This is the heartwarming moment Ríogán Peoples' parents heard his cry for the first time in one year, since being fitted with a tracheostomy.
The West Belfast tot was diagnosed with bilateral vocal cord paralysis at just four days old, meaning his vocal cords do not move enough to allow air through his airways. Ríogán was fitted with the tracheostomy to give him a safer and more effective airway.
A tracheostomy is an opening created at the front of the neck so a tube can be inserted into the windpipe to help you breathe. And from the moment of insertion, Ríogán has not has not made any sound when crying making the moment he was trialled with a speaking valve so special.
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And through a dedicated Instagram page, Ríogán's mum Niamh, is allowing others to follow her son's journey, while spreading awareness on his condition and connecting with other families who are going through similar experiences.
Speaking to Belfast Live, Niamh said she had a perfectly normal pregnancy but when Ríogán was born, she noticed his breathing was abnormal, and flagged it to doctors.
"Everything was absolutely fine for about 20 minutes and then he started having noisy breathing," the Lagmore woman said.
"I kept asking the doctor, who was worried about me as I was losing as lot of blood, if he was ok and why he was breathing that way. It continued and continued and then within a flash he was grabbed off my chest and put over onto the bed and there was about 20 nurses and doctors around him with oxygen on him.
"I didn't know what was going on, and I was then taken into surgery and Ríogán was taken into ICU. When I got back, they said the doctor would come and speak to me before I went to see him. At that point, I knew that something wasn't right.
"They came down to me and said he was de-saturating, so basically his oxygen levels were going quite low and he was transferred to the RVH while I stayed at the Ulster Hospital. We were told his condition at three days old.
"The doctors took him to theatre for another scope to decide if he needed a tracheotomy or not, and they said at that point that he didn't. We thought this was great, and we thought we could bring him home with oxygen and we would tube feed him.
"We were still in hospital and Ríogán was ten days old when he became very sick and on a ventilator in ICU - the word tracheotomy was being mentioned again, which is scary because we had never really known much about it.
"We were told that it would be dangerous if he went home without it, and obviously you do what is best for your child."
As a child with a tracheostomy, Ríogán requires around-the-clock care, with daily suctionings and tie changes carried out at home. And with a trache comes the possibility of blockages, so his parents are trained in emergency changes.
Niamh admitted that at the beginning, the information and experience was overwhelming, leaving her with lots of questions. She soon set up My Trache Journey, an Instagram page to allow those online to have an insight into Ríogán's journey.
The page has allowed Niamh to meet people in her area, who have children with a trache, and to engage with a community of families online who have helped answer questions she has had along the way.
She added: "Whenever Ríogán did get the trache, I didn't have anyone to turn to and I just wanted to speak to people that had been through the same thing. I had so many questions that I would have wanted to ask someone who was experienced.
"It was also a way for me to update my family and friends about what was going on because we were in hospital form May to December and it was hard to be in hospital and keep them updated.
"I started the page and started to follow the relevant hashtags and pages of babies and kids who had traches. I also wanted to spread awareness because I had heard the word trache before but I had never seen one face-to-face before.
"Within a week, I had a message from a girl from Twinbrook who has two twins, one of which has a trache and to find someone so close to you, was great, it opened up that bond with her about the initial questions that I had. From setting up the page, the support has been amazing.
"A lot of kids have traches for different reasons but I had never known anyone to have Ríogán's condition, so that allowed me to connect with other families. I have had messages from people all over the world. It is almost like a community of support.
"It is great to see those positive stories too of other children getting their traches out and those with vocal cord conditions doing normal things. It doesn't stop Ríogán enjoying typical things that any child his age should enjoy."
Speaking about the moment she heard her son's cry again, after almost 12 months, Niamh said she went to the appointment with no expectations, as she knew it may not have been successful.
"The biggest thing for me and the trache was the no sound. That was the reason why I was so upset about him having to get it.
"People are of the impression that Ríogán doesn't make any noise, but that is not the case. Before the trache, he was crying and making other baby sounds. He had his trache when he was four weeks old so before that he was just making normal baby noises.
"It did take away his sound and that was a big factor for me, how would I hear him cry? I couldn't imagine a life without hearing your child. It was hard.
"When he got the trachy in, when he cried you wouldn't hear any sound. His cry was more like his breathing changing. I have to be with hi at all times to see his face, so I know how he is feeling. The video was so special for me because I hadn't heard him crying in a year.
"It was more of a shock to hear him because that day when we went in to trial a speaking valve, we knew not every child would tolerate one. I didn't know what to expect, but when we heard him cry, it was amazing. I think he shocked himself as well.
"Now we have the speaking valve home and we can build that up and hopefully we will be able to hear him more and more."
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