Any players with cochlear implants?

Ruark · #1 02-18-2016, 07:08 PM

I recall noticing somebody on here with a cochlear implant. I have binaural implants myself, having become deaf after a lifetime of progressive loss, then regaining my hearing with the implants and returning to my beloved guitar.

Anybody else?

kkrell · #2 02-19-2016, 08:11 AM

I have a friend who had to have her implant replaced, but was then able to return to flute playing.

BillyHank · #3 02-19-2016, 08:54 AM

Hello Ruark,

I have a cochlear implant in my right ear.
I had played classical guitar for many years and my hearing loss came on gradually at first, but when I started wearing hearing aids, I stopped playing guitar because it sounded awful.

After going completely legally deaf. I had the implant in 2006.
I now play both classical and steel string guitar and it sounds wonderful, just like before I lost my hearing.

The implant is installed as an out patient - takes about 1 hour in surgery.
Then you typically get the external parts two weeks later to allow for complete healing before introducing you to sound again.
You do have to take therapy after to help you relearn what you are hearing.
It takes up to a year for some folks, but I was complete and own my way in 3 weeks.

I am considering going back and getting the other ear done as well, but being I am 82 and my fingers are not as cooperative as they once were, a single implant works fine for conversation, television and telephone.
And, now the implants include Bluetooth technology which has opened up an entire range of new ways to bring better hearing to you.

I recommend you check out the Cochlear Americas community and forum for more specific answers.

My best regards,

Bill G

http://www.cochlear.com/wps/wcm/connect/us/home

barricwiley · #4 02-19-2016, 09:03 AM

Would it be offensive to ask aprox cost of having this done?(if known)
Thanks either way.

BillyHank · #5 02-19-2016, 09:32 AM

Most medical insurance plans and Medicare cover most of the cost.

The cost has come down a lot now, since there are so many of these operations being done - especially in the young. If children born deaf get these implants early on, they catch up very quickly with children having normal hearing.

We actually hear in our brain and it is the training of the brain to recognize and interpret the signals provided by the implant, which uses the same nerve source for transmission of the signals to the brain.

We spend our first two years of life training our brains to learn what all the incoming signals mean and how to react with our bodies to those signals. We learn to smell, taste, see, hear, feel pain, heat and cold, walk and talk.

Of course we have nothing else to do except eat and sleep during those first years.

Bill G

NVADeafie · #6 02-19-2016, 09:57 AM

I have bilateral cochlear implants. I started with one in my right ear in the fall of 2002. I got an implant for my left year in the fall of 2006.

It took a while before I started hearing music good enough to start playing guitar again. It was only after I went bilateral that I was eventually able to tune a guitar again. In early 2008, everything came together and I finally got the right settings to really start enjoying music again.

I was 58 when I got the first implant and 62 when I got the second. I've met people in their 80s that had just gotten implanted and I've read of people in their 90s that have been implanted.

If you have a chance to go bilateral, don't pass it up.

If one is looking for information about cochlear implants, here's one place to start: http://cochlearimplanthelp.com/

Another site is: https://hearingjourney.com

Cochlear implants not only gave music back to me, they gave me back my life.

marty bradbury · #7 02-19-2016, 10:02 AM

Wow! I have hearing aids and have never heard of these or been given the option. Thanks for the information

barricwiley · #8 02-19-2016, 11:28 AM

Yes,
Thank you for the information.
I will be checking it out.
I have Tinitus in both ears so will be checking to see if that helps with the situation.

Ruark · #9 02-19-2016, 11:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by barricwiley

Yes,
Thank you for the information.
I will be checking it out.
I have Tinitus in both ears so will be checking to see if that helps with the situation.

Well, implants aren't for tinnitus; they are for hearing loss of sufficient severity that the person doesn't significantly benefit from hearing aids.

My implants are from Advanced Bionics. I have the latest models, the Naida Q70s. My hearing sensitivity is equal to or better than persons with normal hearing, although I still have some trouble understanding speech because of a limited ability to localize the source of a sound. "Hearing" and "understanding speech" are two COMPLETELY different things.

