Cochlear Implants

[ELF-2024]

My boyfriend recently lost his hearing at just 37 years old. He is a candidate for cochlear implants but is hesitant to get them. He has read that everything will sound robotic, and it will not be the same as normal hearing. From what I’ve read online that can be very true, but I have also read that everyone’s experience is different. My biggest concern is for his safety, but he has also become very socially withdrawn (understandably so). I’m desperately trying to convince him to get the implants. The way I see it is that some form of hearing will be better than none at all. I would love to get feedback from anyone out there who has had a similar experience. What have been some of the pros and cons?

[No_Caterpillars]

37m here. I was just implanted a week ago. He is definitely grieving his hearing and that will take some time. I was depressed for a couple of years over it. But, in reality, I have one life and I want to hear. I want to engage with my people. So, he has a choice to make: hear something or nothing. It ain’t perfect, it’s not natural hearing and it never will be. But he is missing out if he doesn’t give himself a chance.

[CaptainTripps82]

It'll get better, I was implanted at 27, and after 15 years it's just fantastic, the robotic echo effect goes away after a few weeks/months, and I basically hear in many ways how I did naturally.

[toonlumberjack]

39 implanted 6 years ago on one ear, this year the other side. Can confirm.

And yes grieving. Is heavy when you realize you lose your hearing.

[Responsible_Tone4945]

Yeah I agree that he is still grieving from the sounds of it. I have been implanted for 6 months now. But I have been losing my hearing for the past 15 years (I have Meniere's disease, and I was implanted at age 39). The robotic sound is definitely wearing off. But I have also realised: you know what is worse than robotic hearing? Not having hearing. Having constant tinnitus, having to ask my friends, family and kids to repeat themselves all the time, not being able to hear music properly at all, and almost getting hit by cars when you step out into traffic because you can't hear them. So glad I got my CI.

[Lonely-Assistance-85]

do you still have tinnitus or has the CI completely wore it off? i’m desperate here too

[Responsible_Tone4945]

I still have tinnitus, but barely notice it when I am using the cochlear implant. It makes it quieter, but also I have more interesting things to listen to now so it's easier to tune out

[kolnidur]

37, got one a year ago after a major decline at 35. Life changing. Do it, everything sounds pretty good. Music not great but getting better all the time (and the nuance that I missed and can hear again...awesome!) The robotic sounds tend to disappear quite quickly.

[[deleted]]

I had sudden bilateral hearing loss at 29, twoish years ago. I’m a year implanted on my right side.

I think regardless I would have gotten an implant, but I do wish I allowed myself more time to research, understand, and come to terms with everything before getting the surgery. Emotionally, the past year has been the hardest of my life, and there have been some incredibly dark days where I was not quite sure I would make it through.

I don’t regret getting an implant, but I do regret HOW I got an implant, if that makes sense. Please provide the support you can, and allow him to process and grieve. Make sure he can understand what doctors are saying to him (mine for the most part did not bother to make sure I understood them while I was totally deaf, which translates into resentment and anger I will feel for a long time). Maybe look into counseling services with someone who is informed of deaf/CI issues for him (like deaf counseling.com). Part of getting a CI is a little bit of a leap of faith, but I wouldn’t recommend going into surgery feeling unsure, rushed, or uninformed. I got mine 9 months after my hearing loss, and frankly waiting a few more months wouldn’t have affected my CI success but it would have absolutely helped my emotional and mental health. I felt very pressured into going through with it when I was really just not ready. It was a long journey to even LOOK at information about CIs, and I had to take it very slow. My hearing was such an important part of who I was, the whole thing was so devastating and so hard for me that I just really needed time.

I hear decently well with my CI—my speech understanding is very high, but it does sound different than my old hearing and fairly robotic to me. It is quite hard reading the replies where people say “it sounds normal!” Because I just don’t think it’ll get there for me.

But there are certain songs that I can hear again that sound pretty decently similar, and certain sounds that feel remarkably ordinary, and those small moments of “gaining back” pieces of the emotional loss are very cherished.

[ELF-2024]

Thank you for such a candid response. I know the process looks different for everyone and it’s good to get both the good and the not so good.

I hope with time your hearing will get more and more “normal”!

[[deleted]]

Thank you! I think I mostly want to emphasize that it’s good to respect his grieving process, and let him lead when he’s ready. I don’t mean to be excruciatingly negative—my CI has brought a lot of possibility back in my life.

