The Blink of an Eye: a Memoir of Dyingã¢â‚¬â€and Learning How to Live Again

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On New Year's Day, 2013, Rikke Schmidt Kjaergaard went for a walk with her family along the river in their large Danish town. She lagged behind her married man, his friend, and the Kjaergaard children (aged 18, 14, and eight). Her legs were leaden, and she was unusually cold. Back at home, fifty-fifty a hot bathroom couldn't warm her. Within a few hours she was feverish, vomiting, and had lost command of her bowels. A night-duty GP came to the firm, diagnosed flu, and prescribed an antiviral medication. Fifty-fifty if R On New Twelvemonth'southward Mean solar day, 2013, Rikke Schmidt Kjaergaard went for a walk with her family along the river in their large Danish boondocks. She lagged behind her husband, his friend, and the Kjaergaard children (aged 18, fourteen, and 8). Her legs were leaden, and she was unusually cold. Back at home, even a hot bath couldn't warm her. Inside a few hours she was feverish, vomiting, and had lost control of her bowels. A night-duty GP came to the business firm, diagnosed influenza, and prescribed an antiviral medication. Even if Rikke did accept a virus (it turned out she did non), how was a pill she couldn't keep down supposed to help? The post-obit morning, the family's regular GP was chosen to the firm, and then an ambulance. At this point, she suffered cardiac arrest. The hardworking paramedics were able to restart her heart and get her to the infirmary where defibrillation restored a normal rhythm. Doctors immediately placed her on a respirator and connected her to a dialysis machine. Before long she would be transferred to a university hospital/research facility 30 miles abroad. This was but the starting time . . .

How to explain information technology? A fit, apparently healthy 38-year-former adult female entertained vacation guests ane day; two days later, that same woman was in a coma. There were multiple micro blood clots throughout her torso and an expanding hematoma (swelling of blood) in the right side of her brain. Her kidneys had failed, and she was retaining huge amounts of fluid—40 pounds of it, in fact. Her hands, feet, and nose had blackened due to inadequate claret supply, and the residual of her trunk was alarmingly discoloured.

Kjaergaard's doctors determined which pathogen was responsible for their patient'due south status and the reason why it had taken over. At the age of twenty, Rikke had been diagnosed with Lupus, an autoimmune disease. She had been hospitalized for three months and then, but with attentive self-care, she'd been able to live a adequately normal life. Even so, over the years, Lupus had been taking a secret toll. Kjaergaard'due south allowed system was compromised, and her spleen, which ought to have defended her against Streptococcus pneumoniae, the bacteria that ravaged her body, was calcified and nonfunctional. Now suffering from pneumococcal meningitis, septic stupor, and multiple organ failure, she was not expected to survive.

Her book, of course, shows that she did. However, she tells us that setting down her story was, at times, "similar writing a biography of another person." Significant parts of her account are based on the meticulous notes and photographic records that her husband, Peter, kept nigh her and her family's ordeal. At first this documentation was Peter's way of holding on to his comatose married woman, but it would turn into something else: a record of her progress. When it seemed equally though Rikke might survive after all, doctors warned Peter that she would be a inverse person. The parts of the brain involved in personality were badly damaged. Rikke might shout or cry for no apparent reason. She might not know her loved ones at all and be completely dependent on others.

Kjaergaard'due south business relationship of her dull recovery from a life-threatening bacterial assault on her body and a seemingly unending sequence of complications is merely and accessibly written. There is a pared-downward experience to it, and it'due south by and large gratuitous of medical jargon. (The terms that are used are well explained.) Emerging from a two-week coma is non like a Hollywood picture, Rikke writes. It is gradual, protracted, backbreaking, and exhausting. A couple of minutes of consciousness, requiring so much energy and effort, are followed by long hours of darkness. Waking up too means experiencing pain and aggravating itchiness, without being able to do anything virtually either. For some weeks, Rikke was "locked in", aware of others, able to understand them to some extent, just completely paralyzed and unable to communicate. To others she appeared to be in a vegetative land. From the inside, the status was "similar the well-nigh horrifying claustrophobic nightmare." Eventually, a elementary system of communication—one glimmer for "no"; two for "yes"- was established. A spelling board was used. Others would slowly point to the messages of the alphabet arranged in rows on the board, waiting and watching for Rikke's blink-of-the-middle acknowledgement when the right alphabetic character was reached. This was a challenging and intensely frustrating system at all-time, especially for someone with an impaired curt-term memory.

