Well...in May of this year, I got my new harmony! I was so excited!! : ) I went to go get it mapped and had my programs set to:
P1 – 120 – 60 IDR
P2 – Hi Res – 60 IDR
P3 – 120 – 80 IDR
But being that I don’t like to change my programs through out the day, I tend to just stay on program 3.
I can’t tell a difference from the Auria and the New Harmony when I’m just talking to people and when I’m in my normal environments. But when I’m listening to music…I can see the changes. I’ve been able to hear the words to the songs better, I’ve also been able to get more of the instruments from the background too! There have been a couple songs that I liked before I got the Harmony, but never really understood the words and what the song was about…but once I listened to it with the Harmony, I understood the words and finally got the meaning of the whole song! And now its one of my favorites! : ) Its so weird to hear different songs on the radio and compare it to what it used to sound like and to what it sounds like now! Some of them have been good changes, but then again, some of them have been kind of wierd...like this one time - I listened to this one song that I liked before and I listened to it with the Harmony and heard what it REALLY sounded like! And with the Harmony, it sounded sooo wierd and different! It sounded so whiny and strange. Lets just say...its not one of my top songs anymore! haha But for most of the songs...they sound so much better! So thats a good thing! : )
But yeah, I really like the Harmony, not only because of the more channels and how the music sounds… but also because of the battery life! The battery life is TRULY AMAZING!! AND SUCH A LIFE-SAVER!! For me, I was lucky because with the Auria I only had to change my battery twice a day….but even still, I always had to worry about my batteries charging at night, making sure I had my batteries with me and what-not. But now, I just use the one on my implant and I’m good for the WHOLE DAY! I still carry one battery with me as an emergency backup if I need it, but honestly I don’t even need to carry an extra battery with me! The one battery lasts all day long and I absolutely LOVE it!! : )
So everything is going great with me….but unfortunately this summer and been a rough few months for my younger brother, Jonathan (16). At the end of May, his C1 internal implant (after 9 ½ years of having it) failed. So after the “confirmation” of the device failure he went into surgery to get the new Harmony. Lucky for him, the doctor was able to just take out the old one and put the new one right in the same spot on the same side. We were really happy about that because we both want to keep the other ear open for down-the-road emergencies and for the more advanced technologies that are coming out. So then after the surgery he waited a few weeks to get turned on. Those few weeks were probably the toughest weeks we all had to go through! He doesn’t lip read or use sign language (because we went through Auditory Verbal therapy to learn to hear and speak) so basically we had to walk around with a pen and paper so we could even communicate with him and to tell him what’s going on! I don't think I've ever seen my brother so depressed and bored! We were also all really nervous about the whole thing because we weren’t sure how this was going to turn out. We didn’t know if he was going to like it, if it was going to even work, or if he’s going to have to relearn the sounds all over again. But then the turning on day came… and it worked! But as it turns out, it did start off to be beeps and it moved into the “robotic” sounds and now it sounds like normal people. Its been about 2 months and he’s now hearing fine! I think because he had the implant for the last 9 ½ years in the same ear, the process of understanding with the new one was quicker and easier for him then for someone just getting it for the first time.
But after this rough and emotional summer, he’s now really liking the implant and seems to be hearing great!
He wears the new color caps, loves the direct-connect to listen to his ipod with, and most of all… he loves the battery life! With the C1, he had to go through 6-8 batteries A DAY and now he only uses one battery for the whole day!
So now, that my brother and I both have the new harmony we have fun with sharing the new color caps and jazzing up our implants!
Now, we're both stylish AB Harmony Implant users!! haha : )
Here is a picture of me and Jonathan swing dancing at a local concert a few days ago....
But on the flip side...even though this summer has been really emotional and crazy for us, we still had a great summer!
This summer, I worked in the Operating Room at the Children's Hospital again and I absolutly love it there! I went to Texas for 2 weeks and cruised around San Antonio with my Mom. And I've also been working at AVC and hanging out with all my friends.
And for Jonathan - for the last five weeks he went to the Riverside Military Academy to take Algebra II and to see whats its like to be in the military. Now, you're probably confused and wondering why he went off to the military academy when he JUST got the implant... well he actually signed up before the imlant failed and nothing was going to stop him from going (even the implant failure). And much to our surprise, the teachers and sargents were all really cool with him about the implant and really worked with him! He took a whole years-worth of Algebra II in 5 weeks ( and PASSED) and had a great time playing sports and working out with all the other guys!
Here is a picture of Jonathan and me from the Military Ball (you can kind of see him in his uniform)...
So yeah, you never know what life is going to bring you.... : )
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