Wow, some amazing changes over these past weeks as my sense of normal operations expands and others seem to rely on me more and barely to give it a second thought.
But what if I had a flat?
We all pack spare tires in our cars. As rare as flat tires are, we all know they happen – it’s not if, just when.
And I’m already considering when I might get a second implant.
It’s so expensive, and people wonder if it’s worth it. Certainly it’s not as earth-shattering as the first! It’s true. Though the benefits of hearing in stereo aren’t trivial - like being able to locate the source of a sound, and even better comprehension of speech – I think the spare tire effect is the more critical.
As well as I’m hearing today, what would I do if I had a malfunction, or my implant shifted, and I was suddenly plunged into complete deafness? These scenarios are not unknown among implantees. My deafened coping mechanisms have been repressed for awhile now. The result of a sudden shutdown today would feel catastrophic, with a lot of confusion for myself and those around me.
In my line of work, one of the concepts that’s central to keeping things running constantly is to avoid a “single point of failure”. In other words, everything that could break down has a backup, because it probably will break eventually.
For me, this implant is now a single point of failure in my daily function, and with all its new and happy benefits, it actually remains the source of a bit of angst.
That's an interesting and scary thought, Mark. Especially since you are still in the working world, I don't blame you for giving this a great deal of thought. Continued good luck to you. Sounds as if you're doing just great with one. But a spare might be good . . .
ReplyDeleteMark, I'm still amazed at how great youre doing so early on! While I'm happy with my implant, I'm feeling cautious about it (My scars haven't even healed yet. :-) ) Having said that, I tend to take a more proactive approach to almost everything. It's better to be prepared for the inevitable breakdown. Are there any advantages to waiting in your case?
ReplyDeleteMark, you've stated so eloquently what is a fear of mine... I already know how not to hear. I have no usable hearing in my right ear and just a few low tones in my left, but even at that I cope very well -- just a note... if I were working, I might have a slightly different story to tell, though in my last job I didn't really "need" to hear and I had an employer that accommodated me voluntarily and happily -- and I can handle most situations. My hearing loss doesn't keep me from doing anything that I want to do, so I'm not desperately looking to change things -- not that others are either. Geeze, I'm so conditioned to not offend anyone!! LOL
ReplyDeleteAnyway, one of my fears of getting CI and becoming reliant on it, is that I'll lose that ability to cope and get along in life with nothing. I've never worn hearing aids, I don't know sign, I don't have enough hearing to use ALD's, and I guess I'm a bit proud of the skills that were hard won over my lifetime. Yes, I'd give them up tomorrow if I could hear normally again, but to give them up for something that I'm not even sure will work and then to become dependent on CI at whatever level it improves my perception of sound. What if something happens to the CI after I become dependent on it? Of course, my logical and practical self kicks in and I realize that if I can learn to live without any assistance and deafness once, I probably can learn to do it again, but for now it just seems the right thing for me to wait until there is a change that tips the CI side of the scale.
I'm so happy you are doing so well, and I hear how wonderful CI is from many, but I still am not ready, and that's okay.
Thanks for sharing your experience... it helps me. ~~ Michele