Fun Cochlear Implant Accessories for Summer

Lately, Sonya has been loving her Ruby Bands cochlear implant swim head band. It has the same design as the other Ruby Band cochlear implant headbands, which we adore, but is made from swim suit fabric and the pockets are slightly larger to accommodate the waterproof sleeves. (Note – if you are going to use the headband with a swim hat, be sure to choose a back tie). Sonya is wearing the front tie option above. We will definitely be using this on our trip to Italy next week!

You might notice that we are no longer using the waterproof sleeves. I talked about our struggles with it here. The sleeves are just too bulky and huge – and they don’t fit when coupled with the compact batteries we use for Sonya. We decided that it was more important that Sonya hear comfortably when doing water activities rather than struggle with heavy equipment that she ultimately refuses to wear and winds up swimming without sound. So far (fingers crossed) we haven’t had any issues without the sleeves. The cochlear implants (Nucleus 6 in our case) is water resistant. Since her water activity is relatively light, we simply place the damp processors in our Zephyr dryer overnight. They are fine the next morning.

In addition to the swim headband, Sonya has worn (and stained) her Polarn O. Pyret baseball cap. It fits snuggly on her head and keeps her processors in place on days when she just doesn’t feel like wearing a headband (and I just don’t feel like freaking out over a lost processor somewhere between our house and Central Park). Plus, she probably thinks she looks as cool as I do in my Yankees cap 🙂

P.S. Some additional fashionable cochlear implant / hearing aid solutions and travel tips for kids and babies with cochlear implants and hearing aids. Also, check out the wonderful book Sonya is holding in her hand in the top picture above: Harmony Hears a Hoot . It was written by a speech pathologist and is a great resource for kids and parents on how to address hearing loss in a mainstream school setting. We love it!

Author: Missy Kvitko

Born in Fargo, North Dakota, I grew up in Minnesota. After graduating from Macalester College in 2004, I moved to New York City. For 10 years I worked in the field of public relations, representing professional services firms and financial services (in particular alternative asset managers) In 2014, my life changed dramatically with the birth of my first child, Sonya Rose. Born with severe to profound hearing loss. Sonya's care has become my full time job. It is also the best job I have ever had. My husband, Sonya and I live in Manhattan. Please feel free to email me anytime at missy.kvitko@gmail.com, or find me on instagram (@mmkvitko) and twitter (@HearSonyaRose). Thank you so much for reading. View all posts by Missy Kvitko