Vivian M
- ProfileWho Has Hearing Loss: I do
Hearing Loss Type: Sudden Loss
Hearing Loss Cause: Meningitis
Device: cochlear
Hello everyone. I have only been deaf since July 2003. I woke up in the emergency room at the hospital and found out that I had Bacterial Meningitis. I too could see peoples lips moving but kept asking my family why I could not hear them speak. That's when I received the bad news about my hearing. Every doctors visit I was asked by the doctor if I could hear him. Of course the answer was no. Finally, he told me I would be deaf the rest of my life. I have shed so many 
tears over the death of my hearing you would think I had none left. I went to a ear specialist who recommended a Cochlear implant. My family helped me make the decision to have it. So in May 2004 I had the surgery. In June 2004 it was turned on. At first it seemed it was not going to allow me to hear anything. But, with constant work with my audiologist we were able to get some sound. There are still many things I do not hear because I only have 7 of the channels working. I had bone growth which would not allow all of them to be connected. Before the implant I started to understand people talking to me by lip reading. I was not taught how to do that, it just came to me naturally. I am very thankful for that. With out a visual I cannot understand what is being said to me, so that is the downside for me.
All I can say is I do the best I can with what I have and am very happy to still be alive. 