Rikke's experience required her to relearn all the virtually basic bodily functions, including breathing, belongings her head upward, swallowing, sitting, walking, peeing and so on. Her book is an business relationship of a struggle confronting formidable odds as well as an affecting story of love—marital and familial. It is never saccharine or sentimental. "Feeling loved," Rikke writes, "is the most potent healing power." Encouraged by infirmary staff and some scientific studies, the family made a indicate of regularly speaking and reading to Rikke, believing that their voices might give her reason to return, and providing them with a therapeutic benefit in the procedure. 14-year-former Victoria placed a photograph of her mum on the bedside table of the hospital room to prove medical personnel the real, vibrant woman they were working to salve. It made a difference. Both doctors and nurses became more interested in their accomplished patient; she was at present more than than a medical trouble.

In documenting Rikke's experience, her hubby was attuned to the virtually subtle changes in her condition: "he saw what no i else could see: a tiny calorie-free in the irksome darkness of my downward gaze."(In fact, scientific studies bear witness that information technology is usually family members, not medical professionals, who are the commencement to know their loved 1 is yet at that place—locked in.) Peter read the scientific literature, was in constant communication with her medical team, and lived at the hospital for the commencement weeks of his wife's intendance. At one betoken, he requested her physicians' permission to bring a close friend of Rikke's to the hospital (at a fourth dimension when but firsthand family were allowed to visit). It was an experiment that yielded results. The friend's visit elicited Rikke'south first direct gaze, a critical step back into life.

This is a hard story to read, of course, but an important and worthwhile one. I learned a lot and was very moved. At the terminate of the volume, Rikke provides a checklist for caregivers, which is well worth reading.

She concludes past saying that the book "was written to requite a vocalisation to those who have none and for anyone whose life has changed out of all recognition from one moment to the adjacent. I am trying to encounter my unexpected survival and recovery equally a gift that tin help others, besides." It is.

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A moving true story of a Danish woman who came virtually to expiry with bacterial meningitis and was 'locked in' for a while, merely able to communicate by blinking one eye. Incredibly she survived and has fabricated a proficient recovery, although she has lost most of her fingers and her sight in ane centre. I saw Rikke speak at the Hay Festival, and was struck by her calm demeanour and smiley face. She and her volume actually are an inspiration. A recommended read. A moving true story of a Danish woman who came near to death with bacterial meningitis and was 'locked in' for a while, only able to communicate past blinking ane middle. Incredibly she survived and has made a practiced recovery, although she has lost most of her fingers and her sight in i middle. I saw Rikke speak at the Hay Festival, and was struck past her calm demeanour and smiley face. She and her book really are an inspiration. A recommended read. ...more

Dec 02, 2018 Sally Hanan rated it really liked it

An excellent view into what it'south similar to almost dice so slowly feel your way back into living, albeit a dissimilar kind of life--harder but richer. Rikke skips null. Almost in a solar day-past-twenty-four hour period account, she talks about what information technology'south like to be in pain, to be treated similar a thing by medical professionals vs. being treated as a person with emotions and comfort, and the struggle to try to find the mode frontwards and persevere.

As a former nurse, a lot of her accounts felt familiar, but it certainly made

An fantabulous view into what it's like to almost die and and then slowly feel your way dorsum into living, albeit a different kind of life--harder but richer. Rikke skips aught. Nigh in a day-past-solar day account, she talks near what it's like to be in hurting, to be treated like a thing by medical professionals vs. existence treated as a person with emotions and comfort, and the struggle to effort to find the way forward and persevere.

As a erstwhile nurse, a lot of her accounts felt familiar, just it certainly made me more enlightened of the finer details of being confined in a bed; unable to move, talk, or even breath without assistance. And still she fabricated it through and to this day is fighting back past empowering others and making lives meliorate.

This book is gutsy and authentic. Requite a re-create to anyone struggling to notice hope while watching a loved i in medical turmoil, merely too recommend it to any health professional you lot know.

