Monday, November 26, 2007

My Activation Video!!

I told you all before that I was going to tape my activation and I neglected to post it. Jennifer catapulted me into posting mine :) After going through three computers, four reinstallation of Microsoft Movie Maker, several crashes, searching on Google on why Micrsoft Movie Maker hates my guts and two hours troubleshooting, I finally got the damn thing up :) Grab some popcorn and some laffy taffy and enjoy the flix.

22 comments:

Jeff said...

Loved the video! Too bad adding closed-captions is such a time-consuming thing.

I've been posting comments to you off and on over the past months. Now I have a blog too -- because I'm getting implanted this Thursday, Nov 29th!! (AB for me too).
http://ci-metalpostcard.blogspot.com/

-Jeff

Abbie said...

Welcome aboard Jeff! This is the first time you left your name! :) I am going to try to add some subtitles but here is a hint. I must say OK like a million times :) I just added you to my CI bookmarks on my blog. Woo hoo! 3 and half more days to go!

How do you feel? It is okay if you are thinking that you are doing the right and the wrong thing at the same time. The surgery is the easy part, it is the constant source of figuring out what sounds belong to whom that is the hard but gratifying process :)

Anonymous said...

Awesome - I wish I recorded mine. It sure does change a lot in the past few months. Valerie

Jennifer said...

I am going to try to add subtitles to mine, too...but don't know how long it will take me to get around to it...esp. since mine are SO LONG!!
I LOVED LOVED LOVED your video...it was great to see that beautiful face and hear your voice!! I have watched it a couple of times and am about to watch it again...I am HEARING everything you and the audie are saying, and I'm hooked ;)!
I love YouTube....great stuff!!

Anonymous said...

Hey!

Abbie, the video is really awesome. The sound quality has an exceptional high level of clarity. I was even able to comprehend what the Audie was saying to you!

Hugs from your pal at hearing journey,

Nancye

Sam said...

That is so awesome......I wish I had done the same thing! Keep up the great work!

Anonymous said...

Abbie,

It was nice seeing you in motion. great smile! I was able to read your lips a little but mostly just "ok".haha! Great video.

take care
jim cone

Anonymous said...

Great blog! Excellent video! You sure are pretty!
I've been bionic for about a week now (Nucleus Freedom). I was really surprised today to notice that I can hear myself breathe.

Silent_War said...

Thanks for sharing such an intimate moment!, its a brave thing to do.

I remember my swtich on, everyone sounded like donald duck, and I was serverly disapointed (Thinking that this was going to be what things sounded like for rest of my life)

But when they tell you that your brain will adjust and things will eventually sound normal, its true!

Its been about 4 years for me now and my hearing continues to improve each day - after a few months my everybodys voice sounded exactly how they used to before I lost my hearing.

After 6 months I was listening to music (and all the music I listened to before I lost hearing sounded the same too!)

Its important to 'train' your brain by listening to as many sounds as possible as often as possible - in your case it sounds like you are, in my case I was so depressed I found it hard to bother! (untill I started seeing the improvments of course hehe)

Geo said...

Great video! Thanks for spending so much time getting it uploaded! It really is nice to see what it's going to be like.

VBnBama said...

How nice to see an adult activation...both of my kids wear implants and the feedback from them was limited. Thanks for sharing!

Jeff said...

Abbie: I feel pretty good now. The closer I get to the surgery, the better. The most stressful part has been getting caught in a weird insurance loophole that means if I don't have my surgery by the end of November, it's going to cost me a WHOLE LOT more dollars. In fact I'd probably have to put it off until later next year. I feel very fortunate that my CI center and medical group got me scheduled so quickly, and just under the wire.

I definitely do the right/wrong swing too!

-Jeff

Anonymous said...

I got mine in Canada, so the whole thing cost me $0.00.

Jeff, the surgery isn't too bad. Mine started at noon and I was home by 4PM. I had a one inch long lazy-S-shaped incision behind my ear. I had a bruise above my eye where they attached the facial nerve sensor and some bruising on my neck. My ear didn't swell up and I could shower and wash my hair (carefully) two days after the procedure. I didn't require any pain medication. So don't worry about it and good luck!

You probably won't be too impressed on activation day, but it gets better. You've been wearing hearing aids and stimulating your auditory nerve, so that will help your brain adapt.

Anonymous said...

Things are moving along fast. Had my menningitis vacination today. Got a call from Dr that activation date for implant is Jan 22nd. Haven't even had surgury yet and they got the activation set up!!

So now it's just having the physical and getting it done. Still on for dec 31st and having the worst headache of my life on new years day.haha!

jim cone

Abbie said...

Jim! Things are moving along at a steady place here :) I got you penciled in my calendar so I can count down with you :)

Did you have any side effects from the shot? I didn't get any side effects but I know Jen kind of felt a little weird.

Christian and Lily's Mommy said...

Hi Abbie,
I just found your blog through the Yahoo! Listen-Up site. Thanks for posting your video and sharing your story. I'm a mom to a Deaf baby, and I love reading about other people's journeys.
Tina
livelaughlovefamily.blogspot.com

deafcone said...

Hi Abbie,

I feel like crap. Surgeon wanted PPV 23 vaccine, and doctor who I went to see to get the shot thought I should have gotten a vaccine strictly for Menningitis. So I got two shots. No serious problems just aching and tired. Not a problem. Thanks for your support. It's nice being able to chat with someone who has gone through it. I have a blog now, haven't updated much but did yesterday. Here's the link if you want to view it.
http://deafcone.blogspot.com/

thanks again,
jim cone

Jeff said...

Jim: Funny you mention the meningitis vaccine. I had mine a little over a week ago and I think they might have given me the PCV7 vaccine instead of PPV23. I'm going to have to check on it.

About the only thing I noticed from it was a sore shoulder and a couple of small red blotches that lasted several days.

Gary said...

Hello Abbie,

I have been following your amazing journey here on the blog for a while now thanks to a link your friend melissa sent me.

It has made me aware of a whole world that I knew nothing about and has made me thankful for what I used to take for granted.

Your Video seems to have created a stir of positive comments that just illustrates what a supportive community their is out there.

I look forward to your future posts. You are a terrific writer and an incredible person. Thank you.

Abbie said...

I had the pneumonia shot because the type of meningitis associated with implants are caused by pneumococcal bacteria. I had the same problem explaining to my doctor that they just gave up arguing with a deaf person and called the surgeon :)

I am overwhelmed with the amount of positive feedback, it is the best feeling in the world that I can reach out to people and show them a different perspective. I love every single one of these comments!

Mom to Toes said...

I love the video! It is so helpful to get an adult's viewpoint on this whole process.

Thank you for taking the time to upload it. Technology. Hmph. ;)

Is that your mom in the background? What must have been going through her head!

Love your blog!

Wendy

Katie-Louise's blog said...

Brilliant activation video, bet it was a wonderful experince.

oooo you got me so excited for my switch on now.... BRING ON 19th :-P

Thanks for commenting on my blogs. You have been a great blogger and i enjoyed readin every bit of your blog :-D thanks

katie