The Esteem

First off, THANK YOU for being so sweet about this whole blog idea. I'm amazed and grateful for all the support I've received through this Esteem journey so far. Tonight, I'll try to explain how the Esteem works.

I had no clue that clinical trials for the Esteem took place 6 years ago. In fact, I didn't know any research on implantable hearing systems was taking place. I thought I would always wear hearing aids and that was fine with me. In fact, a few years ago, I found out my hearing loss is generic. It hit me hard. A friend told me, "So what? By the time you have kids there will be some new technology and it won't matter anymore.". While I appreciated his outlook, I thought he was crazy. :)

Then in October, a girl I went to high school with asked me if I'd seen the YouTube video of a woman getting a hearing implant. I assumed it was a cochlear implant (which is for the profoundly deaf, which I am not) and didn't watch the video for a few days. When I did, I was amazed to find that this implant is for people like me - those of us who aren't severe enough for cochlears but are too severe for hearing aids. Amazing!!

My hearing loss is due to nerve damage. Basically, when sound waves enter the ear, they hit the eardrum. It vibrates the bones of the middle ear, which carry the sound to the cochlea. Inside the cochlea there are tiny nerves called the hair cell nerves. They change the sound wave into an electrical signal that the brain interprets as sound. My hair cell nerves did not develop correctly. As a result, it takes increased volume to make the nerves do their job. Hearing aids amplify sound to the point that I can hear them. The Esteem is completely different.

When Dr. Shohet implants the Esteem, he will place the sound processor between my skull and skin just above my ear. He will then put a sensor near my ear drum and a driver near my cochlea. Then, when sound waves reach my ear drum, they will be carried to the sound processor which will turn them into electrical signals my brain can understand. In essence, the Esteem does exactly what my ear cannot. There is no way to regenerate nerves (yet!) and even with the Esteem, I won't hear like a person with normal hearing, but this is by far the closest anyone with a severe hearing loss is able to get at this time.

I'm new to blogging so I don't know if this will work, but I'm trying to imbed a picture of how hearing works and a video of my surgeon explaining the Esteem. He explains it with much greater clarity than I do. :)

Here goes nothing

Starting a blog is very strange. I've never wanted one because I certainly don't have anything of value to say, but I do serve an incredible God and I have an opportunity to share what He is doing, something that is "immeasurably more than all we could ask or imagine." If you know me in real life, you know that I'm a talker. :) I could talk to a brick wall and can usually find something to say about anything, but it really is hard to put into words all that I am experiencing. So, if you're stuck reading this, bear with me. :)

I was born with a mild-moderate-severe bilateral sensorineural hearing loss. That means that I have nerve damage in both ears. At some low frequencies (pitches), I have a mild loss (20-40dB, like a whisper or library). As frequency rises, I require more volume. In my right ("good") ear, I can hear most frequencies at 60-65 dB, which is considered moderate/severe loss. In my left ear, my threshold is 80 dB (like a piano). My comfortable listening level is 75 dB in my good ear and 110 dB in my bad. For reference, 80 dB is the danger zone and 120 is the pain threshold for people with normal hearing. Yes, my loss is that bad. :) When I find a copy of my audiogram, I'll post it. Please don't think I am complaining, though! I have been very blessed! Basically, I do have some hearing and am very fortunate that I'm able to hear quite well with hearing aids. My aided scores are nowhere near the normal hearing range, but I can live a "normal" life with the help of hearing aids.

In less than 3 weeks, I will receive the Envoy Esteem, a surgically implanted prosthetic hearing system. While it's not a "cure," it could actually allow me to hear in the normal range. The procedure has risks, of course, and there are no guarantees. I will have to learn how to hear and process sound naturally, but it really is possible for me to hear without hearing aids. The whole idea is still overwhelming and I can't imagine what it will be like, but I'm beyond thankful for this opportunity. See, with hearing aids, I'm able to hear and talk to people and listen to music most of the time, but I can't keep my aids in 24/7. At night, anytime I'm around water or when I'm exercising, I cannot wear hearing aids. With the Esteem, I'll be able to hear ALL the time. It's mind blowing, really. :)

This is quickly becoming a novel and that is not my intent. :). Reading blogs of other Esteem recipients has been helpful for me so I hope to do the same for other people who are considering the implant. I'm not a writer or a medical expert. I'm just a very blessed girl experiencing something amazing and hoping to share it to glorify God. So here goes nothing. :)