Where We'll Go From Here

Many have asked us over the last few days what the journey to hearing will look like from here.

Yesterday, Amichai's implants were activated. They were set at a very low level, so as to not overwhelm his systems, and we will gradually elevate his hearing over time, slowly and systematically, until he is hearing optimally with the implants. The process will likely take months, and will then be updated throughout his life as his body changes and grows. The implants are completely personalized to him, and he will hear optimally to his body makeup, at each stage of life.

Many of you noticed Amichai's clear responses to sound in the video we posted yesterday. This can lead one to believe that he is hearing everything that most people do. Interestingly, at this moment, Amichai is actually hearing less than he did with his hearing aids. The reason why he is so responsive to sound is because the sound he is hearing is completely different than before (electronic stimulus to his brain rather than from his ears) and therefore novel, causing him to notice and respond to most every sound that comes in. In a few days, that novelty will wear off and he will stop responding so drastically to the sounds he is hearing. At that point, he will be ready for an increase to his threshold of hearing. Every few days, we will literally turn up the volume of his implants, so that he is hearing more and more, until he is hearing within the normal range.

Sounds pretty clear now, right? The trick is that it is not just the auditory input at appropriate levels that we need to achieve. Amichai will also have learn what sound means, and how it connects to the world and to oral language. This we will approach through ongoing intensive speech therapy over the next years. Just as we have been working on over the last four months, we will first teach Amichai to pay attention to the sound input that he is receiving, then teach him that sound is connected to the world around him and has meaning, and ultimately, that sound has the ability to transmit oral language, which he can understand and reproduce.

The road is long, but we feel strong and positive. Amichai has shown nothing but resilience, wisdom and good humor and spirit through this process and we feel confident from his lead about what the future will bring.

We know what we need to do. We now have enough under our belt and the community, resources and knowledge to feel confident that we will get there. We are finally in a place to relax and enjoy the ride.

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