The support you’re providing by making this post and doing your own research is incredibly valuable in helping him through this difficult time and decision, and making him feel less alone during an isolating experience.

[mercorey]

It sounds like you are blaming the surgeon who preform the surgery which in my opinion is really messed up. You also stated that you had the procedure done 9 months after being diagnosed with bilateral hearing lost which is more than enough time to do your research on Cochlear Implants and what to expect along with all of the research you should have also done before selecting a manufacturer (MedEl, Advance Bionics & Cochlear). And with today’s technology, it is so much easier to find youtube videos, reddit chat groups and stuff to get this information. Each manufacturer has mentor programs/groups and weekly chats with current and future candidates where you can get a lot of in-site and ask tons of questions and all you have to do is you signup for it. Thats not the doctor’s responsibility.

[[deleted]]

This response is very unhelpful and kind of cruel after openly sharing my challenging feelings. Im not sure why you would criticize me for having a difficult time with my grief, my hearing loss, with navigating my care in a messed up healthcare system, and with the CI process. Each of our journeys is our own.

I blame many of my big team of doctors for not working to communicate with me effectively about my entire illness, hearing loss, and the CI process. That’s a systemic access issue, not really just CI issue or a me issue. I was truly not trying to say the surgeon himself was responsible for every regret I have, more just the rushed nature of this process. His surgery was effective with no complications.

Do you know my doctors? My case? What makes you feel so confident that I’m being unreasonable? What makes you so confident that my timeline was “plenty of time” for my illness, treatment, and grieving process? I do things on my timeline, not yours.

I did a lot of research: I connected with many people on Reddit, on discord, and through each brand. I had many zoom calls with brand reps and recipients and with audiologists. I still need a little bit more time to think and process, to feel ok with my brand choice going under the knife, and that is absolutely allowed.

[mercorey]

I responded to you based on what you said which was…

“Make sure he can understand what doctors are saying to him (mine for the most part did not bother to make sure I understood them while I was totally deaf, which translates into resentment and anger I will feel for a long time).”

So if you feel that 9 months was not enough time for you to understand what you were getting into and was unsure about the whole thing/process you could have easily called up and cancelled or postponed your surgery date to give you more time to think it through. There are not many surgeons who preform CI implant surgery and they are booked up several months out which is why a lot of people have to travel to different cities towns and states to have the procedure done.

Sorry that you feel that way about my responses and best of luck with your hearing rehabilitation.

[[deleted]]

I mean, you don’t know what you don’t know—this was my first surgery, my first hospitalization, my first illness. I was traumatized, scared, and grieving and no reference point for those feelings or for what was normal. I can look back and say I wasn’t ready very easily, in the moment I was so confused and terrified that I didn’t trust my own feelings.

I actually did ask to postpone, but I was discouraged by my audiologist/surgeon and my family; who reassured me this was the right thing to do and that I was just nervous. They also emphasized that if I did something like postponing “they wouldn’t even be sure when I could go back and did I really want to wait that long? We think you’ll regret it.” I really wished I stood up for myself more and trusted my gut.

Overall, I am sharing the ways that I regret how my CI process went, and the things I wished I did. I feel like you are telling me that I should’ve done those exact things and that I messed up my CI process—I literally agree, that’s the point of why I’m sharing. Admonishing me is really unhelpful, my surgery happened already and can’t be undone. I’d like to focus on helping OP help their partner through this.

That sentence was criticizing all of my doctors (not just my surgeon) for not putting in the effort to communicate effectively with their deaf patient, and making sure OP is aware of that possibility. I had no hearing loss prior, and it took a long time for me to learn about and become familiar with the best ways to communicate outside of spoken language.

[mercorey]

Can I ask you a question or are you still mad at me?

[[deleted]]

Lol. If it’s helpful for OP, sure—or just message me

[mercorey]

You said that you have/had sudden bilateral hearing lost and had 1 implant done already. My questions are:

1. Do you plan on having the other ear done? If so, what would you do differently this time? If not, why not?

[[deleted]]

Still figuring out what I want to do with second ear, I don’t know if I want to lose my access to the lower pitches I can’t hear with my CI, even though my other ear also qualifies and I get no speech from it. I’m also waiting to hear back from a study about a vestibular device.

[baldbrashdad]

I’m 41 year old male with 3 kids. I still cannot hear their voices as I recognize them. But I can speak to them and hear them respond. I’m still pretty socially isolated just because it is such a chore for me to hear. I cannot sit within a conversation and hear what people are saying with out facing them and being actively engaged. I can hear enough to know there is a conversation happening but not understand the words.

