What if cochlear implants were completely internal? No more behind the ear processor, no more magnetized headpiece/transmitter, no more cable connecting the two, no more rechargeable batteries. We’re partway there with Cochlear and Med-El’s single-external-unit implants, which have just the headpiece. Advanced Bionics is said to have a single-unit implant on the horizon. But in … Continue reading An Invisible Cochlear Implant May Be on the Horizon. Would you want one?
Cochlear Implants
Cochlear Implants Then and Now
I’ve had a cochlear implant since 2009. If you’ve read about my initial experience with the implant (in my book "Shouting Won’t Help" and elsewhere), forget everything I said (about cochlear implants... I stand by the rest of it). It’s a whole new world out there. The October meeting of the New York City Chapter … Continue reading Cochlear Implants Then and Now
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Hollywood and Hearing Loss
Several people have asked if I’ve seen “Sound of Metal,” a movie about hearing loss, which was released late last year. At first I avoided it. The trailer featured a metal drummer playing very loudly, and it didn’t look all that appealing. I finally did watch, with the sound turned way down and the captions … Continue reading Hollywood and Hearing Loss
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By the Way, She Has a Cochlear Implant
What if hearing aids were as unremarkable as glasses? This is an idea – a goal – that I and others have been tossing around for years. How to remove the stigma and lower the cost of hearing aids so that they are used as casually as glasses. Amazon Prime Video is showing an online … Continue reading By the Way, She Has a Cochlear Implant
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Resilience
Whenever I am with a group of people with hearing loss, as I was last week at the annual convention of the Hearing Loss Association of America, I am impressed by the hurdles so many have overcome. Sudden or severe hearing loss is an ever-present challenge all on its own. So many at Convention, however, … Continue reading Resilience
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My New Book
SMART HEARING: Strategies, Skills and Resources for Living Better with Hearing Loss. You can get it online at Amazon or Barnes & Noble, in paperback or ebook for Kindle or Nook. If you're one of the the millions of Americans who have experienced hearing loss, whether newcomer or longtime veteran, this book is for you. It's also … Continue reading My New Book
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How I Learned to Love My Cochlear Implant.
In 2013 in my first book, “Shouting Won’t Help,” I wrote about the difficult experience I had adjusting to a cochlear implant I received in 2009. That section was excerpted in Bloomberg View and it is still easily available online. I often get letters from people who have seen the article and are worried by … Continue reading How I Learned to Love My Cochlear Implant.
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The Toll of Hearing Loss is Global
A new study published in the prestigious medical journal The Lancet offers an unblinking look at the tremendous burden of hearing loss worldwide. “Global hearing health care: new findings and perspectives” was published on July 10th. The authors are Blake S. Wilson, Debara L. Tucci, Michael H. Merson and Gerard M. O’Donoghue. The first and … Continue reading The Toll of Hearing Loss is Global
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Considering a Cochlear Implant? You’re Never Too Old.
Is there an age limit for cochlear implant recipients? I asked this question of several cochlear implant surgeons around the country. Their answer? Never. All have implanted patients in their 90s and, as Anil Lalwani, of New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center said, he "routinely" operates on patients over 80. His oldest patient is 93. … Continue reading Considering a Cochlear Implant? You’re Never Too Old.
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What Would Helen Keller Do?
“Blindness cuts us off from things, but deafness cuts us off from people.” Helen Keller — Pictorial Press Ltd … Continue reading What Would Helen Keller Do?
Katherine Bouton: Smart Hearing 