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Sep 27, 2019 Stephanie rated it actually liked it

This volume will likely brand information technology into my book society rotation. I found information technology fascinating and hope others exercise likewise. Kjaergaard writes a memoir nigh how she suddenly contracted a bacterial meningitis, went into a coma, was locked inside her body unable to move, or even react after she woke up, the gradual ability to blink coming to her. She details her stay in the ICU, so her subsequent moves to other facilities and I found the science behind information technology, her details of her disease and recovery to be fascinating. This book volition likely make it into my volume club rotation. I establish it fascinating and hope others practise too. Kjaergaard writes a memoir virtually how she suddenly contracted a bacterial meningitis, went into a coma, was locked within her body unable to motility, or even react later she woke upward, the gradual ability to blink coming to her. She details her stay in the ICU, and then her subsequent moves to other facilities and I found the science behind it, her details of her illness and recovery to be fascinating. Luckily, her husband is a scientist and kept meticulous notes. She is not a writer and that is obvious when reading, but it is an easy and quick read, and I really felt similar I learned a lot. ...more

A return-from-the-expressionless...

This is the memoir of Danish scientist Rikke Kjaergaard who in 2013 suddenly became ill. Rikke was recklessly diagnosed with the flu. It was way more serious than flu. She was sent home to recuperate, only the next morning it was apparent that something more serious was happening in her body. After being rushed to the hospital, she was diagnosed with bacterial meningitis and declared "clinically dead."

As you read, you will experience corking empathy for her husband and chil

A return-from-the-dead...

This is the memoir of Danish scientist Rikke Kjaergaard who in 2013 suddenly became sick. Rikke was recklessly diagnosed with the flu. It was way more serious than influenza. She was sent home to recuperate, but the next morn it was apparent that something more serious was happening in her torso. Afterwards being rushed to the hospital, she was diagnosed with bacterial meningitis and declared "clinically dead."

As y'all read, you volition feel great empathy for her husband and children, besides suffering through this long ordeal. Her family earned sainthood in my eyes. As the author recounts the months she spent in diverse stages of hospital recovery, Rikke states "all parts of my trunk were fighting each other. It was a boxing of multiple foes and no allies."

Only Rikke is a "fighter" and she drew on all her resources and resolve to regain a semblance of a normal life.

To share this chilling upshot, she relied on the notes and documentation her loving husband provided to help reconstruct the period when she was in a blackout. She describes the mistiness of enkindling, trying to communicate with blinks, and relearning just most everything: how to breathe, how to swallow, and even who she was. Information technology took months earlier she could take her first footstep or eat on her own. She survived the ordeal with but i digit, her thumb. The others lost circulation and were removed. This is a story in itself as she describes the horror she endured watching her fingers die and pretty much drop off leaving her with just 1 unimpaired digit."

Yes at the end Rikke says, "I knew my life had changed for the better."

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Jan 21, 2020 Marj rated it it was ok

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. This book makes ane realize how vulnerable we are and how we can quickly change from being in good health to having a devastating illness. Notwithstanding, found this volume a boring read....like listening to someone talk in painstaking particular about their affliction and medical procedures. That could have been summarized in a affiliate and the focus could take been more on how to appreciate our good fortune for good wellness and surviving a serious illness. I lost involvement after nigh 50 pages.

Feb 04, 2019 Riann rated it it was amazing

The moving story of how the author fought her manner back from a life threatening bacterial infection. She brought herself back from the brink and used her experience every bit a means to help others. It'south important for there to be more awareness of the dangers of streptococcus pneumonia infection as well likewise as a more than complete understanding of what information technology means to feel locked-in syndrome. The moving story of how the author fought her fashion back from a life threatening bacterial infection. She brought herself back from the brink and used her experience as a means to help others. It's of import for at that place to be more than awareness of the dangers of streptococcus pneumonia infection equally well likewise as a more complete understanding of what it means to experience locked-in syndrome. ...more

Jun 11, 2019 Kara B rated information technology it was astonishing

I was riveted!! This book leaves you breathless and so inspired.

Feb 11, 2019 Bre rated information technology liked it

Received a digital ARC of this book via NetGalley.

