Cochlear Implants: Q & A

I have received several emails recently from parents of children newly diagnosed with hearing loss. I love the fact that this blog has allowed us to connect with other families all across the country (well, the world, really) that are going through similar experiences. Some of the questions I have received may be on the [...]

Drew Is Helping Other Deaf Children!

At only one year old, Drew is already helping other deaf children to “turn on their ears”.
A nine month old little girl in New York was scheduled for her cochlear implant surgery, but was later denied coverage by Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield because she was under one year old. Their doctor submitted a letter [...]

"Is That It? I’ll Just Pay Cash."

We got Drew’s “Explanation of Benefits” for his bilateral, simultaneous cochlear implant operation in the mail on Tuesday. We had a little bet going on who would come closest to the total cost, but both Drew’s Mom and I were way too low.
The total “Provider Charges” were a whopping $155,232.71! However, because our [...]

Bandages Off

Drew’s Incision

Sitting Up

Drew’s Sister Playing “Piggies”

I took Drew to have his bandages removed today. Dr. Kang removed them fairly quickly and said that Drew is healing nicely. It was a very fast – my kind of appointment.
As a side note, I have to say how thankful I am for Dr. Kang. He [...]

Pictures

The perfect patient.

In recovery.

The next morning.

Surgery Complete – We’re Home

We are now home. I just fed Drew and put him to bed – hopefully for the night, but we will see.
We arrived at the hospital at 8:30 AM this morning for the pre-op work. We then waited until 11:40 AM, Drew’s surgery time. He was such a wonderful patient! Despite being hungry (and tired) [...]

We’re Headed to Italy!

It’s true! Our trip to Italy starts first thing tomorrow morning. There was a time about seven months ago when I thought I might never get to take Drew, but after months of planning we are finally ready to go!

We aren’t going to arrive there tomorrow. There will likely be delays, flat tires, pit [...]

Quick Update

I am feeling a little better tonight. I decided to take Drew to the pediatrician to see how he was doing with the fluid in his ears.
Drew’s doctor found that the fluid in the right ear has completely cleared. He could not see the left ear drum, as Drew has a bit of an ear [...]

Final Meeting With the ENT

We had our final appointment with the surgeon today, just under two weeks before Drew’s surgery. Dr. Kang wanted to have the meeting to answer any last minutes questions we may have and do one final evaluation on Drew.

During the evaluation Dr. Kang found fluid in Drew’s ears. He has had a runny nose for [...]

Under Two Weeks Until CI Surgery

Well, the countdown clock that Drew’s Mom put to the right of the posts tells me that we are now only 13 days away from Drew’s cochlear implant surgery.
I’m happy that it is almost here, but I’ve been getting progressively more nervous. The surgery itself is not very risky, but I suppose that even [...]