Fabrice Muamba

All the news of poor Fabrice collapsing on the football pitch yesterday resonates very deeply with me.

2 years ago mid February I received 40+ missed calls from my older sister. I eventually picked up at 0345. She was calling to tell me her (32 yo) husband had had a cardiac arrest and was fighting for his life in hospital. My dad came down to tell me also. So I threw a suitcase together and started the hour's journey north to go and look after my nephew.

It was an agonising week of him being in intensive care. The doctors told us to prepare for him never waking up and also if he did, there'd be a strong possibility of brain damage. My sister kept a vigil at his bedside morning, noon and night. I did visit the hospital but admittedly was not very brave and lasted 20 seconds in the intensive care unit.

Thankfully he did wake up but was clearly very poorly. He had no idea where he was and whilst talking gibberish he remained his polite and articulate self.

As for the cause? This is the £6m question. The cardiac arrest was not a heart attack. It was nothing to do with blocked arteries or an unhealthy lifestyle. Nothing hereditary either. The consultants think that it was a condition he'd had all his life & just happened during that fateful night in February.

The reason he made a recovery was down to the 20 minutes of CPR my sister carried out on him until the ambulance arrived.

She saved his life.

This whole episode isn't over. He has a pacemaker fitted, they never really got to the bottom of the causes let alone the full solution, so my sister and her husband live with this every day. He's now just 34.

A few things to note here:
*Everyone should do First Aid
*The NHS are pretty amazing
*Live every day as if it's your last
*Give love and thanks to those that mean the most to you

All my thoughts are with Fabrice's family, as it is a truly agonising time.

Much love 💗
Kate x