I’ve worn hearing aids for over 40 years and my last tests in March 2022 showed word recognition scores of 48 percent right ear and 44 percent in left ear. My current phonak hearing aids are over 6 yrs old, and I expected that newer hearing aids would significantly improve my speech recognition. In June 2022 I had back fusion surgery. As a result, while my back is mending, my vision significantly improved (still needed glasses … but better vision) and my hearing got much worse, although many didn’t believe me when I said significantly worse. My frustration level rose … and I began to stay away from groups of people, and as you can imagine, my wife and I have interesting discussions. So, last week I was finally able to get in to ENT doctor and my audiologist. Expecting recommendation of new hearing aids … however, my word recognition scores: Right ear 24 percent and left ear only 8 percent! So, the discussion wasn’t about new hearing aids, but a viable candidate for cochlear implant. On June 5th I go in for 2 hour testing/evaluation … Of course, I am very open to try anything to be able to hear clearly again. The audiologist mention the long time it takes for the brain to adjust … anyway … looks like i’ll spend the next couple of weeks finding out about implants as possible. Any suggestions on good reference material. I did download some basic vendor information. Regards to all, Bill
Bill you will find a lot of information on Google regarding CI’s.
The 3 companies are Cochlear, Med-El and Advanced Bionics (AB). Ring these companies and either make an appointment to see the representative or just speak to them on the phone.
What company you choose to go with might depend on your CI surgeon to a certain degree. Or they might give you a choice.
I personally have a Cochlear N8 & Resound Enzo HA, I’m bimodal. I love the direct streaming of my N8, it just means I don’t need any intermediary devices to help listen to music, phone calls or audiobooks.
One thing to remember is everyone’s hearing journey is very individual to you. No two CI journeys are the same, everyone hears at different times. Some hear on the day of activation, some hear a month later and others could be 3-4 months after activation.
Please come back and ask any questions you might have and let us know how you are progressing in your journey.
Good luck on your new hearing journey.
I’ve included a comparison chart of the 3 devices below.
Sheryl - Thank you very much for your detailed response, much appreciated. Of course, Mr Google was my first stop on this journey, but nothing like getting information from people who are going thru the same challenges. And, I guess I posted just out of being a bit apprehensive about implants. (don’t know why as I’ve had 5 hip surgeries and back surgery 
). During my appointment with the audiologist she did show me the various components from Cochlear, so I’m assuming that’s the company the Dr uses. She also mentioned the Resound HA as it communicated to the implant. So - again, thank you. I’ll be hanging out here on this forum to become a well-informed patient when i go in for the exam/interview in June. Kind regards … Bill
I can’t help much - I’m getting my Advanced Bionic implant in July. But in addition to this site, I found https://cochlearimplanthelp.com very helpful.
Thank you for the additional reference, I’ll definitely check it out. Good luck with your implant!
Regards,
Bill
Will you go bilateral from the start?
Does your audiologist recommend a particular surgeon?
Between them they might help with a CI brand.
Pretty sure Bimodal to start. Ill know more on June 5th.
I had one side done at a time. Within a week of activation I took the hearing aid off and ran the CI only, never put the aid back on. That worked great for me. We are all different and need to figure out what is best for you.
I believe you have great help here on the forum.
Welcome to you. It can be a scary journey as you adjust to this new idea and learn more about all involved. You have a great attitude about seeking info and being willing to take advantage of amazing technology. I researched all brands online, emailed and zoomed with reps from each of the three CI companies - sometimes multiple times, and joined Facebook groups for each brand to ask specifics and see what people reported. I selected AB for a couple of reasons. The Phonak Marvel Link HA that works together with the CI, not independently. They both use the same app. The same company owns both AB and Phonak and I liked that approach of working in all hearing solutions under one umbrella. AB has more expansion capacity in the internal piece. Other brands will market based on array length saying longer is better, but there isn’t definitive evidence that this is the case, and each ear can only take a length that suits their ear size, so it may even not be an option to go longer. I was implanted the end of Nov and activated three weeks later and could hear voices and understand quickly, but it all sounded like Darth Vader for about a month, and gradually it started to normalize as my brain learned the new input. All three companies work well. Most in the business will say just that, and all three will help you hear better after your brain adjusts. There doesn’t seem to be a wrong answer, but for me AB had the best combination of tech. And I liked the color teal and they offer fun colors. Why not have a little fun, right? My left ear went from 40% word and sentence to about 95% 3 months out, but I had a higher level of hearing ability than most at implant which may help. You have continued to wear your HAs and keep your nerves stimulated, so that should help you.