A touching memoir of a bright woman who was afflicted by a barbarous bacterial infection. With the love and support of her family unit, she learned to appreciate life once more. It takes truthful emotional and mental force to relearn everything and abound from the experience.

A thoughtful, account of a devastating illness. The author writes in a very lively prose mode which fabricated the volume piece of cake and enjoyable to read, considering the grim topic. three+ stars.

i win this volume. wow , a view from inside a person in a coma and the detail of the struggle to become better . a courageous journey .

Mar xvi, 2019 Christi rated it really liked it

In the blink of an eye everything can change. One moment your life is moving forth, going through your normal routine, living your life. Then you blink. What once was is gone and you are plunged into an unimaginable nightmare that you can't wake upward from, quickly condign trapped inside your own body, the but movement that you can control is a blink. It sounds like a scene from a psychological thriller but this was realty for scientist Rikke Schmidt Kjaergaard on New Years day in 2013.

The whole

In the blink of an eye everything tin can change. One moment your life is moving along, going through your normal routine, living your life. Then you blink. What in one case was is gone and y'all are plunged into an unimaginable nightmare that you can't wake upwardly from, speedily becoming trapped inside your own body, the simply motility that you can control is a glimmer. It sounds like a scene from a psychological thriller but this was realty for scientist Rikke Schmidt Kjaergaard on New Years solar day in 2013.

The whole day Rikke had been feeling off simply she chalked it up to the New Years Eve festivities from the night before but as the day wore on Rikke got worse and worse. Her dr. was called to the firm later on that evening and she was diagnosed with the flu but her symptoms went from bad to worse at an incredibly rapid charge per unit.

She couldn't get warm no matter how many blankets were piled on her, every bit of light pierced her optics like needles, and her fever was increasing and then dropping at rapid rates. Rikke couldn't agree anything down and couldn't command anything coming out of her body. By morning, everything that was coming out of her trunk was thick and black. When she started to become paralyzed her husband and doctor knew this was a serious situation and she was rushed to the emergency room. If they would've waited any longer Rikke would not have survived.

The Blink of an Eye is Rikke'due south point of view during the entire horrific ordeal that completely changed her life. When Rikke was twenty she was diagnosed with systemic lupus erythematosus or SLE. She believed she had her disorder under control but all it took was one attack of bacterial meningitis to almost kill her.

Y'all can experience Rikke's scientific groundwork come up through the pages, besides as the ache and heartbreak that she felt. There are parts that were hard for me to read and brought tears to my eyes. I cannot even brainstorm to imagine what Rikke and her family had to endure.

Though Rikke has a lot of battle scars, she lived to tell the tale which is a miracle in and of itself. I closed the book thankful for my life and felt empowered to face the medical issues I am currently facing. If Rikke tin fight so tin I! Painful, yet so powerful - The Blink of an Eye is a must read!

*I received a gratuitous re-create of this book from The Experiment through NetGalley in exchange for an honest, unbiased review. All opinions are my own.

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This is such a fascinating account of what someone really experiences when faced with a most-death or even, life-threatening medical issue. I am on the medical side of this, having treated people and dealt with families on the receiving end of potentially devastating news. There is not a good way for the medical community to train for this attribute of medical care, each state of affairs is different and the person we intendance for is loved by someone. To read through someone'southward experience as substantially give This is such a fascinating account of what someone really experiences when faced with a near-death or even, life-threatening medical outcome. I am on the medical side of this, having treated people and dealt with families on the receiving end of potentially devastating news. There is non a good way for the medical community to train for this aspect of medical care, each situation is different and the person nosotros treat is loved by someone. To read through someone'due south experience as substantially given upward for dead and so in a locked-in state is interesting. I have treated people with this and other similar conditions, simply to hear firsthand, after leaving acute care, what that looks like from their perspective is truly a gift.
And the about glorious thing of all is, after the horror of the astute affliction subsided, the insight that allowed her to feel that her life was enriched by this experience is just jiff-taking. It feels similar human nature would be to question, "Why me?" and sink into despair and all the same for her information technology was a gift that allowed the focus of her consciousness to exist on what matters. That is saintly. Beautiful.
Give thanks yous for this ARC. It is wonderful and insightful.
#TheBlinkofanEye #Netgalley #TheExperiment ...more

Jul 05, 2019 Len rated it really liked it

Imagine a hellish infection coming out of nowhere and knocking y'all off your feet, almost killing yous.
Then imagine being trapped inside your ain trunk, unable to motion, to speak, or even breathe on your own.
This memoir is frustrating, terrifying, illuminating and ultimately inspiring.
Would we all take the same strength?