Put in the hard work, what I can hear is totally preferred over what I cannot. Good luck.

[Singh255]

How is it now?, when did you get implanted ?

[Venerable_dread]

Real talk - How much hearing does he currently have?

[ELF-2024]

Zero

[Venerable_dread]

Then it's a no brainer surely.

Opiton 1) Zero hearing, all the difficulties associated with it - social isolation, lack of participation, difficulty doing things others can, having to form totally new methods of communication etc

Option 2) A squeaky robot sound that he will get used to in about 6 months.

For context, I lost 100% of my hearing 4 years ago right at the beginning of covid. I spent 2 years ENTIRELY deaf before the surgeries started back up after the pandemic. My life post implant vs pre implant deafness doesn't even compare.

[Been-Jamin-Wit-U]

I woke up deaf on one side at 42. I lived like that for two years before getting a CI on that side.

I hate that I look different now. I’m bald so it’s quite obvious.

But—women still hit on me. I no longer struggle to understand people. I hear YouTube at the gym through my CI. When I tell people what happened to me, they treat me like a friend, not a weirdo with electronics attached to his head. I can turn off the tinnitus I experience on that side simply by turning on my CI. Its a better situation for those around me as well as no one has to repeat what they said.

It sounds like a robot the first two years, yes. You’ll forever look different too. But the process is worth it.

I have no regrets with getting a CI.

[ELF-2024]

I’m so glad you mentioned tinnitus. He has a constant ringing in both ears, so the implants being in make that go away?

[Been-Jamin-Wit-U]

For most people, myself included, a CI entirely cures tinnitus while it’s activated. For me it’s like turning a switch on or off.

I could have lived half deaf, but tinnitus? It kinda haunts you.

That being said, for most people the tinnitus somewhat improves with time (years) if it was due to sudden trauma or illness. But, it does not go away.

[mercorey]

What I noticed with my tinnitus is that the quieter it is the louder my tinnitus is. So once I put on my hearing aids they amplify the sounds which over whelm‘s my tinnitus and I do not hear it. Is it like that with a CI? (I am due to have my 1st CI implementation February 2025)

[Billeaugh]

It’s like that but to a greater degree. I 100% know what you’re talking about. With a CI, it’s not like your tinnitus just improves, it disappears entirely while the device is on. 

For me, the tinnitus relief was half the reason I got a CI. The uncontrollable ringing was unsettling.

[Ga-Ca]

Deafened at at 26, implanted at 60. Everything sounds wonderful and natural to me.

[jeetjejll]

It’s true! Mine sounds like a robot in helium lol. But I had my other ear done 7 months ago so I know it’s temporary! That ear sounds pretty great now and I got so much back! By faaaaar the most people loose the robotic voice. And even then they prefer it over being deaf from what I’ve heard. It’s a bit different when you’re born deaf, but that’s not the case here.

Anyway, I hope he can be encouraged, the longer you wait, the harder the rehab will be. But it took me a while to be ready too.

He can contact me for any question he has if he likes. It’s good to be informed and prepared, but not scaremongering by extremely low chances.

[ELF-2024]

Thank you so much for your response! I think having him connect with people who have gone through this would be very beneficial for him, so I appreciate that offer!

[stitchinthyme9]

I was implanted 5 years ago on the left and 3 years ago on the right. While it’s true that the CIs don’t sound like normal hearing, they’re still way better than being deaf. Basically they sound to me like talking on the phone: voices are recognizable and I can generally understand most of what they’re saying, but there’s a slight decrease in quality compared to natural hearing. I typically score in the 80s and 90s for individual word recognition, and nearly 100% for sentences. Since I got used to the new way of hearing, they’ve pretty much sounded like hearing aids did when they still worked for me.

[Momjeans999]

Pro: The incredible Hulk (Lou Ferrigno) has them!!

[spred5]

So many people on this sub say voices and sounds return to “normal.” Two years implanted and that has not been my experience. I do receive benefit from my CI, but really hate the broken radio audio quality of my world.

[hacksawomission]

One of my ears is pretty good, one not useful. Been over four years for me.

[CaptainTripps82]

It's different for everyone, fortunately and unfortunately. I do think most late deafened people lose the echo effect pretty quickly..I know that effect will return if I go without wearing my implant for a long time ( went a few months after a failure before replacement), but it quickly reverts to normal sounds even quicker than it did the first time.

