I'm a sensitive kind of guy

Well, at least with my new implant.

The increasing clarity of my implant has finally allowed me to start playing around with some of the new features of my implant. Before, I wouldn't have been able to tell a difference from adjusting these features, but now, my hearing has gotten good enough that I can mess around and make adjustments and tell the difference from one setting to the next.

One of favorite features, so far, is the ability to adjust sensitivity levels. Basically, I can adjust the range of my implant and tell it to pick up sound only within a certain, preset range. This range can be quickly adjusted by the mere push of a button on my processor (behind the ear).

A few nights ago, I went to California Dreaming with some friends of mine. If you haven't been there, the food is quite good, but in terms of the atmosphere, it is horrible for someone with a hearing impairment like me. For such a dark restaurant (which hinders lip-reading), it is extremely loud. It's almost impossible to hear people in that restaurant! This time however, while I couldn't change the lighting in the restaurant, I did have the ability to remove the background noise. I simply had to decrease the sensitivity level of my implant so that it would only pick up any sounds within three to four feet of me...meaning, I could only hear noise from my table! This definitely improved the quality of sound and made it a bit easier for me to follow some conversations. Unfortunately, the lighting really was bad for me and I had a hard time reading lips...but at least I was able to hear people talking!

In the past, I've tried turning the volume down on my hearing aid in settings like California Dreaming, but that had the undesired consequence of turning down the volume of the person I want to hear! Not good....I like sensitivity a lot so far!

I also used the sensitivity feature yesterday when I took a tour with my brother and dad of Cummins Marine in North Charleston. They specialize in diesel engines for the marine division - boats, etc - and have a lot of engineers...so basically this was a chance for me to start looking at possible jobs, etc.

While I enjoyed the tour greatly, we went into one room where they were testing an engine. Of course, diesel engines can be very loud, and I could not hear the guy talking to us over the noise of the engines...so I just reached up and adjusted the sensitivity dial on my implant. Within seconds, the diesel engine in the background had faded to a distant hum and the voice of the guy talking to me was much easier to understand...in fact, since he was the only thing within two feat of me, he was the only thing I could hear!

In addition to adjusting the sensitivy on this tour, I also utilized a new beam function that Abby programmed in my implant two days ago when I visited the hospital. The beam function is a program affects the three microphones on my processor that pick up sound in the environment around me. This particular function turns off the microphone at the back of the implant and only leaves the front two microphones on. This means I am only able to hear things that are directly in front of me. This was perfect on the tour, because I really only wanted to hear the guide, who, not surprisingly, was standing in front of me.

The beam program can be used in combination with the sensitivity adjustments to create an environment that truly optimizes my ability to hear! I am so excited about being able to use these features in a classroom/lecture setting at school. My fear of being a mechanical engineering student and having to work in a lab filled with loud engines (like the one I visited last year on a M.E. tour) and communicate with professors and graduate assistants has faded for the most part.

This implant has brought me a world of confidence and as I assume it will continue to get better, I can't wait to see where it will take me!



On a side note, despite my confidence in the future, I still am having a minor issue here in the present. I got a haircut today, and didn't really think to tell the barber anything special regarding my implant. Before my haircut, the hair on the back of my head was long enough to almost completely cover the magnet. I will admit that I felt a sense of security with this magnet covered...felt like people weren't staring at me.

However, after the haircut, I noticed that my hair was VERY short in the back...short enough to the point that I could not cover the magnet anymore with hair. So now, my magnet is just sitting back there, completely exposed. I guess everyone at school is gonna have a chance to see this, in all its entirety!

I hate admitting that I have issues with the way I look and wearing this implant. Despite admitting this issue, I hope you realize this is not something that's keeping me awake at night...it's just a slight feeling that shows up from time to time and disappears as soon as it came. I never had these problems with my hearing aid, but I think that's because I grew up wearing the hearing aid and it has always been a part of me. While I am not certain, I am going to make say that people with disabilities (at least I do) probably become very attached to the things that lessen their disability...such as a hearing aid, a wheelchair, etc...to the point that these things become as much a part of them as their fingers, their legs, or their nose.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that as I grow to rely on my implant more and more, it will become more of a part of me, and nothing to be embarrassed about. I am already reaching a point where I'm proud to wear it and display to my friends...it's around people that I don't know...like the thousands of students in Harcombe Dining Hall, that I feel a bit exposed around!

I guess I don't have a choice...I'm about to throw myself back into the mix at Clemson in less than two days!

I'm leaving Friday and heading back to Tigertown! I'm VERY excited, and can't wait to get back up there and see the campus, my friends, and of course, Death Valley. I probably won't post for awhile, but I fully expect to continue this blog after I get back to school, so keep checking back!

Hope everyone has a great remainder of the week!