Amanda D. grew up with hearing loss due to constant middle ear issues. Years into her adulthood, Amanda was able to get the Baha® System, which changed her life. Now with the latest sound processor solution, the Baha 5 SuperPower, Amanda’s life continues to be enhanced by the innovations of the Baha System.
“My mom told me that I never really played with anything that made noise when I was a baby, and I really did not respond to any sounds until I got my first set of ear tubes at 21 months.
I remember getting my first hearing aid at the age of 7. I remember sitting in the hospital waiting area telling my mom that I hear the phone ringing, people talking and get this thing out of my ear! I got my second hearing aid at the age of 8 and did well with them until late 1990’s.
In 1999, I had another surgery to make some correction to my hearing bones in my middle ear. That surgery helped for two years; then I got a really bad ear infection, which did more damage to my middle ear.
In 2001, I learned about and found out I was candidate for the Baha solution by an Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) doctor. I would have went for getting the solution then, but I had no health insurance.
I told myself someday I would get the Baha solution, and I kept it in my back of my mind for years!
I went on to attend college with my hearing aids, and I had use CART (live event captioning) for most of my college years because a regular hearing aid was no longer beneficial to me in my left ear. It only helped me with environmental sound, and that was it.
During the 12 years that I knew I was Baha candidate and didn’t have insurance to get the device, I would every so often look on the internet to see what new Baha devices were out and available.
I went back to seeing an ENT doctor in 2013 when I had insurance, and on my very first visit I told the doctor immediately I wanted the Cochlear Baha solution. We started the process to get my insurance approval, and we got it approved on the first time around!
I finally got the Baha System 2013, and immediately I was hearing so much better with my first Baha sound processor (the Baha 3/BP110 Power) than with my old hearing aid!
In 2016, Cochlear made the announcement that they were releasing the Baha 5 Power and Baha 5 SuperPower Sound Processors. The next time I went to go see my ENT, we talked about the new sound processors and she recommended I get the Baha 5 SuperPower because it best suited my hearing loss need. While I was at Cochlear Celebration, I was able to upgrade to the new device. I got my new device activated a couple of months ago, and I can hear so much better with it than with my Baha 3 Power!
I love the SmartSound® iQ technology! I can now hear soft voices and hear better in noise!
I love the True WirelessTM Mini Microphone 2+ because it has the direct line for audio, which I use with my computer, my iPhone® and iPod touch®, and a T-coil is in it as well! Also, I can now stream bimodally with my Baha 5 SuperPower on one side and my Resound Linx2 5 Power BTE hearing aid on my other side with the Mini Mic 2+.
I still have the Phone Clip and use it every so often now because I have both the iPhone and iPod touch for my Baha 5 Superpower and Linx2 5 Power BTE that stream directly to them. I also use the Smart Apps to change the setting, the volume, the bass and treble, and they both tell me when I have low battery before I get the low battery warning sound!
Life with my new Baha 5 SuperPower Sound Processor is wonderful. I love traveling to see my friends, and I feel safe and more comfortable traveling alone now that I can hear better.
I am an advocate for people with hearing loss, and I love being a Cochlear volunteer.
My Baha System also enabled me to keep my job as a Special Education teacher, and with my Baha 5 SuperPower, I am able to hear the children that I work with better. More often than not, I can hear them the first time now without having them repeat themselves to me. I can also hear them better in noise.
The Baha System brought me out of my shell.”
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