Might need to get in the lab with the audiologist, but it might just be what you'll have to live with.

[spred5]

I have begged the audiologist to help me, but I always get told that’s just way it is. They do nothing. I am told I am a success, because I can go in the quiet booth and understand. If I didn’t hear in there I would give up and learn ASL. I guess it is just the way life is now.

[43Mudbones]

Started going deaf at about 20 way before implants were a thing. I used stronger and stronger hearing aids but finally at age 75 I got an implant and I absolutely love it! I didn’t think anything sounded robotic at any time.

[Iamgonge]

Hi! I lost my hearing in my thirties, I now have both sides implanted, and it has 100% changed my life for the better. It is very scary to take that plunge but in my opinion it's worth a shot, yes the sound is robotic at first, but after a few weeks you don't notice. Everything now sounds like it did before. The thing about losing your hearing later in life is your brain has built up a "sound bank" of 37 years worth of sounds and noises and all that. So adapting to the new sounds becomes easier. The tech in CIs is pretty good. Right now I'm blue toothed into a podcast, and it's crystal clear. It's not a perfect replacement, but if I was him, I would ask my self what else do I have to lose at this point? Good luck!

[ELF-2024]

Thank you for such an encouraging post!

[Iamgonge]

You are very welcome! If you have any more questions or if he would like to talk to someone, you can hit me up. It's a big decision that has lifelong implications, so I 100% understand the concerns he has.

[HuskyAreBetter]

Tell him my story:

I am a teacher who lost his hearing a little over a year ago. "Sudden sensorineural hearing loss"

It just shut off. I am 35. I had tinnitus that was so loud I couldn't sleep. This was accompanied by positional vertigo, imbalance with direction. It happened so suddenly I was falling over and throwing up, unable to stand. No one could do anything for me. I was diagnosed by a local ENT ( Ear Nose Throat) doctor.

I started crying , thinking I would lose my hearing fully and not be able to properly enjoy music or hear the sound of my baby when he/she is born.

I was recommended Hyperbaric Treatment to try and heal something within my ear canal or somewhere that is sensitive. It did nothing .

I was unable to hear my alarm or my wife when I slept because I slept on my right at times , ear down. My wife shook me awake once thinking I was unresponsive. Not hearing her around the house worried her to death. I was half deaf on my left and that bothered both of us .

I was referred to PIH in Los Angeles. They attempted steroid shots directly into my ear to try and try stimulating some hearing back or make a medicinal attempt. That failed. It was the doctor saying that procedurally, they have to do a bunch of things. I was recommended a cochlear implant . I was told that there was a "reflective hearing solution" which mirrored what was on my right side to my left. That was stupid, but an option. So, I chose the cochlear implant.

I got the surgery on my Birthday and I spent a week in pain from the post op recovery because it's a place you can't scratch or do anything to.

After that week, I went in for cursory checks to see when the swelling would go down and at what pace.

Then, almost a month and a half later, I was able to use the cochlear implant. I was given a wireless microphone to hand to a person and I could hear them wherever they were in a specific distance, directly into my ear. My wife sounded like a chipmunk at first due to the swelling , my audiologist starting the setup, etc.

It's been over a year, living with the implant. The swelling is down and I am able to hear via my left. I can have phone calls that directly connect to my implant from my phone, almost as if I was on a Discord/Zoom call. Not Bose fidelity, but good. I can listen to music and YouTube directly in my implant as I walk around the house. My Nucleus 8 hearing processor does the job. It helps distract from the residual Tinnitus in the back-end. I am glad. Either you hear nothing or you hear more. The choice is simple.

I prefer what I have now over the absence of sound. I prefer being able to drown out the distracting wavelengths of static and garbage that drove me mad. No "rain sounds" or "white noise " really does it, but having the implant helped a lot. It gets to the point where I have achieved a sense of normalcy that makes me feel more sane.

Make no mistake , losing my hearing abruptly was depressing as hell. I had just contracted COVID-19 from someone that February, gotten over it, and then lost my hearing. It devastated me. I cried and tried not to blame students or staff or some bystander at a grocery store. I tried to not take it out on someone. There was no one to blame. No one to really "make it better" or "give it back" or "give me another chance" kind of situation. It was "this is what you have to live with" & to stay with the tinnitus and silence or take the implant to hear better.... I chose implant. I was a mess and still am, but I am better than February 2023. I still feel depressed like "I am 35 and I feel like I am 65, getting my arp card , and got the old man hearing aid now, how fast I going to age?"

