Connect with a mentor

Hey, I’m a 22-year-old bilateral cochlear implant recipient. I suddenly lost my hearing at the age of 18, five days before starting college (the deafness was the result of a rare autoimmune disease). Immediately, I knew that I wanted a cochlear implant. I received my first implant a month after losing my hearing, in October of 2013. By the following fall, I knew I wanted another implant, which I received in June of 2015. I am a senior at Western Michigan University, studying English literature, world literature, and creative writing. I am editor in chief of the undergraduate literary journal, I work as a teacher’s assistant, as a writing center consultant at the university, and as a writing tutor for middle school and high school students—all of this is made possible through my CIs. You can usually find me behind a book or a camera, as I spend most of my free time working as a photographer. I enjoy rock climbing, mountain biking, kayaking, hiking, adventuring, and world-traveling.

I was born profoundly deaf and have received two cochlear implants. I received my first one as a child and my second one as an adult. I am a teacher of the deaf with children who are in preschool through second grade. I also volunteer with several hearing loss organizations. I enjoy traveling, hanging out with friends and family, hiking, being outside and reading.

Hello!  My name is Sophia and my son Helio was born with bilateral Microtia Atresia. He uses the Baha Connect system.  He had the right side abutment surgery at age 7 and the left side abutment surgery at age 8.  If you ask him to describe the difference the Baha Connect System made, he says it is a big difference.  He hears more clearly and can hear the rain and birds chirping.  Helio continues to do well academically and socially.  His hobbies include playing video games, soccer, basketball, baseball, football, and his favorite sport is go karting.  We encourage him to participate in extracurricular activities and to enjoy life.  Helio is a brave individual and is learning that he can do anything he wants and more.  Helio’s mode of communication is oral and utilizes the mini-microphone in the classroom, when listening to music, and when playing video games on a hand-held device.  He is responsible for keeping all his equipment together and extra batteries on hand.  We look forward to helping you find what works for you and your family!

Patrick was born deaf and implanted at age 1.  He loves Legos and Star Wars.  He enjoys baseball, karate, and outdoor activities such as hiking, camping and riding his bike.   He is an avid reader (his reading level is many grades above average!).  He listens to music daily and loves traveling.  We love talking to other families about their hearing journeys!

I am 65 years old. I gradually lost my high frequency hearing due to heredity factors. I was bilaterally implanted with Hybrid Cochlear implants in 2014 and 2015 after wearing hearing aids for nearly 30 years. Prior to implantation, I had difficulty successfully engaging in the activities I loved because I could not hear. Now and again, I enjoy swimming/exercise in group settings, traveling with friends, being outside, attending theater and symphony, as well as volunteering in the community and at church and working with children. My life is full again with the things I love to do. I hope I’ll be able to answer any questions you may have.

1. The Acoustic Component should only be used when behavioral audiometric thresholds can be obtained and the recipient can provide feedback regarding sound quality. The Hybrid L24 Implant is approved in the US for adults ages 18 and older.

I am a bilateral Nucleus 6 recipient.  I use an acoustic component (Hybrid Hearing) on one of my cochlear implants.  I began to progressively lose my hearing at 22 due to Meniere’s disease, and became profoundly deaf in both ears by 6 years later. After working with my audiologist and ear surgeon, I gained the support and confidence to have my first cochlear implant surgery.  About a year later I had my second surgery and absolutely love hearing in stereo!  I can relax and enjoy all my activities and interests, knowing that I can hear well every day.  As a teacher, I have gained confidence while teaching and also insight into the journey that my students’ families must navigate for themselves.  In my spare time I enjoy cooking, dancing, traveling and exploring new places, as well as connecting with friends and family.

1. The Acoustic Component should only be used when behavioral audiometric thresholds can be obtained and the recipient can provide feedback regarding sound quality. The Hybrid L24 Implant is approved in the US for adults ages 18 and older.

I am a full-time Registered Nurse and a full-time writer. I write fiction, non-fiction, and young reader books. I’m currently working on my ninth book. Because of my cochlear implants, I’m able to host writing workshops and talk about finding the creative spark. My husband and I live in Hawaii. We enjoy keeping active with hiking and exploring the beautiful island.

I am the spouse of a bilateral Cochlear implant recipient. Since this technology has helped my husband to communicate successfully in quiet and noisy settings, and on the phone, I’m excited to share our journey with other families! In addition, speech and hearing has been my profession, so I’m passionate about helping others to find out how cochlear implants can help them regain usable hearing, and supporting them after activation. Volunteering for Cochlear is our way of saying “thanks” for this amazing technology!

A quick summary about Denise B.

• My hearing progressively declined on my right side until I had little hearing left.
• In 2008, I lost the hearing on my left side overnight becoming profoundly deaf.
• I received my first Cochlearâ„¢ implant in 2009 and my second one in 2017 on my other side.

My hearing journey began with single sided deafness in my early thirties. I began using a hearing aid in 1992. My hearing progressively declined on the right side until I had little hearing left. In 2008, I lost the hearing on my left side overnight becoming profoundly deaf. This total hearing loss was sudden and catastrophic for me.  I couldn’t communicate, use the phone, understand music, practice yoga, all things that made life enjoyable, and I was struggling to keep my job as a college professor. When I learned about cochlear implants, I took everything about them on faith. There were no mentors available to talk with and most of the information came from the audiologist, who was wonderful. I received my first Cochlearâ„¢ implant in 2009, and my second one in 2017 on my other side. It was wonderful to hear sounds again. Speech took a bit longer, but it was a miracle to hear again.

As a volunteer mentor I help people learning about cochlear implants by sharing my experience, explaining what to expect, and sharing the challenges and strategies that I used to overcome the learning curve.

My piece of advice to new recipients is to practice, practice, practice. It gets better over time and every time you use the sound processor your brain is working. When you start to get tired, take a break 15-30 minutes then go back to the sound processor. Audio books are a good way to practice speech recognition and use the online tools, connect with a mentor and ask questions.

I had mild hearing loss as a child (because of a medicine side effect) that worsened as I aged. I wore hearing aids for a while as an adult, but they became less and less effective. In my career, I was able to hear adequately but not great, so I used lip reading and context to understand what was going on. I received a N6 Cochlear Implant(CI) in one ear when I was 66. I use it with the acoustic component. I continue to use a ReSound hearing aid in the other ear. Getting the CI has increased my confidence when interacting with people. I used to speak loudly, to hear myself, and people would ask me why I was speaking so loud. I always felt stressed, because I wasn’t sure if I was hearing correctly. With the CI, I hear and speak more normally. I’m very happy with the CI and Resound HA combination. (My husband is also happy. He tells me that I hear him better.)

1. The Acoustic Component should only be used when behavioral audiometric thresholds can be obtained and the recipient can provide feedback regarding sound quality. The Hybrid L24 Implant is approved in the US for adults ages 18 and older.