ANA Discussion Forum
General Category => Hearing Issues => Topic started by: leapyrtwins on April 04, 2009, 07:02:00 am
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Wendy -
I am so sorry I missed your BAHA gotcha day yesterday. I lurked very late last night/early this morning and after much searching I found your comment on this thread in AN Community http://anausa.org/forum/index.php?topic=9112.0
IMO, this is a HUGE event and needs its own thread. I recall like it was yesterday, my gotcha day and the fun I had posting all about it in a thread that Lori started for me. I feel you are entitled to the same ;D Since I'm not a moderator I can't move the one buried in the Community, so I decided to start another topic. Yes, I have always been one to color outside of the lines ;)
Anyway, I am so THRILLED that you love your BAHA as much as I do. I was hoping that you'd have some wonderful BAHA moments yesterday and it sounds like you did.
I don't know how you feel about your ability to attach the processor to the abutment right now, but I wanted to tell you, if you think you'll never be able to master that task, don't worry - you will. Initially I thought I'd never get the hang of attaching mine, but eventually - and thankfully - I did.
Please keep us posted on all the new BAHA moments you have during the next couple of weeks - and may your BAHA always exceed your expectations ;D
Jan
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Wendy~
HOW EXCITING! I am so glad that it lived up to your expectations...and maybe more?? All this talk "might" make me think of one some day, but I think it would be a HUGE adjustment for me to go back to hearing on that side after 13 (or more) years!! We will see...
Hope today is an even better BAHA day!!
K ;D
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Wendy,
You made it! I'll bet you thought this day would never come!
I would be willing to bet that in a week, you'll have the whole attachment thing down to a science. I was amazed when Jan said she could attach hers with one hand - so I had to give it a try - and I was able to do it. It's a little tough with long hair because you have to get that out of the way too, but at least I know if my left arm stops working, I'll still be able to wear my BAHA.
I hope you're having a nice day there today and can listen to all the birds singing!
Lori
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So happy for you Wendy. :)
OK I admit I'm a tad bit jealous. My BAHA didn't work for me because of the shrill tinnitus. Too much interference. Plus it was placed right over a black head that kept getting infected. Go figure......
Many happy BAHA days for you.
I say my BAHA was a BOOHOO. :-\
Maureen
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This is interesting: a topic about Wendy's BAHA, with no post from Wendy!
As a confessed BAHA envier, I congratulate Wendy on the wonderful result she has reported, and hope that she masters the single handed attachment with a flourish. Just look in the mirror and practice saying "excuse me while I attach this device to my head" while performing the maneuver. 8)
Steve
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"excuse me while I attach this device to my head" while performing the maneuver. 8)
Steve
Or how about attaching it while in a crowded mall or other public place and saying "This is agent Wendy calling planet X, come in planet X. Do you read me?"
Ernie
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Hi all,
Jan - Thanks for starting this thread -- I was actually going to start one myself because I figured most people wouldn't see it in AN Community. When I woke up today, the battery in my BAHA was dead after only one day. I hope that means that I didn't turn it off all the way last night and just need to be more careful, a battery a day will get expensive I remember reading here that a battery should last about two weeks. As for attaching BAHA, I'm not quite ready to try one handed attachment yet. Right now, I'm using a hand mirror to look at the post and make sure all my hair is out of the way and then put it down and do a two handed attachment. I'm impressed you can do it with one hand. Maybe I will too someday.
With another day with BAHA under my belt, I have to say it is making a difference in my life. I went to the mall today (another noisy situation) and found BAHA did not work quite as well there, but I expected that. I did notice that I can hear the radio in the car much better than I could before, and I actually was talking to my daughter Jen (she was in the middle row of our minivan) withiout having to turn my head as much.
