I am going to try to record what i can remember of this appointment... that's the downside of starting this blog after i've been to two appointments already. But here we go.
I was just meeting with her for a consultation of what the surgery will be like and as a way to get to know who my surgeon is before I undergo the operation. I like knowing who will be in that room working on me and she made me feel more confident about her as a surgeon. I went to the appointment with both my parents, and right away I was regretting that. They had so many questions and was trying to understand how different of a hearing I will be obtaining. They already have trouble understanding how i hear now, and it is not that easy for me to explain this to hearing people for some reason. So i get quite frustrated with my parents at times, but they did have some good questions.
My dad cared more about the mechanics of the surgery and the cochlear implants, while my mother cared about the aftermath and what things will be like for me. Me? I only cared about the numbers and how well my hearing could improve. I like to think that I do not have high expectations for this implant, but not low expectations either. I am expecting a mild improvement over what I can hear now, and to have a chronic headache for at least a few days after the implants are turned on. I always seem to get a chronic headache whenever I get new hearing aids, but my surgeon said that this is a bigger change for my brain and it will take time.
Basically this appointment was to get any concerns out of the way and understand the entire process of the surgery, then the 2nd appointment was to become more educated of my hearing loss and what cochlear implants are and so forth.
My overall feelings of the meeting with Dr. Smullen was positive and I felt comfortable with her operating on me. This is my first operation ever in a hospital and I absolutely hate hospitals so that was making me a little nervous, but she sounded experienced and seemed to know what she was doing and talking about. The one thing that she commented on was how she was impressed with me, like she could not believe that I had a severe to profound hearing loss due to how well i could talk and how well i've done so far in life, and in school especially. In school, I'm a freshman at URI and i made it onto dean's list, and have the goal of staying on that list for the rest of my time in college. I managed to graduate from high school, a rigorous one that is ranked the 3rd best public high school in Massachusetts. And i did all of that with the use of hearing aids and FM systems, and now i wonder if i can do better than that with cochlear implants... just keep on wowing people. It seems like every week i get some kind of praise from a random person or someone i just met who just can't believe i'm deaf.
Well I am tired now, more to come later.
Feel free to post any questions!
-Annie
being in the hospital for the first time is kinda scary...but really, it's only scary before it happens! When i had my surgery at Emerson hospital in december, i was freaked. out. but then i was so out of it from the anaesthesia, and then the nurses were SO nice, and the bed was fun to play with, and the food (what i could get down...anaesthesia makes me nauseous as hell) was good, so it was all good :-) it was actually kind of fun, having people at my beck and call, just waiting to get me another cup of jello or some water, or to help me be comfortable! I kinda didnt want to leave. lol. I'm sure you will be similarly fine! it sounds like you're on a good track already!
ReplyDeleteaccording to my surgeon, im in and out in the same day so i am glad for that... =)
ReplyDeletehey anna, it's sofia, i'm a huge facebook creep and saw your blog there haha. my uncle has been deaf since the age of three and he just recently (within the past year) got cochlear implants. he only had one side first, then he got the other about six months later (i think). the first went so well, that he decided to get the other side as well. things have been great for him, it's definitely an adjustment because he heard things he never heard before and he couldn't talk on the phone for awhile because it was a little too much but all in all he's been pretty successful with them!!
ReplyDeletei just thought i'd share =) good luck, i know it'll all go wonderfully!
okay it must have been over a year ago, but you get the point. he's been really enjoying his cochlear implants =) except that now his five-year-old is a bit more annoying because he's very loud haha =)
ReplyDeletehaha i probably will get the second side done later on, just can't do both at once! thanks for sharing that! =)
ReplyDelete