Grumpy.

Every once in a while I'm allowed to leave the happy place that I am in. I'm allowed to sit back and pout about the fact that Christian is "different". I'm allowed to stress out about a broken piece of equipment, and then kick the door because it's just not fair that my 3 year old boy has to be deaf. I'm allowed to think that the little piece of technology that I am infinitly grateful for is also a HUGE PAIN IN THE ASS.  I'm allowed to attempt to do yoga to calm my nerves and then decide that the only thing will do the trick is a jumbo box of Reese's Pieces. I'm allowed to do that. I'm not happy that I did it, but I did. I sat on my floor watching a yoga dvd while eatting candy that I stole from my kids. We're 2 years into our CI journey...I thought I'd be over these grumpy moments by now.

I'm  having one of those days today that come along every couple of months. I'm just grumpy. It's pool season and he can't hear a darn thing because his CI and hearing aid must come off.  The humidity has also hit DC, which means my little guy is sweating a lot, which means that the Topstick Tape that we use to lock his processor in place needs to be replaced at least twice a day to keep it on. The humidity also means failing coils, of which happened this morning, two days before we leave for another road trip. I know that I need to be careful about venting about these seemingly "little things". I know that we are ridiculously blessed that Christian is doing as phenomenal as he is. But these "little things" creep up and crunch up on me and I just can't deal sometimes. 

Most days, I'm basking in the beauty of Holland. I love Holland, don't get me wrong. I wouldn't trade my trip here for anything else.  I just sometimes need a vacation from here, preferably somewhere that I can drink fruity rum drinks and that has amazing shopping. 

What are those "things"?

Ugh. This happens at least every three months, and every time it does, I am honestly amazed at how tacky some people are.

I had to take Christian up to our pediatrician's office this afternoon (at 3pm mind you, so I woke up both of the kids from their naps) to have ear wax removed. Yes, I know, gross. It was discovered that it was a bit of a problem by our school audiologist when she was starting a new ear mold impression for his aided ear.

In the waiting room of our very busy pediatrician office, I sat Christian down next to me with Lily smiling in her stroller. Christian was happy as can be, despite being woken from his nap, as I took his coat and hat off. Across from me was a couple with a sweet little baby, about 6 months. We exchanged smiles as Christian greeted everyone in the waiting room by shouting "Hello, Everyone! I'm going to be 3 years old!".

As I removed his hat and put it my purse, I looked up and immediately felt the stare. And then the woman sitting across from me with the little baby asked "What are those things on his head?". Now, the tone of her voice is what makes this so tacky. It wasn't sweet, nor curious. It was almost as if Christian's hearing aid and Cochlear Implant were offending her.

I could've asked her why she thought that wearing heavy black eyeliner in the afternoon was a good idea. Or, I could've asked what that shadow was above her lip (probably in need of wax). But, I didn't.

Instead, I gave my 30 second sound bite on Christian, the miracle of the Cochlear Implant, all with a smile. Christian put the finishing touch on the entire presentation as he told her that he "loves his CI when we listen to Dave Matthews in the car". She then pursed her lips, hopefully thinking of how completely rude she just was.

Almost on cue, our name was called, and while I was tempted to flip this tacky woman the bird, I just gave her another smile, and Christian started singing to his sister.

"No More Dirty Nose, Mommy"

Much to my dismay, Christian has been the kid with the constant yucky nose for over 5 months now. He's been on 4 courses of antibiotics, and various allergy medicines. Despite all the medicine, it would always come back.

We made an appointment with our wonderful ENT, and after one look up his nose, he diagnosed the problem. Christian has infected and enlarged adenoids which need to be removed. He explained that having them removed will not only help the nose issue, but help with his mouth breathing and sleep disturbances that we've been experiencing. He even suggested that while we aren't worried about his speech, having his adenoids removed could help pronunciation. The surgery is outpatient, but requires general anesthesia (which of course makes me nervous). The recovery time is fast, and the complications are rare.

I'm very angry that the possibility of an adenoid issue was never brought up to me by my pediatrician. You would think that after treating a kid 4 times with antibiotics that it would be a red flag. I really love our pediatrician, but the practice is so big and it's next to impossible to see the same doctor for each appointment. I know it's important to establish a good relationship with our doctor, especially with Christian's specific medical issues. I'm thinking about switching offices, in hopes of finding a smaller practice that can track these things a bit closer...just one more thing to add on my plate!

Cochlear's New Return Policy-I've got a bone to pick with them!

Before I head into this rant, I want to remind everyone that I am a Cochlear Awareness Network Volunteer and in general, more than happy with Cochlear. However, I am a bit annoyed and upset with their new return policy.

I called yesterday as we are *this* close to having a fried coil. In the past, we would report our problem, the company would send a replacement part back, and then we would send back the broken part in an envelope provided by the company. As I was wrapping up my phone call with the friendly customer service rep (I always am super-impressed with their service!), he explained that he would send an envelope out, then we would return the part, then once it was received, they would send the new part out.

Um...WHAT?!

I've always advocated to families that I've chatted with about brand choices that Cochlear's Customer Service and return department was top notch and very parent focused. I would tout the examples of calling about a broken processor, and we would have a new one on our doorstep in less than 36 hours. As a bimodal family (Christian only wears one CI, and uses a hearing aid in his other ear), a quick turn-around time for part replacement is crucial for us. It seems like this new policy delays the process quite a bit. I understand that Cochlear may have had some issues with receiving broken or damaged parts from their customers, but I don't think that they thought this completely out.

The thought of possibly being in a situation where we don't have a back-up absolutely scares the living h*ll out of me. As other parents of kids with CIs can attest, pediatric users are extremely rough on their equipment. We entered into a lifelong relationship with Cochlear, and I understand that there is no way that they can make EVERYONE happy. However, I hope that Cochlear reevaluates this new policy and adapts something more "kid" friendly.

Like a Mother Lion...

I'm in full Mommy-Defensive Mode.

Looks like my blog got picked up on the forums on www.alldeaf.com and we were a bit misrepresented regarding our CI journey.



BTW, I am writing this post as I prepare to yet again drive up to Baltimore for more testing for my kid. I just hope the folks who thought that we were taking this decision lightly and were rushing into something are reading my blog archives. There has been NOTHING in our journey that has been rushed. And driving up to Baltimore 2-3 times a week for the past 7 weeks definitely is not my cup of tea.