Cochlear Implant Surgery

The surgery was set for January 22nd, 2010. I was very excited until near the end when the day was coming, I wanted to back out... I was really nervous for it. I remember getting to the hospital just a day before the surgery, and I had to do some tests before the big day. My surgeon wanted to check my ears and I was given some special shampoo to use to wash my hair in preparation for the surgery. The morning came and I was the first one to have surgery, it was 8:00 in the morning and the sun was just rising.. it was a beautiful sight to see but I was very nervous. I had changed into the hospital gown, and they came with my bed and I laid down and was covered with blankets, we went down to the operating room and they left me in the hallway with nurses walking everywhere - it was kind of scary but the nurses were so nice, they had given me a warm blanket because it was cold down there. A few minutes later, my doctor came and told me everything will be fine and that reassured me even more. Then, I was wheeled into the room where I met the team and they explained what they were going to do - they were going to put me to sleep, I remember looking away as a needle went into my arm and I looked up at the ceiling and everything got all hazy, and I began to get sleepy and that's when I fell asleep.

I was coming out of the anesthesia and the nurse was trying to wake me up and I woke up to her nudges in so much pain. I asked her about my hearing aid since it was put into a bag as soon as I fell asleep, but I didn't want to wear it for my right ear right away. I asked her if everything went well, she said it did. Soon, I was brought to my room upstairs... I remember my mother and sister rushing to my side, I was in so much pain and all I wanted to do was sleep. I slept a lot but was checked once in awhile to describe the pain I was having from 0-10 indicated on the paper they had given me, I had until the day after the surgery to go home and I was so excited. In the morning, I had another doctor come in, my surgeon couldn't be there so he had a replacement and he changed my band-aid that was wrapped around my head covering the left ear and checked the implant, he had written to me on paper that everything was fine and that he was changing the band-aid and that within 10 days, I can take the band-aid off at the CLSC. I was ready to go home and couldn't wait to see everyone! 4 weeks from the surgery, I went back to Quebec City to receive my hearing device for the very first time.