Praise the Lord Sharon great news. -- I would rather live my life as if there is a God, and die to find out there isn't, than live my life as if there isn't, and die to find out there is. ABC's of Salvation Admit you are a sinner. Rom 3:23 Believe on Christ. Acts 16:31 Confess your faith. Rom 10:9-10 Karen Carter 74' -------------- Original message -------------- From: Sharon Hooley <[log in to unmask]> > All right, guys, > > I've been waiting for someone in my family to review this special update, > but I guess they can correct me if I'm wrong on any point. So here it is: > > Third Sound Mapping, and Silence > > Posted February 6, 2008 > > > > Well folks, > > > > On January 17, my niece took me to see Jenna again for my third > > sound mapping. As we were walking toward the clinic, the mother of the deaf > > little boy that Judy and I had befriended greeted us, telling us that he did > > well on his activation! Jenna gave me even more sound to work with, and > > created the four programs to send alternative kinds of stimuli, rather than > > to be progressive in the same type. Number 1 is what we thought was my > > favorite setting so far. Number 2 is an automated sensitivity adjuster that > > changes according to my environmental needs. Number 3 is called adro, which > > is an alternative setting to try in any situation. And number 4 has a lot > > of low pitches which, so far, I don't like. I'll have to play around with > the others to see which ones I like best for a given environment. > > > > I can now communicate more without using my regular hearing aid, and I find > > that I'm able to recognize some sounds, and hear some voices beneath the > bells and whistles, which often seems to be decreased, and vary more widely > with the added stimulation I've been given! I also realize now that voices > do indeed sound cartoonish, as some have described them. Voices that I would > otherwise recognize can sound distorted. Since the settings are not perfect, > > or my brain isn't fully adjusted, I hear some things in what I can best > > describe as a bad machine language accent. If I ask how you're doing, and > > you say, "I'm doing okay," it can sound somewhat like, "I'm doing o kerr." > Although music is often not very recognizable yet, I can sometimes hear the > rhythmic jingling and tinkling as my system picks out the beat, etc. It got > me thinking of just how complex our technological minds are; whatever it is > that makes the music source play, and the things that make my electrodes > stimulate to tap out the rhythm! > > > > When I first turn it on in the morning, the sounds are an awakening shocker, > sort of like when you sleepily walk into the bathroom and douse your face in > cold water. Otherwise, I don't remember any sounds driving me really crazy, > though I did feel tired, at least once. The most annoying ones I can think > of are when I've heard myself speaking high-pitched consonants that I hadn't > heard much of in a long time, like, "Thisss nexxxt Sssattturrday" and the > "er" sound when others speak. But I gladly welcome the high pitches, which > give me the ability to hear speech, and the world, more clearly, and I aint > goin back! > > > > I still often use my microphone system with my hearing aid I'd been using > before, but for part of the time, I turn my microphone off and leave my > hearing aid in the mode that only picks up sounds from that, and nothing > else. That way, my brain gets more of a workout with the processor. > > > > I don't have to go in for another mapping session until next month, > hopefully February 14, if I can get > > a ride. I hope we'll play around some more. > > > > After I finished my mapping session, my niece and I went to the hospital > > where my dad lay in the ICU ward, unable to speak. He'd gone in to have his > > second carotid artery cleaned out, but the doctors discovered a hematoma > > near the surgery site, so he went back under the scalpel to get part of it > > removed. As a result, he swelled up so much that he could not breathe > > entirely on his own. Thus he was languishing on a ventilator, with a tube > > down his throat and toward his airways. It was the next day when we dropped > > by, and I later returned home with Judy, and my mom, who has been staying at > > her house at night. > > I appreciate the fact that I am capable of choosing how I view any given > circumstances. I see an inspirational, yet funny picture with the positive > and negative events that have occurred simultaneously: Me getting my hearing > improved so I can listen, as part of the communication process, and my dad > being unable to speak to me, the other side of the communication process. It > is crucial that we talk, and listen actively, to one another, in order to > boost our sense of well-being, and to keep any kind of relationship alive > and burning brightly! > > And that's the news for today. > > Sharon >