Today a man walked up to me in the mall and handed me a note saying he was deaf and he wanted $4.00 for an American Flag pin. Interesting enterprise -- I was tempted to flip up my hair and show him my BAHA, but restrained myself -- I did decline the pin though. ;D
Lori -- You're right, I did feel like this day would never come. When it was finally here, it was kind of emotional and weird but in a good way. The past few days have been the hardest because, as you know, Dr. Choe gave my my BAHA kit, processor and all in the recovery room the day of my surgery. All week I was very tempted to use it. It was worth the wait! ;D ;D
Kay -- BAHA has exceeded my expectations so far. It is wonderful to hear things from my deaf side again, it will just take a little while to adjust to hearing them on the left. I think my directionality might also be a little better but I don't expect much if any more improvement in that. If you ever seriously consider getting BAHA, I would highly recommend it! :D
Maureen -- I'm so sorry to hear BAHA didn't work out for you. I never considered the possibility that tinnitus would interfere with it. The blackhead sounds like a pain in the neck (or head) too. I hope at least that got better for you.
Steve -- As someone who also had BAHA envy for a long time, I can tell you it was worth the wait and I would do it again in a heartbeat!
Looking back, I have to say if anyone would have ever told me that one day I would want a doctor to drill a hole in my head and implant a post so I could wear a hearing device,I would have thought they were crazy. I LOVE MY BAHA and as I said, would do it again in a heartbeat!!
Wendy
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Very funny Ernie! :D
Wendy
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Steve -- As someone who also had BAHA envy for a long time, I can tell you it was worth the wait and I would do it again in a heartbeat!
Looking back, I have to say if anyone would have ever told me that one day I would want a doctor to drill a hole in my head and implant a post so I could wear a hearing device,I would have thought they were crazy. I LOVE MY BAHA and as I said, would do it again in a heartbeat!!
Wendy, I couldn't have said it any better myself ;D
I forgot how wonderful it is to be able to hear a child or children seated behind you in the van. Today I take it for granted, but that was a big issue for me pre-BAHA and I remember being so glad when it was finally solved. Also being deaf left, my BAHA gave me back the ability to hear people at the drive-thru of the bank and at fast food restaurants without turning my entire body in the driver's seat. Ah, it's the little things in life that can thrill you :D
It isn't easy to attach the BAHA without experience. Popping it off is so easy, but putting it on was a different story for me for a long, long time. I do notice that when I pop it off, I usually grimace. I have no idea why, because it doesn't hurt at all :D You ever do that, Lori?
Funny about the dead battery - you must have left it on. In my experience batteries do last about 2 weeks.
Have you knocked the processor off your head yet? I did that a few times the week I started wearing mine and I remember Bucko saying the same thing when he got his. I kind of got past that stage, but have to admit I actually knocked it off just this morning ::) Almost stepped on it too :P Was thinking I never did look into that insurance that Lori was talking about and my processor is almost a year old. Perhaps I should get moving.
If I recall, you have long hair. Is it hard for you to attach the processor without getting your hair caught between it and the abutment? I've been growing my hair out and while it's not tremendously long, when I attach my Divino I sometimes get some strands of hair in the way. It actually hurts like hell if I snap it on and there is hair caught. Ouch!
Details, details, we want details. Please tune in tomorrow - and beyond that - and tell us what else you can hear now.
Kay - I highly recommend the BAHA demo and I know a great doc in Chicago who implants them. You can come for a visit any time ;D
Jan
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I might have have to do that - i know that there is no one here - not even for a TransEar - well, actually, I say that about a BAHA but I guess I just checked into the TransEar...
K
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I am happy for you Wendy. I should be getting my implant soon, so I hope to be able to use the processor by August. It's so nice to hear how happy you are with it. It makes me want it all the more. I never thought I be so eagerly waiting for a medical procedure!
Congratulations!
Lisa
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I might have have to do that - i know that there is no one here - not even for a TransEar - well, actually, I say that about a BAHA but I guess I just checked into the TransEar...