This is my outset journey into medical non-fiction. In this volume, Rikke recounts her horrific feel of going from perfectly good for you to dying (for a few minutes) in less than 24 hours, and then what it was like to be trapped in her own body for weeks.

Clearly I am still used to reading fiction, because initially I found myself disappointed. "What? Was that information technology?" But then, this wasn't a volume version of House Medico. Information technology was the existent thing, and one time I had wrapped my head around that, I could definitel

This is my starting time journey into medical not-fiction. In this book, Rikke recounts her horrific feel of going from perfectly good for you to dying (for a few minutes) in less than 24 hours, and and then what it was like to be trapped in her own trunk for weeks.

Clearly I am still used to reading fiction, because initially I found myself disappointed. "What? Was that it?" But then, this wasn't a book version of Business firm Doctor. Information technology was the existent thing, and once I had wrapped my caput around that, I could definitely appreciate what not merely Rikke, just her husband and children, had to become through.

Definitely a volume that covers the strength of the homo spirit. If medical conditions are something that involvement you, this might be for you.

...more than

I saw the author talking at the Hay Festival last week and was amazed past this woman's strength and positivity when discussing her disease and recovery. I read this book in one twenty-four hours and would recommend to anyone. A very potent adult female , who together with the support and love from her family and friends came dorsum from a near fatal illness. This book is well written by a adult female who explains her story in a fashion that is both informative and without self compassion.

Aug 03, 2019 Isabeau Masse rated it actually liked information technology

A quick read, but engaging and thought-provoking. As an ICU nurse, I appreciated the empathetic perspective of what the patients are experiencing when they are intubated, sedated, or suffering from neurological harm and cannot necessarily communicate.

Absolutely amazing. Very powerful stuff.

Jun 15, 2019 Jean rated information technology liked information technology

Interesting, only the writing was so clipped.

Jan 09, 2022 Muhammed Hebala rated it it was amazing

Recommends information technology for: Everyone

The book "was written to give a vocalism to those who accept none and for anyone whose life has changed out of all recognition from one moment to the next. I am trying to run into my unexpected survival and recovery equally a gift that can assistance others, too."

This book was written in the most honest and about revealing words, Rikke has really given voice to those who had none, the volume is truly 18-carat and is warmingly honest. Her heartily feelings would just penetrate their way directly to the reader'southward center.

She

The book "was written to give a voice to those who have none and for anyone whose life has changed out of all recognition from 1 moment to the side by side. I am trying to meet my unexpected survival and recovery as a souvenir that can aid others, too."

This book was written in the most honest and most revealing words, Rikke has really given voice to those who had none, the volume is truly genuine and is warmingly honest. Her heartily feelings would just penetrate their mode directly to the reader's heart.

She describes her horrifying experience with coma and being in vegetative state, how she suffered, how she felt and how she managed to recover, although partially.

Ane of the best and most honest books I have read in my life.

"Lying awake, listening to the nocturnal sounds of machines and murmurings, I composed my list of concrete desires: to experience the footing nether my feet, to have the muscles in my legs flex, to experience the weight of the residual of my body, to put one foot in front of the other. I tried to cake out the fact that I even so couldn't fifty-fifty place my feet on the floor, that they would non practise the things I wanted them to. They just brutal downward, like ii tiny sandbags tumbling out of a wheelbarrow. It was as if they had lost all connection to me."

"To that end, a tiny photographic camera was inserted through my mouth into my throat, and a blue staining liquid was then poured in. I hated it. The nurses could come across my distress and they tried to reassure me. "It'south nothing to fear," said i. "I've tried it." Merely what did she know? She was healthy. She had command of her bodily functions. She could pretend to try. But she was in no danger of choking. When the liquid hitting my pharynx, I felt as though I was drowning."