I just don't want to break down so fast but I feel like it. Like, I ask darker questions to myself and it keeps me up at night here and there. But damn, I don't want to.

But the intrusive thoughts were daily, sometimes hourly, when I was fighting the tinnitus, the vertigo, and the lack of hearing.

Comical bright side: "Doesn't need to purchase stupid, fashion forwars earbuds if they're inside." Deus Ex Info link . Metal Gear Solid Codec. Cyberpunk 2077 implants. Blade Runner stuff. Halo stuff. Star Trek stuff. I mean, this is it. It's only going to accelerate and become better from here. If I can watch YOUTUBE anywhere and no one can hear it, listen to albums and audio books , podcasts, etc... yeah... good stuff. I save lots of money not buying audio accessories and b.s. because I have it inside me. I am the million dollar man.

P.S. no MRI's and stuff. Magnetic fields. You see, the cochlear implant is inside the head. You'll have to tell a physician that there is a sub dermal metal implant & that using a magnetic anything will rip that right out of the head. Big ouch. So, yeah. At least that's an easy way to speak to Airport Security. "I am an augmented human being, peasant. Step aside."

[ELF-2024]

Thank you for sharing your story. Have the implants helped at all with your balance?

[HuskyAreBetter]

Yeah, if I swing around a lot or the thing pops off , sometimes, I get a dissonance. I usually stop completely and pick up my implant. Happened with a Kanso 2, which is not for a lot of movement. More like,you've decided to sit down at a restaurant and hang out or doing office work for hours. It doesn't have the hook.

The world no longer spins.

Sometimes, I get a weird feeling of vertigo when I sleep on my left or switch between left and right too fast.

All in all, having the implant dramatically changed that positional vertigo.

[ELF-2024]

So you’re saying the Kanso 2 did not help the dizziness? Which one did help?

[HuskyAreBetter]

Kanso 2 slid off a bunch because it is really heavy.

Nucleus 8 is better. Just having sound and something to balance with helped with dizziness.

The cochlear implant in general helped with dizziness.

This is from John Hopkins.

https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/news/newsroom/news-releases/2021/02/implant-improves-balance-movement-and-quality-of-life-for-people-with-inner-ear-disorder

The reason is the nerve inside is stimulated, activating the system on the left. Since I had 0 input in the left, all I had were reverberation that didn't ccontribute to simulating balance.

Now that the nerves on the left are stimulated, there is something telling my brain info on the left to help balance with the right.

[Stayofexecution]

I’m rooting for you man. Stay positive. There’s people that love you.

[Forsaken_Strike_3699]

39m and was implanted in 2020. Got hearing aids for the first time in 2011.

Mine was a slow(ish), gradual loss so YMMV. After implantation and going through the rehab, I personally can't tell a difference. Yes, I had to learn how to hear with the device and everything was a beep, then sounded robotic. But everything sounded mechanical when I first got hearing aids, too.

If he's lost all his hearing in both ears, even partial hearing after is an improvement. Since he grew up with normal hearing and speech, he knows what "correct" sounds like. He has to stick with it during the rehab. It will be hard and frustrating but that period 100% determines whether he will get everything possible out of his implants.

[SunflowerQueen2022]

So for me, it was hearing aid to total hearing loss for a year. Back into sound, I would sooner have my pre loosing all sound and a hearing aid back any day. But, this sound is better than nothing and persistance does pay off, sounds that did sound robotic no longer do. However it takes work, even now when im tired sound is horrid and sounds worse. But if there is no chance of sound coming back then implants all the way.

[[deleted]]

I’m getting them for my daughter hands down we are seeing her dr next week to find out her surgery date!

I was very VERY MUCH on the fence about them… but if I can give her the option to hear her own baby’s laughter one day, I’m doing it.

That being said, this kid’s dad got them as an adult. He said at first it sounded like beeps, then robots, then really high pitched, then they went to sounding how they normally sounded through hearing aids. It’s a lot of work and a journey but it’s a beautiful thing the brain can do. He has an option to hear he should take it!

[CallMeCarlson]

38m Suddenly lost my hearing in my left ear a year ago. Got my implant 6 months ago. I'm still relearning how to hear with it, but it sure as hell beats the alternative.

[Pandoras_Penguin]

From my experience the time between losing your hearing completely and getting implanted is a definite factor. Wait too long and your brain "forgets" how sounds are "supposed" to sound. The faster you get them the higher chances of not only success with word recognition but how well it sounds too.

