It wasn't what I expected. Some people come out of the first activation hearing voices, even if they sound like Donald Duck, but I came out of my activation hearing high pitch frequencies that made me think either mice or Aliens were communicating to me. Or just, both. Most of what I'm hearing, I can't really explain at all. It doesn't really sound like anything I've heard in my life, because none of it is real. What is suppose to be the clacking of the keys on the keyboard, is just some high pitch clicking; what's suppose to be my husbands voice, is some seriously nasal, incomprehensive garble. And this was after I tested him by telling him to talk in low pitch than high pitch. No difference was noted by the CI.
Supposedly my Audiologist had set the settings to be in a certain range, which seems to be only high pitch, so that I would start slow and get use to those. She says the sounds will eventually change into voices and at least leave the high pitch arena, but I'm wondering if that's going to happen naturally or after she adjusts the settings again. My CI has 3 levels on it that I can switch through... in the best way I can describe is one level has a smaller range of sounds available and the third level has the most, and she told me to go up a level every 2 days. Well, I decided to ignore that and check out those levels when I got home today... it's definitely nothing to complain about... the third level certainly sounds better and provides more sounds than the first level.
Since I'm usually at home all day and not really doing much and not around much noise, I decided to turn the music on and let me CI absorb the tunes through the laptop speakers. It's certainly picking up pitches my left ear can't grasp without headphones, but I'm also only hearing the high pitch stuff. Which I could only handle for an hour before I quit for the day. I was given permission to take the CI off when I want, as long as I wear it for several hours a day in the early stages.
I go back next thursday for another tune up. And then 2 weeks after that for a final configuration of my comfort levels. In about 2-3 months, I can start using the cables that hook the CI up to my ipod, computer and phone. I know a ton of you are looking forward to me talking on the phone with ya. I should say you shouldn't get your hopes up though because not everyone with the CI can manage phone conversations. It'll still be a little complicated to understand speech without lip reading, but I really won't know how well I'm going to do with anything until the time comes to test it all.
My husband taped the activation in nearly a dozen segments, and I managed to compose these together into a 13 minute video. I apologize that there are no subtitles, as, not only do I not know what is being said at the moments, the volume is low and I can't hear much, and I don't seem to have a program to allow me to type text in to at least explain what's happening. But maybe I'll find a program and edit it up and repost the video some other day.
So, I'm not very verbal about what I'm hearing, nor do you see much reaction, but that's because it's all on my face. My eyes go wide when something is loud and I grin when I'm happy it's not so loud anymore. But the camera isn't staring at my face the whole time to see it all. :-)
Here is the Implant hooked to my head. As I mentioned long ago, it's pretty massive.
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