Don't assume that implants produce "electrical signals" instead of sound. Normal ears produce electrical signals, too. Many people misinterpret this to mean that what you hear through implants is totally different from what you hear with normal hearing. It isn't. When you tell me "hello," what I hear is "hello," not "beep-beep."

The surgery and devices usually run a total of about $80,000 - $120,000, but insurance will cover most of that. You may also hit the coinsurance maximum. NEVER NEVER trust an insurance company's customer service representative on cochlear implant matters; most of them have never even heard of a cochlear implant. Always go through the implant company's insurance specialist.

This is a guitar forum, so I don't want to get too far off-topic here. It is good to know that there are other guitar players out there with CIs having the same experience I have.

BillyHank · #10 02-19-2016, 11:46 AM

I have found, in my case at least, the absence of sound or low volume of sound will bring on tinnitus. I believe the mind will start generating sound on it's own when deprived of adequate sound stimulation.

Bill G

difalkner · #11 02-19-2016, 11:49 AM

Our bass player in our Praise Band is on his second implant. He had sold all his guitars and quit doing anything with music until a few years ago when he got the first implant and realized he could play with us, so it's been great for him. Just amazing medical technology!

NVADeafie · #12 02-19-2016, 01:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ruark

Well, implants aren't for tinnitus; they are for hearing loss of sufficient severity that the person doesn't significantly benefit from hearing aids.

My implants are from Advanced Bionics. I have the latest models, the Naida Q70s. My hearing sensitivity is equal to or better than persons with normal hearing, although I still have some trouble understanding speech because of a limited ability to localize the source of a sound. "Hearing" and "understanding speech" are two COMPLETELY different things.

Don't assume that implants produce "electrical signals" instead of sound. Normal ears produce electrical signals, too. Many people misinterpret this to mean that what you hear through implants is totally different from what you hear with normal hearing. It isn't. When you tell me "hello," what I hear is "hello," not "beep-beep."

The surgery and devices usually run a total of about $80,000 - $120,000, but insurance will cover most of that. You may also hit the coinsurance maximum. NEVER NEVER trust an insurance company's customer service representative on cochlear implant matters; most of them have never even heard of a cochlear implant. Always go through the implant company's insurance specialist.

This is a guitar forum, so I don't want to get too far off-topic here. It is good to know that there are other guitar players out there with CIs having the same experience I have.

Ruark,
Great post. Your post offers a great explanation about some of the nuances of cochlear implants.

I also have Advanced Bionics Naida Q70s.

werkout52 · #13 02-19-2016, 03:46 PM

My hearing loss is profound, and Kaiser recommends Hybrid Cochlear implants. Mainly works on high frequency and lets your ears cover the low. Any thoughts?

BillyHank · #14 02-19-2016, 04:36 PM

werkout52

implants are generally not very good below 500 Hz because the low frequency part of the cochlea is in the deepest and smallest and hardest to reach area.

I kept my left ear with normal hearing because I can still hear the lower frequencies with a hearing aid in that ear - this is good for music only and does not help with speech.

varve · #15 02-19-2016, 04:39 PM

I'm an otologic surgeon, and manage a cochlear implant program. I say that because the CI is really a collaborative process between patient, surgeon, and most importantly, an experienced AuD, or doctor of audiology.

Successful appreciation of music, post implant, is a wonderful outcome, and not altogether common. We find that a high degree of musical acumen pre-implant and pre hearing loss is a good predictor, which may explain why a lot of folks on the forum have had success by this criterion. Truly wonderful!

I wouldn't seek to comment further than that in terms of bilateral, hybrid, Nucleus vs AB, etc., because it is NOT Martin vs Collings , but far more important. The company websites tend to have great info, and many counties/ regions have very active Hearing Loss Associations where info can be shared. I speak to our HLA every year or so, and learn a great deal from those interactions.

I have a feeling that this thread is about to be moved 😊