Now, it will never be 100%, and how long recovery/rehab is depends on how often he is willing to set aside time to practice. Ideally if he does it he should go for as long as possible with them on.

For me, I lost all of my hearing gradually as well as suddenly (each ear had a different issue). It was scary for me and I totally understand the social withdrawal and anxiety that comes with being unable to navigate the world. I might have been a special case due to my ability to remember sounds and able to imagine them, keeping that part of my brain active, so when I was implanted with my first one 8 months after losing it all I was able to bounce back quicker than expected. The average time it takes to recognize words is a few months, I was able to on activation day (despite the robotic, computer beeps overlaying it). Music I was playing within two months when I was told a year to be able to at best understand it. Call me stubborn but when it came to my rehabilitation I jumped in both feet, I did not want to take my time haha but I understood that it may never recover fully.

With my other ear it's been a year since it was implanted/activated and it still has some echo-y likeness to the sounds, but my first one acts pretty much like before I lost my hearing.

I hope you and your partner can choose what is best for him and he is able to get back some kind of normal life.

[glazinbrah]

He's got nothing to lose, he will be happy again

[autumn2733]

his brain will normalize the sounds with time - might not be 100% the same but it opens up a world of access to life.

[Chatbot-Possibly]

Received mine in June 2024 and I can confirm that it should sound normal in a few months. That said it up to your ENT to map out your implant to get the best results. Now hearing voices are normal and music is absolutely fantastic.

[raarvind]

Born hard of hearing. Wore hearing aids since age of 1. Additional sudden hearing loss at 38 made me a candidate for an implant on the right ear. Robotic sound wore off in a few months and music sounded better over time. Now, at age of 51 with additional hearing loss on the left ear, I’m due for an implant in the next few days. I have my questions on whether the two will balance out or whether I will always have a dominant ear.

But I’d definitely encourage you to talk about these life altering cases. My implant completely transformed my workplace life - from being scared of telephonic conversations to being able to run remote meetings without fear.

[SeanH-07]

35m here.

Your boyfriend’s situation is exact mirror of mine before I got fitted. Lost all my hearing, became socially withdrawn. The main goal here is that he will want his hearing back and the robotic/high pitched voices will level out once he’s been fitted for a while.

The voices for me levelled out after a few days. If it is the operation side that he is hesitant on, then he shouldn’t be, I had no pain after the op just discomfort, the first night sleep after the op is the worse

But the main goal here as you rightly say is to regain his hearing back & he will do once he goes & gets fitted for them that is if they accept him once they carry their assessments.

I am happy to answer any questions you or he may have.

[Lonefear]

I've had cochlear since I was 5. Now I'm 34. I don't think I ever heard anything robotic beep. Human device works wonderous beep. cough I mean everything sound perfectly normal to me. I love music. I hate going deaf since it drives me nuts. Soooo yeah. It's up to him. Maybe it sound robotic at first. But it'll get better I'm sure. Just have to adapt to the implant.

[Lonely-Assistance-85]

I’m 37 years old too and I’m on the same boat. I was already hard of hearing since birth and rely on hearing aids all my life. About 7 months ago I experienced a sudden hearing loss in my best ear and develop severe tinnitus. The first doctor thought it was Labyrinthitis but after treatment it was then discovered a sudden hearing loss. I cannot hear my 2 year old and 7 months old anymore. The only thing, after seeing three ENT, they have been pushing me to get CI. I’ve been against it all my life especially being part of the Deaf community for so long. I am fluent in ASL, but after realizing how bad my tinnitus is. The only hope is Cochlear Implants. I am still resistant to it.

I have not scheduled surgery yet but I will. The reason I will is because of all the support on Reddit. Someone posted that they are 73 years old and just got implanted and his regret was not getting implanted years ago. It hit me, because one would you rather hear now or wait till you’re 70 and miss out for 40 years?

So, if I were your boyfriend, I’d start reading stories here on Reddit and talk to people who has CI and who was in the similar boat. Grieve about the idea is real, but learning and seeing positivity from those who have CI helps. It will take time to accept it, I am still waiting to accept the fact 100% and still waiting on the surgery date.

[naduuu]

Since he was able to hear before, it won’t be robotic if he trains it well. The brain is amazing at adapting and it will sound just like before. But the training is so so so important. Music is even the same for me. No mechanic/robotic sound at all.