Man undergoes surgery to recover his hearing: he hears "I love you" from his wife for the first time in 25 years (+ VIDEO)
There are moments in a person's life that are burned into the memory, and they are even more special when they are on tape, so that they can be shared with others. A clear example of this is a video by Brian Travers - a deaf man who underwent surgery to regain his hearing - and who recorded the moment his cochlear implant was activated and he heard his wife say "I love you" for the first time in 25 years.
Mr. Travers gradually lost the ability to hear during his adulthood due to a rare, genetic disorder called osteogenesis imperfecta - also known as brittle bone disease. In early 2008, a brain hemorrhage left Mr. Travers in a coma for three weeks. Despite a low probability of survival, he managed to recover, but he could no longer hear any sounds - he was deaf.
Throughout the following years, Mr. Travers relied solely on lip reading- until a cochlear implant operation allowed him to hear again. He could not fail to record on video such an important moment.
At the implant activation appointment, Mr. Travers' wife wore a transparent Covid mask which allows deaf people to lip-read.
In the footage, she can be seen holding her husbands hands as she asks, "Can you hear me? You're not reading my lips, are you?". "There's a bit of an echo, but I can understand you. Try talking some more," he tells her. "I love you," she replies. Mr. Travers looks at her and then starts crying with emotion. She leans over to him and comforts him in this overwhelming moment.
It will take some time for Mr. Travers to get used to hearing sounds again, but he has already said he is over the moon to be able to hear his wife and children.
When he is in the street, it is still very strange for him: "I hear unknown sounds that I have to rediscover, also because people's voices sound cartoonish at the moment". This is why Mr. Travers still has to read lips whilst his hearing improves and he reorientates himself.
This was a truly emotional scene!