Well, I definitely have a guy for you - and I'll share :D My neurotologist, who did both my AN and my BAHA surgeries, will be at the symposium. I'd be very happy to introduce you ;D
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Jan, I can't say I've made any funny faces while snapping off my BAHA, but I can tell you it does hurt like heck to get your hair stuck in there! :o
We took a walk down the street to the playground earlier tonight, and there's a pond that apparently has a lot of very loud bullfrogs living in it. Tonight was the first time I noticed that I could tell what direction the sounds were coming from. I don't know if that's a good thing - I can't tell where my kids are half the time, but I can tell you where the frogs are!
My audiologist said that I should be able to get a week or two out of a battery, but since I don't use it all the time, I get much longer than that. I usually turn it off when I'm in the house - or when I don't feel like listening - so I'm sure that helps. And watch the Sunday papers - I've found a few coupons for $4 off hearing aid batteries! Whoooo-hooooo!
Wendy, while trying to reach Planet X, have your husband take off his shoe and start talking into it, Maxwell Smart style! That should really make people wonder!!
Lori
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Girls,
Best of luck as you continue on your baha journeys. :)
The doc unscrewed the abutment, but I can actually get it put back on if I ever decide to try again, so that's an option/ ( in and out surgery type deal)
We'll see what this tinnitus does through the years.
I still have the titanium implant in the skull.
So I'm still a half baha person, I guess :)
Maureen
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I use the powerone battery. I have gotten 3 weeks out of one battery. I take the battery out every night and put the peel sticker back on every night. I don't know if that works out or not. The doctor said to keep that up if it works for me.
Karen
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Maureen -
did your doc say how long it will take for the skin to grow back over the abutment?
I recall my doc telling me that out of 200+ BAHA surgeries he only had 1 patient who didn't like the BAHA. When I asked what the patient did, he said she just didn't wear the processor and eventually the skin grew back over the abutment. At least I think that's what he told me.
Karen -
thanks for the battery tip. I never take mine out of the processor until it's dead. Like Lori, there are some days that I don't even bother wearing my processor - mainly if I'm at home. I tend to wear it more at work and when I'm out in public, so sometimes my batteries last more than the average 2 weeks.
I've found that if I purchase my batteries in quantity at Sam's Club they are extremely cheap and as Lori mentioned, there were some great coupons in the Sunday paper recently go I bought some more at Walmart. I've been wearing my processor for almost one year (6/4/08 was my gotcha date) and I've only purchased batteries twice now.
Jan
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Hi all,
Today was such a beautiful day -- it's been in the mid 60s here -- I decided to go for a walk. I have to say I did notice a lot more sounds than usual, birds; kids playing; cars and maybe best of all, the ice cream man! Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately depending on how you look at it, I couldn't figure out where the music from the ice cream truck was coming from. One of the reasons I'm walking is to lose weight, so I guess not finding the ice cream man was a good thing (I really didn't try too hard anyway). ;D I am finding it very strange to hear things on my right but in my left ear. I guee I'll get used to that in time.
Jan - Today when I got up the battery in my processor was good, so I must not have turned it off all the way the night before. My hair is long, but cut in medium length layers. I have already managed to get hair caught when I put the processor on and it does hurt. I tried your method of taking it off by popping it off with my thumb and it works like a charm -- much easier than putting it on. I'm sure I'll get the hand of it eventually. I haven't knocked it off yet but I have made it squawk when resting my head on the headrest in the car or on the back of the couch. I also never noticed that I tend to play with my hair and that made it squawk too. I haven't driven with someone sitting next to me yet, but I'm sure I'll be able to hear them a lot better than I have in a very long time. Since this week it's my turn to drive the kids to school (I carpool with another mother) it should be interesting. I haven't figured out where I'm going to buy batteries yet, but as you mentioned, the Sunday papers do sometimes have coupons. We don't have a Sams Club in Staten Island but we do have Costco and there is a BJ's and a Walmart right across the bridge from me in New Jersey.
Lisa - Congratulations on your upcoming BAHA surgery! Since you're hoping to have the processor in August I guess you're about a month away from the surgery. I hope the time passes quickly. I am so excited for you! ;D ;D ;D As for eagerly awaiting a medical procedure I could hardly wait after mine was scheduled and would have done it the next day if that was possible. I know you've heard it before, but the BAHA surgery really is a very simple procedure and next to nothing compared to AN surgery.
Maureen - Thanks for your good wishes. I hope one day you are able to use BAHA -- I thnk you would love it.
Lori -- I don't think Rob would talk into his shoe for me -- he's not that much fun. I have been thinking that since I am home alone a lot during the day, I would probably not wear my processor then. The only one around for me to hear is the cat and I can hear him fine with one ear -- besides he doesn't seem to mind repeating himself if I don't hear him the first time. ;D ;D
Karen - Thanks for the tip on putting the battery back on the tab -- I'll have to try that. What is a powerone battery though, is that a brand name?
So, my third day with BAHA has been great -- I'm sure it will just keep getting better. I have to get AA batteries for the camera and will post pictures, hopefully tomorrow.
Wendy
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If you are battery shopping, you might want to check out http://www.microbattery.com/
Most brands and good deals, especially if you buy 60 at a time. I like the PowerOne brand too. They carry the sizes needed for BAHAs.
Steve
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I have been thinking that since I am home alone a lot during the day, I would probably not wear my processor then.
Based on my experience with a regular hearing aid, you may want to consider wearing it most of the time anyway. Even if you are not listening to anything in particular, it helps your brain learn and adjust to it. Although I was doing pretty well with my hearing aid after the first month, I noticed that after a year I was doing better. Now it feels less like I turned a hearing aid on, and more like I turned "normal sound" on.
One example: at first I could not locate the source of high pitched sounds, just as you couldn't locate the ice cream truck. Now I am much better at it. I don't notice myself hearing something different, but my brain has figured out how to interpret the sound better, and I often look in the right direction.
Steve
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Wendy
The powerone is th battery that came with the BAHA. My doctor told me that the powerone is a little more powerful than a regular hearing aid battery. If you look on line you can call call up powerone battery and you will get different sites you can order from. They are a little more money but last longer. I found that run about 30$ for sixty.
Karen
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Steve and Karen
Thanks for the battery information. Microbattery.com has great prices for PowerOne batteries and I plan to order some soon. For now, I have the batteries my BAHA came with and the ones Jan sent me with my BAHA Recovery Kit, so there's not rush. No new news on the BAHA front, but we are leaving for a week-long Florida vacation tomorrow which is why I haven't had much time to spend on the forum the last few days. Getting summer clothing down from the attic, cleaning the house and last minute shopping have taken up most of my spare time. I probably won't post here again until we get back, unless I finally get to take those pictures -- still haven't gotten batteries for the camera.
Wendy
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Hi Wendy,
Briefly a little off topic here, but where abouts in Florida are you going? Anywhere near the Tampa area? Today is only going to be about 65, and we may drop below 40 tonight (38 or 39). It will be near 70 on Wednesday, but cool 40s again Wednesday night. Then it starts to warm up after that :).
To be honest, we like it when it cools off like that in April. We are about to enter our hot and humid season, which sometimes feels like it will never end.
To get on topic, I see my physician in May, and he suggested I try out the baha demo. I told him I wanted to wait a while to see what SSD is like first.
Ernie
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Probably a good idea to wait and see how the SSD goes, Ernie. No rush. You just had brain surgery.
Do you have tinnitus?
We here in the NW are entering the beautiful time of year with wonderful temps.
I used to live in Corpus Christi and used to dread this time of year coming up with high heat and humidity so I know what you mean, Ernie. :)
Maureen
Oh must stay on topic.
Hope you had a good BAHA day Wendy ;)
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I do have tinnitus. It seems to have two parts to it. One is an "always on" high pitched tone that is annoying. The other part is variable, and is completely dependent on the level of noise coming in to my good ear. The louder the environment, the louder (angrier, really) it gets. It's also more like static and hissing than ringing.
