Realistic Expectations are a must...

Here is a snippet of an article on CI expectations.

My reality - things got much worse at the beginning -so overwhelming.  It is slowly getting better and I can feel the improvements, but I'm still not to a "good" stage yet.  It's only day 40.  I have a long way to go!



http://www.acenta.com/otology.cochlearimplants.asp
Realistic Expectations for Cochlear Implant Recipients
Although an implant will enable better hearing and should improve the ability to communicate, realistic expectations are a must. Implant recipients progress at their own individual pace and should never compare their progress to another recipient's progress. Developing the ability to use and hear with an implant is not an immediate or overnight process. The implant is not an immediate cure preventing patients from ever having trouble communicating again. 

It is highly possible that in the beginning patients will have significant difficulty hearing or understanding with the implant. Some patients are able to immediately enjoy and understand what they hear during their initial mapping session, however many patients with implants describe the initial sound quality as robotic, mechanical or similar to a cartoon character (Mickey Mouse or Donald Duck). Other patients find their initial exposure to sound overwhelming, strange and perhaps annoying. With time every patient experiences significant improvement, step by step. 

Over Time, Three Factors Will Combine To Improve the Sound Quality of the Initial Listening Experience: 
• The nerve pathways and the brain adjust to the new auditory input 
• Repeated mapping sessions fine tune the auditory signal provided by the implant
• Listening experience and listening exercises enable patients to adapt and become familiar with the new input so it is perceived as increasingly natural and pleasant

Improvement depends upon the amount of time and effort invested in the rehabilitation process. This is why the support of family members or friends is extremely important. It is important to have other people available who can help practice listening. The process can be likened to learning to hear all over again, and can sometimes be compared to learning a new language. Sometimes the support of a psychologist or counselor is needed to assist with the coping process associated with adjusting to the implant. 

Factors Affecting the Degree of Benefit from an Implant
Although the amount of benefit an individual receives cannot be predicted with absolute certainty, the audiologist and speech language pathologist can help implant candidates determine realistic expectations and likely outcomes. Individual achievement/success in terms of speech and language understanding and the ability to speak clearly (for patients who were born deaf and have limited or no speech production) is often based upon the following factors:
• Age at which deafness occurred
• Amount of hearing experience prior to deafness
• Length of time auditory information was provided while hearing impaired (i.e. use of hearing aids)
• Age at implantation (i.e. a greater outcome can be expected for a child deafened at birth who is implanted at 12 months than a similar child who is implanted at age five)
• Speech and language ability levels
* Structural and functional status of the cochlea or cochlear nerve
• Degree of recipient and family commitment to the rehabilitation process
• Commitment to use the implant full-time in order to access auditory cues and develop listening skills
• Commitment to maximizing aural-oral abilities
• Commitment to working with the rehabilitation team including keeping appointments, practicing listening exercises and following audiologists' and speech-language pathologists' advice on how to maximize benefit
• Commitment to troubleshooting, maintaining equipment and learning to use provided accessories for various listening situations