US woman shares 24-minute 'clinical death' experience; read in detail
PTC Web Desk: Lauren Canaday, an author from the US, recounted a life-altering incident where she lost consciousness for 24 minutes and was declared "clinically dead" after her heart stopped beating. During an 'Ask Me Anything' session on Reddit, she detailed waking up with no memory of the last week after being resuscitated, expressing gratitude to her husband for initiating CPR promptly.
Lauren Canaday said, "I experienced sudden cardiac arrest at home in February—my husband's quick response with CPR and the arrival of EMTs after 24 minutes saved me. Following nine days in the ICU, I was deemed 'cognitively intact' without visible brain damage on MRIs."
Hi, I was clinically dead for 24 minutes. Ask me anything!byu/Ok_Tomatillo9830 inIAmA
Reddit users sought details about her immediate experience post-collapse and the subsequent tests. She mentioned her electroencephalogram results returning normal, despite experiencing a 30-minute epileptic seizure post-resuscitation.
"My husband performed CPR for 4 minutes, guided by the operator, despite not being certified recently. Fortunately, swift EMT arrival aided in using paddles after 4 minutes," she added.
In response to a query, Lauren Canaday attributed her cardiac arrest to Covid complications, as she tested positive upon ICU admission.
Canaday's case, categorised as the Lazarus effect or autoresuscitation in clinical terms, represents a rare phenomenon where a patient declared dead from cardiac arrest shows signs of life, resembling a return from death despite never fully passing away.
New York Post highlighted the rarity of Canaday's case, noting that most individuals don't survive long after such an incident. Out of 65 documented cases from 1982 to 2018, only 18 recovered fully.
She described an overwhelming sense of "extreme peace" lingering for a few weeks post-recovery, clarifying that she didn't witness her life flashing before her eyes, a symptom often described by many in similar situations.
- With inputs from agencies
