Why would a teacher of the deaf, with her own severe hearing loss, wait years to get her own cochlear implant? I asked Mary Beth Napoli, a bilateral Med-El cochlear implant recipient and a member of the Facebook group, Bilateral CI Warrior, to share her unique perspective.

She struggled with her own severe hearing loss for decades. She had years of working with cochlear implant recipients who needed auditory training after implantation.

She witnessed the remarkable results her student experienced but as many cochlear implant candidates who have walked the path towards getting hearing help, she was fearful of losing her miniscule amount of residual hearing. She discusses the reasons why she chose Med-El from her point of view and the surgeon’s.

Although Mary Beth’s unique medical history is complex her story is invaluable to cand ...