People Like Me!

Today, Meagan and I went to lunch at Mama Roja's on the East Wharf (Lake Hefner Parkway) and met some incredible women who are either CI recipients or parents of children with CI. Paula Moore with Cochlear Americas invited us to attend. At the moment, I'm still overwhelmed that YES THERE ARE PEOPLE LIKE ME OUT THERE!

Growing up, I was never around other children with hearing loss. At one point, my dad's 3^rd wife actually said she didn't want me around deaf/hoh people because I might think of myself as a deaf person. Well, sorry Janie, but I AM a deaf person. No amount of denial and isolation is going to "cure" me of my deafness.

However, the CI is expected to increase my ability to comprehend sounds with fewer visual cues. So, I've scheduled surgery for May27th (the last day of school). Everyone I've spoken to about getting a CI says it's not a difficult of a surgery and most people are up and moving around the next day. Yet, all I can think about is how my head is going to be opened up.

I signed up for the Cochlear Community website and I've been reading some of the blogs on there, looking for encouragement and support. But, today was truly wonderful to meet people who actually have the implant.