Life Changes

I hope this post catches everybody doing well, I've been really working on my writing skills! I'm in three writing classes, and I'm working at my school paper as a reporter. I'm really loving it!

I'm doing really well, and my cochlear implant is working as good as usual. I'm still thankful everyday when I get up and put my implant on. It's like being reintroduced to hearing every morning. I am still amazed every day that I am able to hear something new, it truly is a blessing to have gotten the cochlear implant.

I'm starting to experience the telltale signs that my hearing on my left side is really starting to deteriorate. My hearing has really been loosing it's foothold on the left side since about the beginning of the year.

It's really hard to explain to people what the feeling is like to not be able to hear, many can't grasp the situation. Most don't understand the social strongholds that being deaf can bring. I think that's a good thing, I wouldn't really want people to fully understand what it's like!

Some key things that I've been feeling is that my clarity and understanding of speech has really taken a turn for the worse. It seems as if my own speech has been affected by my sudden loss of hearing on the left as well.

This loss can be really exhausting, I'm feeling like I'm relying on my implant and lip reading skills to get through the day. This is really something different than I've ever been used too.

Sure, life throws you curve balls, and things get difficult, but the thing to remember is that the crappy situation doesn't last forever. It will eventually get better, patience is just needed.

Another thing to remember is that everything happens for a reason, I feel like I'm exactly where I need to be in life. This time last year I was struggling to understand all of the constant new noises and voices around me. Getting the cochlear implant is still a constant daily journey that I face, learning all of the new sounds doesn't happen overnight, and I'm still repeatedly asking complete strangers what certain sounds are.

I could get discouraged that I'm not understanding everything, or that people get so frustrated with me for not catching everything the first time. I could let it get to me that I'm not like everybody around me when it comes to hearing, but what good would it do?

I know everybody has their differences and there specific situations that may seem to suck, but why should we let that get us down? I was born unable to hear, and I didn't get any hearing aids until I was four. That is really late! There is absolutely nothing I can do to change being deaf, and being different than everybody else.

But one thing I can do is try to make a positive difference in somebodies life. It doesn't do anybody any good to sit and mope about what I don't have, but it does everybody some good to take what I do have and make a difference for the better in the world.

I hope you have a good week!

-Connor