Harmony makes small things grow, lack of it makes great things decay.

I am totally digging this quote.Harmony makes small things grow, lack of it makes great things decay.

I just came across it today and thought what a perfect title for my next entry! It is now on my top five list of favorite quotes.

The HiRes 90k implant or Johnny Five's pet mouse as I like to call it has a sidekick, the Harmony Processor. On the outside, the Harmony resembles a behind-the-ear hearing aid on steroids. The only difference is that it has a small cable with a quarter-size magnet at the end. The components work together in perfect harmony (pun intended).

Harmony Processor on the left - HiRes 90k Implant on the right.

So what does this Harmony do? It processes sound. :) The Harmony has two built in microphones that listens for sound and sends it to the processor or the mini computer. The mini computer converts the sound from analog to digital.

A prime example would be if you have digital cable service. You decided to give up the trusty rabbit ears and upgrade your service to digital. The big clunky box that the cable man brought over is a digital converter. It converts analog TV signal to digital. The result is a clear picture and increased audio clarity. I can vouch for the picture but the audio do not quote me on.

After all that digitalizing that goes on up in that processor, it ships the signal up the cable and into magnet at the end (transmitter) which transmits the signal to the magnet on the implant (receiver). The implant takes the signal, sends it down the tail to the electrodes that are wrapped around the cochlea. When the electrodes receive this signal, they stimulate the auditory nerve by sending out little jolts of electricity or firing that my brain will interpret as sound.

In essence, I will be available if you need something posted on the refrigerator since a magnet is always an ear away. :) I kid, I kid.

Every clarification breeds new questions.

Since I posted my entry about HiRes 90k Implant, I have received a flood of questions. So I thought this is the perfect place to answer them!

1. Is it instantaneous that I will hear? Nope folks, I have to wait to be turned on (Details to follow) and get your mind out of the gutter.

2. Will it cure my hearing? No, there is a 50/50 chance that it might work or not work for me. It will just help me have the sense of hearing. My type of hearing loss is sensorineural hearing loss. It means that a majority of the hair cells on my cochlea bite the dust. The only possible cure is stem cells, which I am not holding my breath for.

3. Am I getting both ears done? I am just getting the left one done but I am not nixing the idea of going bilateral in the future. The idea of hearing in stereo is something I have not done since I was 12.

4. What will my recovery be? Let me tell you what it is going to be like. It is going to me sitting on my fat derriere in my recliner watching HGTV all day with my “private cook” at my every beck and call. However, I should be back to my sunny little cubicle in a week.

5. What are the side effects? Oh, your usual run of the mill anesthesia reactions, facial paralysis, numbness, change in taste, dizziness, and meningitis that I have already taken the vaccine to prevent. Before you freak out, the pros outweigh the cons tremendously for me. To be honest, the only thing that was weighing on my mind is the facial paralysis. Until, I discovered during the course of surgery I will be hooked up to a facial nerve monitor just in case the surgeon gets a little too close for comfort, it will ring the alarm.

6. Are you scared? Not right now. I am jittery more then anything. Who knows how many pairs of shoes I will buy from now to then .

7. How do they perform the surgery? For whatever demented reason that you wish to watch how this surgery is performed, your viewing pleasure is located here, Cochlear Implant Surgery If I tried watching that, TIMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMBEEEEEER! Abbie goes boom.

8. Why did I pick Advanced Bionics Company over Cochlear Americas or Med-EL? Anyone who knows me will know I do my research about a product. The information that I gathered about the companies themselves, reliability, customer support, technology and the room for advancement without further surgery was overwhelming. When it came crunch time, I felt AB’s devices felt the most comfortable and comparable to the familiar settings that I have with my hearing aid. I felt that the benefits that Advanced Bionics offers is more in tune with my lifestyle.

9. Is one company superior to the others? From what I read, current CI users say no but they will back their product up. It comes down to what will work for you. Cochlear Americas seems to have a larger market of implantees. Advanced Bionics and Med-EL has had some recalls on their product in the past. I feel that because a product has had some recalls does not mean they are substandard. These products are still made by humans who screw up.

10. Am I excited? You bet your bottom dollar I am! Any hearing that I could gain from going through all this will be like winning the lottery.

I have procrastinated enough. I must fold the damn t-shirts.

Au revoir folks.

Johnny Five's pet mouse.

This is it folks. This is the Advanced Bionics HiRes 90k Cochlear Implant in all its glory. One of THOSE is going in my head! It looks like Johnny Five's pet mouse. It is a super tiny computer, a magnet, and tiny wires with 16 electrodes at the end of it that will be inserted in my ear. The complexity behind this little doo-dad is mind boggling...

From what I understand, after they knock me out with the happy juice, they are going to make an incision behind the ear to make a little well in my skull for the magnet to sit so it does not float all over my head. The magnet is that little silver watch battery looking object surrounded by clear plastic. Then they proceed to drill a hole through the mastoid bone to insert the tail that follows the natural contour of the cochlea. The best way I can describe the cochlea is a snail shell. The next step would be for the audiologist to fire up the implant to make sure that it is working. Then pending the results of that, the incision is stitched up and my head is wrapped in a pressure bandage. Not sure what that is, but it sounds sadistic. At some point, they will wake me up, and stuff some Jell-O down my throat and then ship me home with a designated driver the same day. Sounds like a walk in the park...