"I was going abode more than ofttimes and each time was a pocket-size victory. Merely there is something inherently incorrect about visiting your own domicile. Y'all should never have to exercise that: You should simply become habitation. And I had been away for so long that even as I went dorsum more ofttimes, I couldn't help feeling removed from things."

"I came to see that survival here was all about hope, the most of import fuel to our brain-damaged engines. Without it, getting—or being taken—out of bed for another identical day of confusion and failure might have been futile, for both the patients and their relatives. If you woke up with the hope that today was the day you were going to pour yourself a cup of tea, or make a conscious conclusion to get to the breakfast room and consume cereal with your new friends, and then you were on the road to some form of recovery, even if you were never going to exist able to make yourself tea once more or get yourself downwardly to breakfast. But hope was likewise the heaviest burden and 1 that many patients couldn't carry for themselves. My doctor told me that she oftentimes fabricated a contract with her patients to bear it for them, to keep it alive."

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The book's content could have been a horror movie, but information technology was a memoir of Rikke's experience with expiry and recovery. Locked within her trunk and unable to communicate desperately trying to tell her hubby and intendance givers she was however here.
Peter, her married man, would be the person I'd want to advocate for me if I was ever in this position. Knowing his wife so well, the minute nuances of her head and eyes triggered his reaction to the hospital staff which gave him hope and the will to encourage h The book'south content could have been a horror motion picture, simply it was a memoir of Rikke's feel with death and recovery. Locked inside her body and unable to communicate badly trying to tell her hubby and care givers she was nonetheless here.
Peter, her married man, would be the person I'd want to advocate for me if I was always in this position. Knowing his wife then well, the minute nuances of her head and eyes triggered his reaction to the hospital staff which gave him promise and the will to encourage his married woman to keep up the fight.
The sentence from the epilogue on page 210 resonated with me: "We take for granted who we are, but without memories nosotros fade and if we lose control of the memories we have, we lose all sense of who we are."
Many times, Peter had to retell her what happened and why she was in hospital. Like the moving-picture show Groundhog Mean solar day, she had to relive the pain and unknown repeatedly until her encephalon recovered.
I would have to agree without our memories who are we. But and then over again, I must promise as humans we are resilient and accept the power to reinvent ourselves. The downside of reinvention is we leave backside the people who knew u.s. before.
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An exceptionally optimistic sounding audible narrator turned a potentially dreary offering into a lively narrative. I was shocked to find how debilitating and devastating lupus can be. The road to recovery more so. But as a Southward African what shocked me most was the incredible medical care afforded to a sufferer. I take to say that with the Life Esidemeni event fresh in my mind an individual in this status would be lucky to survive. I plant the observations effectually differently ambled indiv An uncommonly optimistic sounding audible narrator turned a potentially dreary offer into a lively narrative. I was shocked to discover how debilitating and devastating lupus can be. The road to recovery more so. Merely as a South African what shocked me most was the incredible medical care afforded to a sufferer. I accept to say that with the Life Esidemeni event fresh in my mind an private in this condition would be lucky to survive. I establish the observations effectually differently ambled individuals at the end to be specially useful. Equally a criticism I would say that the narrative was rather 1-sided and the richness of the ordeal could certainly have been expanded with insights from the family and medical staff. The shattering consequence on the family could be more than a one liner. Guess it is evidence of a world that can compress to complete insular isolation ...more

Oct 10, 2019 Julie rated information technology it was amazing

This is a small book that tells a big story virtually Rikke Schmidt Kjaergaard, a young mother and wife, who within a 24-hour interval or so falls terribly ill with bacterial meningitis, ending up in Intensive Care for weeks. Equally she remains unconscious for weeks, it is her family unit that document what is happening to her and the struggles that staff take to proceed her alive. Although this horrid disease inverse a lot in her life, forcing her to relearn basics like eating and walking again, she was lucky to survive. I This is a modest book that tells a large story about Rikke Schmidt Kjaergaard, a immature mother and wife, who within a mean solar day or so falls terribly sick with bacterial meningitis, ending up in Intensive Treat weeks. As she remains unconscious for weeks, it is her family that certificate what is happening to her and the struggles that staff have to keep her alive. Although this horrid disease changed a lot in her life, forcing her to relearn nuts like eating and walking again, she was lucky to survive. It was a compelling read. ...more

