False Expectations and Unexpected Outcomes

I've decided that I'd better start a list of the unexpected things concerning getting a second implant, because I probably won't remember months from now what I found surprising. I'm sure that there will be other bilateral users who might read my observations and think, "Oh, I expected that.Why were you surprised by that?" That's OK . . . I already know that these musings are personal to me and not relevant universally. So here goes, in no particular order:

• Since I've never heard HiRes 90K sound, I expected to need to start there with my new ear and to work my way up to liking the Fidelity 120 sound. Surely I would need time to adjust to HiRes. Not so. The Fidelity 120 sound was super from the get-go.

• I assumed that I would be lugging around two battery chargers when traveling, including cords and plugs for each one. So I thought my days of traveling light were history. Not so! My charger accommodates both my C1 and my Harmony batteries. Since I use only 1 Harmony battery each day (incredible!), the four slots in my charger are adequate for my daily battery use with both implants. An overnight trip really can still be just a carry-on after all. A pleasant surprise! (My kit came with a new charger, so now I have an extra charger as a back-up. Great.)

• I thought that my ability to localize sound would be instantaneous (i.e., that I would know where a sound was coming from as soon as I became bilateral and that I would comprehend the sound in either ear). I did not realize that my brain would have to learn to determine directionality again, that this was a skill that would need to be re-learned over time. So far, I cannot tell where environmental sounds are coming from, but it's only been a week of surround sound.

• I guess I thought that if speech sounded good from either ear, then it would automatically blend together when both implants were worn. Maybe I really hadn't considered that there might be some out-of-sync issues, that there could be some timing differences or pitch variations due to electrode positioning, old vs. new technology, etc.

• I did not know that the new travel case that was included in my activation kit was such a nifty deal. This was a new accessory to me since it was not "invented" in 2000. I use it all the time now for our over-nights to my CI clinic for mappings. This sturdy, compact case includes a built-in dry and store, 2 meshed velcroed pouches in the lid, and dividers for recharged batteries, color caps, and extra ear hooks. So very practical.

• I did not expect to be hit with vertigo problems on April 4, about a month and a half after surgery. From what I've now read about BPPV, its cause is unknown. It's probably something I've been predisposed to for years. I have never been able to handle motion rides at amusement parks and, as an adult, have tended to get nauseous in exercise classes if required to lean back and look up. I am likely to have periodic recurrences, hopefully few and far between. In the whole scheme of things, it's a minor "thorn in the flesh", isn't it?