Provided to BuzzFeed News

The six months were difficult for their couple, who have been dating for over three years. Hayward described his condition as “being in jail” in his own head.

“I could see everything that was going on — I could communicate, but the world couldn’t communicate back with me.”

The couple quickly learned as much American Sign Language (ASL) as possible so that they could communicate.

“He would place the ‘I love you’ sign on my leg or on my back, and that’s when I knew I could go to sleep,” Hayward recalled.