In 2001, an ex-army private was involved in a car accident that destroyed his face. He was 21 at the time.
After the car he was driving in hit an electrical pole, Mitch Hunter pushed the woman in the passenger seat to safety, but as a result he himself was zapped for 5 minutes by 10,000 volts, which left him severely disfigured, and without his left leg.
His face was in such a ghastly state it would draw attention whenever he entered a room, which left him depressed. But in 2011 he received a face transplant—he was one of the first people in the world to have done so at the time.
The 14-hour surgery gave him a nose and eyelids, and 5 years later, he says he’s in great shape.
“I feel just as healthy as I did when I was 21. I feel great,” Hunter told WISH-TV.
He now has a job and can comfortably take his young son to the movies.
The surgery not only restored how he looked, it also brought back the sense of touch on his face. He can feel it when his beard is being touched, or when is face is being brushed.
“I think it’s been an amazing journey. It’s been a hard journey,” Hunter said. “I would like to tell people not to worry about the small things. Live life, tell the people you love that you love them, because you never know when that can be taken away.”