I enjoyed the insights this book provided though some of it was difficult to take as I have recently spent 45 days visiting my husband in the hospital and caring for him in recovery as well as watching my mom progress from full great health to no mobility at all and about complete loss of hearing and now loss of speech due to an undiagnosed illness. Rikke'due south reasearch and sharing of her blackout experiences and hospitialization through her eyes and her family's eyes will, I hope, encourage some changes i I enjoyed the insights this book provided though some of it was hard to take as I have recently spent 45 days visiting my husband in the infirmary and caring for him in recovery as well as watching my mom progress from full great wellness to no mobility at all and almost complete loss of hearing and now loss of oral communication due to an undiagnosed affliction. Rikke's reasearch and sharing of her coma experiences and hospitialization through her eyes and her family'southward eyes will, I hope, encourage some changes in wellness care and the way we treat people and alive our lives. ...more

Oct 04, 2019 Angela rated it it was astonishing

This was a bang-up quick read. It gives a unique perspective into the world of someone that has come out of a coma. I was struck by the difficulty in communication and how hard information technology must have been to fight when yous deceit tell people what you demand. I cant imagine how mentally strong you need to be to keep sane through it all. It also offered advice nosotros tin all apply to our loved ones when they fall ill of annihilation. I would recommend adding this one to your list.

Jan 17, 2020 Kathy rated information technology it was amazing

Quotable:

We take for granted who we are, but without memories we fade and if we lose control of the memories nosotros have, we lose all sense of who we are. Lying there, unable to move, I had to figure out how to put myself back together and as my mind became stronger, I found that I could use my memories as building blocks; placing them advisedly in the right order, i by one, I could remember my own personal history and provide the earth-shaking key to my recovery.

January 11, 2020 Frederick rated it really liked information technology

Rikke did a laudable chore of describing how she felf equally she suffered through the process of her illness and recovery. A reader tin about feel her suffering. If in that location was anything missing it would be more on how she functions day to twenty-four hour period since her recovery. She has accomplished much since her return to her new normal and I would like to hear learn more most that.

Jul 01, 2019 Elizabeth rated information technology actually liked information technology

Articulate and curtailed memoir of a woman who had the power to move her eyes but aught else for several weeks. Fast paced and intriguing. Reminds united states of america to be grateful for what we have today-blemishes and all.

Sep 02, 2019 Linda rated it it was amazing

I really wish I would have had this book bachelor when my brother was dying and in ICU in an induced coma. This is a good read for anyone who has or is going through a potentially terminal illness and I am so glad she wrote it.

Dec 26, 2019 Katrina Beth rated it really liked it

I really enjoyed this book. I found it to be eye-opening and insightful. The author's vocalism was very articulate and enjoyable to read. I did find it to exist a flake repetitive at some points. Mostly in the conclusion. Overall, wonderful. I actually enjoyed this book. I establish it to exist centre-opening and insightful. The author's phonation was very clear and enjoyable to read. I did find it to be a bit repetitive at some points. Mostly in the conclusion. Overall, wonderful. ...more than

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Anne Lamott, the dear writer of memoirs including Bird by Bird and Traveling Mercies, once said, "Y'all ain everything that happened to you....

"Lying awake, listening to the nocturnal sounds of machines and murmurings, I composed my list of physical desires: to feel the basis under my feet, to have the muscles in my legs flex, to feel the weight of the rest of my torso, to put 1 foot in front of the other. I tried to cake out the fact that I still couldn't even identify my feet on the floor, that they would non practise the things I wanted them to. They merely fell down, like two tiny sandbags tumbling out of a wheelbarrow. It was as if they had lost all connection to me." — 1 likes

"To that end, a tiny camera was inserted through my rima oris into my throat, and a blueish staining liquid was then poured in. I hated it. The nurses could see my distress and they tried to reassure me. "It's cipher to fear," said 1. "I've tried it." But what did she know? She was healthy. She had control of her bodily functions. She could pretend to try. But she was in no danger of choking. When the liquid hit my throat, I felt as though I was drowning." — 1 likes

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Source: https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/40974306

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