Too Good to be True?

I have experienced some of the greatest challenges of my life over the last seven months. There were days after Drew was diagnosed that I did not want to get out of bed and face his deafness each morning. Luckily my family and friends were there to support me, and finally I realized that staying in bed, crying all day would not change Drew's diagnosis. So I made a decision; I would get of bed each day. And I would get myself dressed. And I would learn as much as I could about deafness, cochlear implants and oral education. And that's what I have done. Today I feel like I have reaped my first reward of hard work and dedication.

Dr. Kang called today with a date for Drew's surgery. Drew will have simultaneous cochlear implant surgery on June 6. Although not confirmed, he should be activated sometime during the week of June 25. I can not believe that we have traveled to this point in our journey. During these months I have felt like we would never get to the point of having him implanted. Now there is a date on my calendar! We are getting closer to the day that Drew will hear.

Even more amazing (and I'm still pinching myself to make sure I am not dreaming) is that Dr. Kang's office received verbal approval for the surgery from our insurance company today. We should receive a written approval letter within the next week. We are going to celebrate when we receive the letter, but until Drew's ears have two electrode arrays in them nothing is certain. I have read horror stories from other parents receiving calls from their insurance company the week of the surgery with a change in the approval status.

The Cochlear Implant team will finalize Drew's candidacy at their May 8th meeting, but we do not anticipate any issues. At this point, we are just waiting for June 6th to come and praying that nothing changes in the approval status of Drew's implants. If all goes as planned, Drew will be hearing by the end of June. Someone pinch me!