That is one of my concerns with baha, of course. If I put more sound in my good ear, then it only stands to reason that I will get more static in my bad ear.
Ernie
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Briefly a little off topic here, but where abouts in Florida are you going?
Congratulations, Ernie. Now you are an official hijacker ;) :D
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Hi all,
Well, we are leaving shortly for our trip to Florida, where, as well as having a wonderful vacation, I am hoping to meet up with our very own Ernie and his lovely wife, Isabel (hope I spelled her name right).. I guess we'll see if we can get our schedules to mesh. I promised him a private BAHA demo by bringing my test rod with me. (I had to mention BAHA or I would have been hijacking my own thread) We are not bringing the laptop, so I'll bring you all up to date on my latest BAHA adventures when I return.
Wishing everyone a happy holiday!
Wendy
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Have a great trip Wendy!
I hope you're able to meet up with Ernie - and if you do...we like pictures!! ;D
Lori
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Wow, Wendy's going to give a Ernie a BAHA demo of sorts. Wonder if she can bill him for that?
Note to Lori, Wendy might prove to be very valuable in our garage surgery business. Sign her up ;) :D
Happy vacay, Wendy ;D
Jan
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Now wait a minute... Wendy gets to travel to show off the BAHA and we have to be stuck in the garage?
Maybe Wendy can bring back Ernie's Keg-erator and make our time in the garage not so bad!
Lori
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Now wait a minute... Wendy gets to travel to show off the BAHA and we have to be stuck in the garage?
Maybe Wendy can bring back Ernie's Keg-erator and make our time in the garage not so bad!
Lori
I'm going to try to meet Wendy and try out the demo. Not sure of what day though, as my parents are in town.
And if the kegerator goes, I go with it :)
Ernie
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And if the kegerator goes, I go with it :)
Ernie
Wow, Lori!!! How cool is that? We get Ernie and the kegerator! Must be our lucky day ;) :D
Let's just make sure the kegerator is full before it comes our way!
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That is a good deal. We'll need a man to carry heavy things anyway. :D
Lori
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That is a good deal. We'll need a man to carry heavy things anyway. :D
Lori
Sorry, My doc says no heavy lifting for a while. Besides, we have Lori believing I'm in touch with my feminine side, and I wouldn't want to break a nail. ;D
Hi Wendy! Hope you're enjoying your BAHA! ;)
Ernie
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Good one, about the feminine side and breaking a nail, Ernie. Welcome to the ANA Forum comedy team ;D
Don't worry about the lifting though. I was going to tell Lori that men carrying heavy things generally means men drinking beer, which would mean less for her and I.
Sorry to disappoint you, but I guess we'll be toting the kegerator ourselves ;D
Hi, Wendy! How's Florida??? Hearing any sea gulls?
Jan
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Wendy,
Hope you're continuing to enjoy your new BAHA! I totally agree with Steve's suggestion that you wear your BAHA as much as possible -- when you're home alone as well as when you're out and about -- and with his and Karen's suggestion that you check out the microbattery website for the powerone batteries. I've read several sources (which seem reliable) that endorse the use of powerone batteries for BAHAs -- and the price is quite reasonable.
Catherine (JerseyGirl 2)
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While I think Steve's suggestion is a good one, I have never really followed it.
When I'm home alone - or even if my kids are with me - there are lots of days I don't wear my BAHA; and there are lots of situations where it's just not practical - cleaning house, mowing the lawn, shoveling snow, etc.
In a way I think it makes me appreciate the days I do wear it even more.
It's kind of like when I watch TV without my glasses. It makes me say "wow" when I do wear them ;D
Jan
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mowing the lawn
Definitely not while mowing the lawn!
Steve
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Jan,
I agree -- I wouldn't wear my BAHA while mowing the lawn either, and if I'm wearing a hat while shoveling snow I also don't wear it! I do try to wear it as much as feasibly possible .... though I don't always practice what I preach (e.g., it's 10:30 a.m. and I've been doing stuff around the house all morning and haven't put it on yet, but I will definitely put it on before I go to the gym for my workout).
