Setbacks

The euphoria of the 2nd CI began to fade a couple of weeks after I left the mountains and returned to Richmond where I have much less control over my auditory environment.  The left CI, or what I assumed to be the left CI has been bothering me greatly again for the past 3 weeks or so.  I have found myself clicking it off when feeling overwhelmed by sound, which is happening more and more.  Library printer?  Off.  Video games?  Off.  Loud TV?  Off.  Starbucks machinery?  Off.  Overly loud voices in the library? (there goes that mouth again)... Off.

Not good.

The last time I saw my audiologist, he mapped the left CI at 4 volumes, with 4 being the highest and 1 being the lowest.  I left his office with it at 4 and it sounded pretty good and very manageable.  Within the last couple of weeks I have dropped it down to 1.  Then I tried it back up at 2 and couldn't even take that.  So back to 1.

Very frustrating.

I saw my audiologist again today and he checked the levels in my left CI (which, by the way, is the one I got implanted first) and it is even worse than I thought.  I am hearing less with it than I was this time last year. I've lost about 20 decibel levels, you can see what I mean below.  This makes me very sad. :(

My audiologist said that the constant flicking it off is contributing to this, although he assured me this is not uncommon in adults with long-term hearing loss after their 2nd CI.  He said he would estimate about 60% of adults like me find themselves taking off one CI or the other after a bilateral implant, but he said eventually about 95% come back to using them both.  He says it is partly because the brain is now adjusting to auditory input from both sides. 

He also said that when I am around these noises that I find so difficult to deal with, to put some distance there, if possible.  Get away from the library printer.  Get away from the video game noise. Or at least move so I am not in such close proximity to the sounds.  He said I can even turn the volume in the left CI down when around those noises. 

He told me that the goal for now is to keep me wearing it and to stop me from turning it off and then we can work our way back up.  He remapped it with one setting only and I am to use the volume buttons on the remote to go up or down as needed.  He hopes that by the time he sees me again, I will be using the up button more.

He didn't change anything about the right CI (the one I got activated in August).  He wants to leave it where it is while we work on the left one.

I'm tired.