Heartwarming moment when 4-year-old boy hears his family for the first time after undergoing cochlear implant surgery: ‘That’s the biggest smile I’ve ever seen’
- Four-year-old Sawyer first heard his family express their love for him after cochlear implant surgery
- Sawyer and his little brother Tucker were both diagnosed with Pendred syndrome, a genetic condition that causes early hearing loss in children
- The family started with one GoFundMe page to pay for ongoing cochlear implants for the two young boys
In a video originally shared on TikTok, a mother of three posted footage of her four-year-old son Sawyer hearing his family’s voices for the first time after receiving cochlear implants.
Christina Lenglin’s son had been diagnosed with Pendred syndrome, a genetic condition that causes early childhood hearing loss.
In the footage she shared, the giggly boy can be seen after undergoing cochlear implant surgery in Ontario, Canada.
When the sound levels on his devices are first turned up, the child begins to grin from ear to ear, prompting his emotional mother to say, “That’s the biggest smile I’ve ever seen him do.”
Sawyer Lenglin, 4, heard from his family for the first time after cochlear implant surgery. He was diagnosed with a rare genetic disease that robbed him of his hearing in early childhood
Sawyer is in the room with his mother, father, older sister, and little brother, all seeing for the first time how he reacts to his new feeling.
Immediately, Sawyer’s mother and older sister, Rosie, start telling him they love him.
The young boy cannot stop smiling and laughing when he first begins to hear their love.
Rosie asks her parents if the surgery will change Sawyer’s life, and her mother says it will, “maybe for the better.”
Sawyer, Christina said, “carried the surgery with courage and is now happily embarking on the journey of learning to hear and understand English.”
Big sister Rosie, as you can see in the video, is beyond excited to welcome her brother to the world of hearing, and [we as] parents are also elated to have the magical ability to verbally communicate with [our] son,” she wrote.
Both Sawyer and his little brother Tucker were diagnosed with Pendred syndrome, and while the Canadian government pays for each child’s first set of cochlear implants, replacements, required every five years, are not covered by the country’s socialized medical system. country.
According to the family, cochlear implants for both boys will cost about $30,000 CAD every five years – about $22,300 USD.
Sawyer sits in a room full of toys with his father on his left and older sister on his right after his cochlear implant surgery
He gives his father and older sister a high five as his family verbally expresses their love for him
The little boy couldn’t stop smiling and giggling as his family members reacted emotionally to his new sense
Sawyer and his little brother Tucker were diagnosed with Pendred syndrome, which causes early childhood hearing loss
Christina told Storyful, where the video was also shared, that she would love it if her son’s story helped bring awareness to the issue of access to hearing surgery and access to American Sign Language.
‘We will have to choose between ASL or speech therapy; neglecting his speech learning or ignoring his deaf culture,” she said.
The family launched one GoFundme page for Sawyer and his younger brother’s future surgery and implants.
‘[We] are so proud of its resilience and adaptability — we all hope we can help make a change,” Lenglin said.