I've also mentioned on another thread that I just routinely change my BAHA battery every Saturday morning -- I realize that this isn't an environmentally green practice, but I do it anyway. The BAHA Intenso emits a beep when the battery is losing power (I don't think the Divino has that feature), and prior to my weekly replacement procedure, I noticed that the battery lasted about two weeks.
Catherine (JerseyGirl 2)
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Congrats to Wendy. I know you've been looking forward to your gotcha day, and I'm really glad it's working out for you so well!
A question about batteries (slight hijack I guess...) - I have just been changing the battery weekly too, but would like to extend that as there are days that I don't wear it (like Jan). When the battery "goes", will it just work fine one moment and not at all the next, or will it lose power gradually? And would my hearing just become gradually worse then? I'm thinking of my kids' electronic books and toys that just sound distorted and nasty when the battery starts to lose power. I guess I don't want to be in a situation where I think it's working fine, but it's not. Opinions??
Tam
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I guess I don't want to be in a situation where I think it's working fine, but it's not. Opinions??
Tam,
That's exactly the reason why I replace my battery weekly!
Catherine (JerseyGirl 2)
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though I don't always practice what I preach (e.g., it's 10:30 a.m. and I've been doing stuff around the house all morning and haven't put it on yet, but I will definitely put it on before I go to the gym for my workout).
So, Catherine - do you actually wear your BAHA during your gym workout? or do you just wear it to drive to the gym and then remove it prior to your workout?
The Divino doesn't have a warning beep when the battery is going dead. But you can definitely tell - you don't hear as well. I also am in the habit of "self-testing" my battery. If you touch the Divino it will emit a squeal. When I think my battery might be "on the way out" I make sure I test the squeal. If the squeal isn't there, or if it's getting faint, I know I need to replace the battery.
Jan
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When you order from microbattery they sent me a little case that I carry 3 batteries in it. So I have some with me when mine goes dead.
Karen
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There's also a place you can order batteries from that gives you a key chain that you can use to hold your spare batteries. I can't remember the name of the company, but Bucko posted it about a year ago. I'll have to search for the link when I have time. It was very cool 8)
Jan
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Jan,
Microbattery (www.microbattery.com) is the place that sends along a keychain for extra batteries; I can fit three of the Intenso-sized batteries in it.
Actually I do wear my BAHA during my workout -- I go to "Curves," so we're not talking super-strenuous here. It's sort of noisy there (particularly if there's much of a crowd), but the BAHA helps. I'm especially glad I wore it there this afternoon because I could hear a woman a couple of pieces of equipment away tell another woman that her 28-year-old daughter just had acoustic neuroma surgery a couple of weeks ago! Needless to say, I leapt into the conversation. Turns out the daughter had a translab procedure (the woman couldn't recall the name, but it was obvious from the description) at St. Vincent's in NYC and is doing fine. I asked if she were thinking about getting a Transear or BAHA, and yet another nearby person said that a friend of hers had a child who had been born without an ear and used a BAHA. Talk about a small world! Turns out that the AN patient isn't interested in either a Transear or BAHA, but I told her mother I'd be happy to pass along some information if she changed her mind. I'm starting to think that acoustic neuromas are becoming awfully common.
Catherine (JerseyGirl 2)
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Wow, Catherine, it IS a small world.
You are right about microbattery.com being the place that has the keychain for spare batteries.
Here's the link that I was referring to - it's basically about BAHA batteries in general - anyone curious about batteries might find it helpful.
http://anausa.org/forum/index.php?topic=6914.0
Jan
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Catherine~
Was that lady an author? Do you know? I read her blog and commented - her daughter just had surgery there! :o)
K
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Kay,
I don't know who she was, but if you send me the link to her blog I'll check it out and see if it sounds like the same person.
Thanks!
Catherine (JerseyGirl 2)