000-06:00

Attached is a audiogram to describe the sounds and loudness:

Degrees of Hearing Loss

2005-03-24T07:57:00.000-06:00

I was born profoundly deaf.... Without hearing aids, I can hear the sounds as loud as a gun.... and with amplifed hearing aid, I can hear most sounds, but not the high frequecies (or soft sounds)...

Hearing Loss Levels:
-10dB to 25dB = Normal range
26dB to 40 dB = Mild hearing loss
41 dB to 55 dB = Moderate hearing loss
56 dB to 70 dB = Moderately Severe hearing loss
71 dB to 90 dB = Severe hearing loss
over 90 dB = Profound hearing loss. <--- My hearing loss range... next to total deafness.

About hearing music (Posted at BionicEar.com)

2005-03-19T00:33:00.000-06:00

http://www.bionicear.com/support/getconnected/stories_musicadult.asp

Hearing music through hearing aids was like seeing underwater-no crispness or clarity at all and very lifeless and distracting at times. Since I got my [bionic] cochlear implant, I can now feel the vibe of what music is all about, and it really rocks my soul like never before! Almost every night I listen to music for an hour before going to bed. Sometimes, I follow along with the lyrics downloaded from the Internet, which really helps to sharpen my ear for music. I listen to different kinds of music to learn the meaning, cultural aspects, and purpose of the songs. I think I have downloaded 500 songs into my digital music player since I got my [bionic] cochlear implant!

Why Two Ears are better than One....

2005-02-05T20:45:00.000-06:00

Today, many researches on hearing has revealed the importance of having two ears for hearing. It is not just for echolocation, but for hearing different set of sounds and more. One research revealed that that left ear listens for the voices (phonemes and language) and the right ear listens for the musical tune and emotional tonations... check out these links:

Why two ears are better than one:
http://www.hearingcenteronline.com/clinics/hearingclinic/tips03.html

Left ear for vocalization, Right ear for musical:
http://home.onemain.com/~dk1008206/html/holyoak2.htm
http://mitpress.mit.edu/catalog/item/default.asp?tid=4398&ttype=6

Why there are many patients with one bionic cochlear? Blame it on that old Medicare guideline, which is a bible for all private health insurance policy, too. Medicare policy writers felt that having a single bionic cochlear [unilateral] is sufficient for a patient. So the doctors had no choice and offered only one implant on a patient for each timeframe that Medicare allows. One believed that these Medicare policy writers had no idea how much impact a bionic cochlear can do. Today, there will be lots of push for a re-write of the policy to allow the payment of dual implant, aka "bilateral" implant. Most insurances do offer "bilateral" implant, only if a medical professional makes a good case with promise of a successful outcome.

Sources on Bi-lateral Implants:
http://cochlearimplants.dallasoto.com/facts/bilateral.htm
http://www.mc.vanderbilt.edu/reporter/?ID=2201
Results of Google Search

Picture of Me!

2004-11-27T20:11:00.000-06:00

Daniel and Sophia watching football game

Sunshine Cottage Newsletter

2004-11-01T10:07:00.000-06:00

Public Relations: This link opens a newsletter summary of my cochlear implant experences...

Hearing new things with Bionic Cochlear

2004-09-06T13:24:00.000-05:00

Yes, I can hear more and more with my bionic cochlear implants... here are some new sounds and my response that I heard for the first time and/or much better and with lots of clarity as opposed hearing through the amplified hearing aids....

Sounds of the locusts in night (very annoying)
Vehicle turn signal clicking (Now it is very annoying!)
Owl hooting from a long distance
Rattling of my dog's tags and clawing the floor as he walks
Hearing many more bird songs than ever
My own heartbeat (in a very quiet room)
Hearing voices and baby crying downstairs
Able to tell better if a car or train is coming or leaving
My watch beeping (never heard through my hearing aids)
Sizzling frying bacon
Fizzing soda foam
Crinkling plastic wrap
Baby breathing, slurping, cooing, raspberries, etc...
Ticking of 60 Minute's stopwatch

and most importantly... I heard the feedback from my amplified hearing aids for the first time ever!!!

