Living with a disability is a challenge. Thankfully, modern technology paved the way for these disabilities to overcome. One teenager, who was born deaf, finally got his wish of hearing after 15 years.

Jurie du Plessis is a 15-year-old teenage boy who lived all his life without hearing any sound.

The ear is our organ of hearing. It is made up of three different parts: the outer ear, the inner ear and the middle ear. Each part of the ear is important for it to do its function.

The inner ear houses some of the most delicate bones in the body. A damage to it can cause hearing loss or deafness in a range of ways. Some of the causes of deafness or hearing loss are chickenpox, meningitis, mumps, loud noises, trauma, or hereditary reasons.

Despite this dilemma, modern technology paved the way for the invention of cochlear implants.

These implants are the ones that Jurie needs. So, how does it work?

Cochlear implants are devices that partially restore hearing. It helps deaf people improve their communication and quality of life. These cochlear implants are designed to mimic the function of a healthy inner ear.

What it does is replaces the damaged sensory hair cells to process a clearer sound. Adults and children who are as young as six to 12 months old can use cochlear implants. There are a lot of proven testimonies praising the use of cochlear implants.

No wonder Jurie needs it.

Jurie was born with hearing difficulty that got worse as he grew older. He was a perfect candidate for cochlear implants, but the price was way more than what his mom, Susan could ever afford.

To show their support for Jurie, the Middelburg Old Boys raised a fundraising event to help acquire cochlear implants.

Thanks to their hard work and effort, they were able to raise the funds that needed to buy the cochlear implants. Now, it’s time to purchase those devices. Everyone was excited!

On June 27, 2016, Jurie’s implant was switched on for the first time!

At first, they were making clapping and stomping sounds. Jurie was shocked at the sounds he was hearing. They kept talking to Jurie and he was nodding his head.

His mom and his family were emotional when he started to register the sounds.

The doctor at the Hearing Institute in Pretoria explained that Jurie will hear the sound, but his brain will have to process it. He is like a new born baby hearing and interpreting the sounds for the very first time. There was some moments of confusion for him, but that was understandable.

The doctor said that with therapy and practice, he can be able to understand different sounds. For now, his brain will interpret it as “ping” sounds. Nevertheless, it was the first step towards a better life.

The science behind cochlear implants

Cochlear implants use a sound processor that is placed behind the hear. What it does is it captures sound signals and sends it to a receiver implanted under the skin behind the ear. These signals will be sent to electrodes implanted in the inner ear.

The brain starts to interpret those signals and it will be like hearing normal sounds. It will take 6 months or more to practice using the implants. People who have used it experienced considerable gains in understanding speech.

Inspired by Jurie’s story? Watch the whole video below!

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Source: Jacarandafm, MayoClinic