Hearing loss

[Michelle H]

Hi I had my surgery on June 30,2015. I'm completely deaf in my right ear and miserable! I've looked at the cochlear implants but I can't do another surgery and honestly the opening directly to my skull scares the crap out of me!

With that said I went  to an audiologist who believes the phonak Bolero 90 is my answer. I'd love to believe her but I am so desperate to fix this that I'd believe anything! Does anyone have this device? What devices do the rest of you have? Do they work? I'm sure most of you are in my situation I can barely afford this so I only get one shot at making the right choice.

Thanks for any advice you can give!

Michelle

[james e]

Number 1, it would not be a Cochlear implant. You would need a bone anchored hearing aid, BAHA. It does require an out patient surgery, but the anxiety is worse than the procedure.  Go to Youtube and you can see the surgery being done. It is not any worse than getting a cavity filled at the dentist.

I have had one for 6 years and for me, it is a blessing.

James

[CHD63]

Hi Michelle .....

James is correct about the BAHA being a relatively minor procedure.  Also check out the Oticon Medical new minimally invasive procedure they recently instituted.  See:  http://www.oticonmedical.com/Medical.aspx

Clarice

[alabamajane]

Hi Michelle,
I agree with James,, the BAHA (made by either Cochlear or Oticon Medical) is much different than the Cochlear implant. Much less of a surgery. More just screwing a post into your skull.

I've had my BAHA for a little over a year and I like it. I was SSD ( single side deaf) for 3 years before I got it and it wasn't that bad;  although I am retired so not in public as much as I used to be. It depends a lot on how good the hearing is in your "good" ear as to what you will need, I think,,

You can usually get a hearing aid device to trial for several weeks. Ask about that before you buy. You can even "try" the BAHA before getting it. Won't be as good as once it's implanted but you can get an idea of the enhanced hearing.

Good luck and let us know what you decide,,,
Jane

[PaulW]

If you are opposed to the minor procedure to get a BAHA, you can look at a CROS hearing aid.
If your hearing is normal on the other side a bolero 90 is total overkill. Much cheaper solutions are available, with the same result. If you have poor hearing in your good ear then a more expensive hearing like the bolero 90 will help.

[arizonajack]

If you are considering Phonak hearing aids there have been quite a few discussions here about them. There is a search feature at the upper right of this page. Search Phonak. Then search CROS. Then go to Phonak's website and learn about product availability.

I am SSD in my right ear and have a slight deficiency in my left ear. I have the CROS II and Audeo V90 along with the PilotOne Remote Control. I always recommend the remote because the hearings can have several manual programs that the remote can switch to depending on the circumstances.

Always deal with a provider that will give you a 30 to 90 day WRITTEN trial period where you get all or most of your money back if the equipment doesn't work out for you.