Second Day of my First Sounds

2004-03-26T14:25:00.000-06:00

Hello,

I just woke up and I was excited to get into my routine with my activated bionic cochlear. I learned how to recharge the batteries and put all the gears together, and it was pretty neat. I like the feel of transmitter being held to my skull by magnets. Then I turned it on.... beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!beeeeeep!

That's what I heard throughout the day. But I am learning.

On the way to work, I was about cross the railroad tracks and I heard:

BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!!! BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!!!

I stopped at the track, guessing that this loud beep is the train horn.... I looked left and right of the tracks... Yes, I was right, that was the train horn, but the oncoming train was more than half mile away!!! That was so awesome!

I came to office, and I found my co-workers gathered a surprise celebration breakfast. Their voices are all beepings, but it was so nice to hear such pleasant voices.

And I went outside of my office in downtown San Antonio, and it was so noisy! The sounds of buses, cars, crackles, etc... all echoing between the walls of the skyscrapers. It was so cool to hear these bouncing echoes. This is the first time these downtown noise has not bothered me at all. I am so glad I am not wearing hearing aids on my right ear anymore.

I went to a crowded grocery store - and it was so noisy with all the shoppers pushing carts around, but I heard a squeaking shopping cart about 30 feet away, so I walked to spot this one. I picked the right one. Boy, it was so awesome that I was able hear through the noise and clatter just to hear what I want to hear!

First Sounds!

2004-03-25T17:49:00.000-06:00

Hi,

I just got back from my doctor's office. Today was a big moment for my wife and my folks. It is a big deal that even my folks came over from Houston to see my reactions to the "First Sounds". My wife videotaped this big moment, too.

My audiologist opened up the package and got all the gears in place. Then she connected the transmitter to the processor and put it on my ear. She put transmitter to my implanted chip by magnet. Then audiologist plugged the cord from her laptop to my processor unit to activate it. It is interesting to watch the audiologist programming the bionic cochlear from her laptop... very much like the science fiction movies... The audiologist pushed buttons, slided some sliders, and more. Waiting for the "first sounds"....

Beeeeeeeeeeeep!!! Beeeeeeeeeppp!!

That's what I heard for the first time. Just the beepings... Then audiologist and I spent some more time to get the bionic cochlear programming right to start off the adventure.

I really like to hear these beep's. What a nice sound. It is very pleasant to hear the tonality of these beeeeeeeeps. It is wonderful to hear these sounds than using my hearing aids - which is very loud, vibrates, and often hurts my ear I had to turn it down everyday. Now from on, there will be no more unpleasant hearing - because hearing through bionic cochlear will be wonderful! I really like to hear these wonderful tunes of beeeeeeps.

All day today, all the sounds I heard are all beeeeeeeps, beeeps, and beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeps. This is expected. I have to ask where the sounds came from, learn the voices, and more. It is so cool to learn the hearing all over again. These sounds are so pleasant to hear.

Successful Surgery!

2004-03-09T17:40:00.000-06:00

Hi,

I am now home now from the surgery... all went well, it took about 6 hours. I guessed my doctor wanted to spend a good amount of time to ensure that my implanted bionic cochlear in my right ear is working and set in all the right places. They did activiated the bionic cochlear during the surgery and ran lots of tests to check the brain activity for any responses. I guessed all went well.

I am wearing a "white ear muff" covering my right ear, held by gauze wrapped around my head. This way, they wanted to be sure that my ear won't fall off... just kidding. They told me that I can take it off in two days.

I don't feel any pain except for the anesthesia from the surgery. I got up and walked around the room, rode the wheelchair, got in the car, and my father drove me home. No loss of balance, just woozy and wanting a big juicy burger... My wife even cooked up a steak dinner to celebrate the day. I got some prescribed painkillers, but never took one at all.

My "first sounds" is only two weeks away. That will give me enough time to allow my incisions behind the ear lobe to heal so I can wear the implant on my ear lobe.

Dan

Welcome!!!

2004-03-02T06:36:00.000-06:00

Hi, this is Dan Solcher. I am making a new blog about getting Bionic Cochlear... It does sounds like a science fiction movie, but it is for real.

The date of implantation of bionic cochlear is scheduled is for March 9th, 2004. That's only seven days away! I have no idea what to expect from this experience.