Good, I’m glad they spoke to you about it. Ontario has JUST started implanting unilateral losses, and only intermittently in adults.
So… If you thought you might get an implant down the line, one option would be to pick up an entry level tech hearing aid for that ear and wear it for a few hours a day to keep the nervr active. It requires considerable motivation though, when the residual hearing is so distorted. I only know one person who does this and they anticipate implantation within the next few years.
The other thing you might want to talk to your clinician about is a Roger on mic. CROS system helps to give back access to your bad side, but noisier environments are frequently still a struggle when you have unilateral loss and a Roger mic could help there. It does drain the battery too, however. I do usually go with the 13 battery for the phonak CROS to get through full days, but you’re right that rechargeable have a convenience factor that can be really valuable, so if that’s worth managing your battery life a bit more closely, that’s fine. The Roger mic is always something that can be added down the line if you frequently find yourself in difficult listening situations.
Don’t worry too much about the late steroids. It’s true standard practice is steroids ASAP, but it’s honestly a bit of a Hail Mary. We don’t have clear evidence that it is actually helping people. Some ~50% of people recover hearing after a sudden loss on their own, and if that happens it usually happens early. So when we see that steroids only help when used early, it’s hard to disentangle whether they are actually helping or whether we’re just looking at the people who would have recovered anyway.