Tears of joy flowed as locked-in syndrome patient David Garvey was finally released from hospital to move back home last week.
David, who is completely paralysed and cannot speak, will spend his first Christmas at home after an absence of almost three years.
Earlier this year, David spent a week working on composing his letter to the HSE using only eye movements.
Mr Garvey has been in Dublin’s Beaumont Hospital suffering from ‘locked in’ syndrome following three strokes and a brain haemorrhage. He is now unable to move and communicates by blinking his eyes. To date, his requests to be moved back to his family home in Dundalk have not been granted.
In his poignant letter, Mr Garvey describes what life has been like for him in hospital. “Can you please close your eyes and imagine lying in bed not being able to move a muscle... Imagine when you open your eyes the first thing you see is a ceiling, and you will see that same ceiling for the next few hours until a nurse comes and move your head.”
Today, his sister Lynn Flood joined Jonathan Healy on Lunchtime to speak about how overjoyed the family are that David has returned for Christmas and the developments in his care:
