A British teenager recently woke up from a year-long coma with no knowledge of the global coronavirus pandemic.
The boy was admitted to hospital on March 1, three weeks before the country was first locked up.
Reuters reports how Joseph Flavill (19) suffered a traumatic brain injury in the English city of Burton-on-Trent. According to a fundraising magazine launched by his family: “In May 2020, Joseph would attend Buckingham Palace to receive his Gold Duke or Edinburgh Award … On March 1, 2020, 18 years of laughter and energy to a sudden stopped … “
Due to COVID-19 security measures, his family was restricted to personal visits to him during his hospitalization and could only see them via video. WPXI News explains how only his mother may visit him, six meters away.
While in a coma, Flavill even caught the coronavirus twice. Now, almost a year since the pandemic broke out, Flavill is starting to show signs of healing without really knowing what life was like with the disease.
“Recently, Joseph started showing small signs of recovery, which we are very happy about,” Flavill’s aunt, Sally, told Reuters. “We now know he can hear us, he responds to small commands. When we say to him, ‘Joseph, we can not be with you, but you are safe, it’s not going to be forever,’ he understands, he hears you, he just can not communicate. ‘
“I do not know how Joseph will ever understand our stories of this obstruction,” his aunt continues. Further updates regarding Flavill’s repairs are still pending.