So, I am now a bilateral CI user, here is the link to my thread where I talk about how that happened and what I experienced.
As to your questions:
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I hear astoundingly better then i did with hearing aids. There will be a transition period but eventually things sound normal. Does it sound exactly like it did when I could hear, no, do I care, also no.
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I understand TV better then my wife who has a barely detectable mild hearing loss. Accents can be a problem sometimes but I sometimes wonder why I bothered to get the TV streamer. Now you have been without speech for long enough that it will probably take a good deal of rehabilitation for you to understand it well. But with work you should be able to get there.
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Yes you should hear all of that, I had forgotten that fresh snow crunches when you walk on it. You may need some help in identifying things at first, partly because there is some difference in sound but mostly because you will hear things you have not heard in along time. Crickets can make an awful racket. Your brain will adjust to the differences, if you think about it you will know they sound different but most of the time you won’t notice.
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Because the electrode feeds into the cochlea and stimulates the audio nerve your brain perceives just as if it came through your ear like regular sound. Sometimes when I am stream things and thinking about it it does seem a little like the voice in my head, but I think that is more psychological the physiological.
As to social security, I never needed it but I did do some reading and my understanding is that you are automatically considered disabled for the 12 months after implantation but then your evaluated at that point to see how you are doing and whether you can work. Depending on which State you are in there are probably also services to help you with work rehabilitation and job placement.
I can’t imagine what you are going through even with both CIs off I have some residual hearing, not enough for speech but at least some sounds. Not every audi deals with CI so you may not get all the answers Tuesday, and as a couple of members have found sometimes you have to work to find one that is willing, although your candidacy should be a no brainer and I am rather surprised it hadn’t been suggested before this.
There are plenty of us here who have been through this and no question is too silly when considering something like this so keep asking away and we will try to answer whatever we can.
Good luck.