By Rebecca Chitolie
THIS MAN who died eight times was compared to Wolverine by shocked medics for his “regenerative powers.”
Writer and Producer Evan Hoyt Wasserstrom (48) from New Jersey, US, was 40 years old when he experienced dying eight times as he was getting ready to walk his labrador, Atticus Finch.
Evan first knew something was wrong after returning home from a work meeting on March 28th 2016 and he began to feel burning in his left arm.
He called 911, and luckily an ambulance was close by, because Evan was having a massive “widow-maker” heart attack. When Evan flatlined for the first time, he was in his apartment, answering the door for the paramedics, literally falling into their arms in the doorway. They luckily were there at that exact moment, and revived him in the ambulance out in front of his building and rushed him to the nearby Cedars-Sinai Hospital.
Evan flatlined eight times that day, with the longest flatline being approximately two minutes long. Evan flatlined six times on the way to hospital and was technically dead for 30 to 40 seconds each time. In the emergency ward, Evan flatlined twice more before surgery.
After Evan’s eighth flatline in the ER he then was stabilised, and had surgery with two stents implanted. He was then rushed to the ICU and put in a medically induced coma for five days, and was put on an ECMO machine which assisted his heart to beat. He also had over 20 IV medications pumped through his neck, after his organs began to fail.
After the fifth day of Evan being in a coma, doctors took him off the ECMO machine to see if Evan’s heart could beat on its own and prepared his family for the worst, and to say their goodbyes. Doctors were unsure if Evan would be able to survive, or even able to be rehabilitated. And even if he was, they believed it would take approximately two years for Evan to walk or even talk.
However, amazingly just a few hours later, Evan sprang to life, discombobulated, and thinking he was in a nightmare, he tried to escape ICU believing he was being kidnapped, so the doctors had to restrain him.
Doctors thought it was a miracle in itself that he was able to have the energy to move, let alone needing to be restrained. One doctor said he was like Wolverine, comparing him to the X-Men character because of his super-speed healing ability.
Over the next day Evan’s organs returned to normal levels.
Evan is now friends with the paramedic, Ed who revived him six out of the eight times before reaching the hospital.
After Evan’s heart attack, his family members, including his mom, got themselves checked later in the same year.
It was found that Evan’s mother had 98-99% blockage in three of her arteries, so she was kept in hospital on that day and given triple bypass surgery within three days as the doctors told her she was a “ticking time bomb.”
Evan’s mother, Ellen (76), is now fully recovered and healthy, but if she hadn’t gotten checked due to Evan’s situation, it could’ve been fatal.
“I was getting ready to take my lab, Atticus Finch, for a walk when I felt it. It was like the sun burning inside the veins of my left arm and I was sweating profusely,” said Evan.
“So I dialled 911 for the first time ever.”
“The operator asked what my emergency was. I told her I didn’t know if I was having a heart attack or a severe panic attack.”
“After a few minutes, there was a loud knock at the door, and I opened the door to see a couple of firemen, they asked me if I called 911, I said yes and then everything went black.”
Evan had a massive “widow-maker” heart attack, which happens when you have a 100% blockage in the main artery in your heart. Evan also had a 70% blockage in his second artery.
“The firemen rushed me down the hallway, down the elevator, through my building’s lobby, and out to the ambulance, where they revived me using defibrillators and used a hand compressor,” said Evan.
“En route to the hospital, they revived me six out of the eight times. The paramedic said it was like a ping-pong match, every time they shocked me back to life, I would flatline again for about 30 to 40 seconds.”
“After arriving at Cedars-Sinai Hospital, I died two more times in the ER, for two minutes each, being the 7th and 8th time.”
“Once stabilised, I was rushed into surgery and received two stents.”
“After surgery, I was in a medically induced coma in the ICU. I was hooked up to an ECMO machine, which assists in keeping the heart beating.”
“By the fifth night in the ICU while I was in a coma, the doctors told my family to be prepared for the worst as they were taking me off the machine, to see if my heart could beat on its own. As it was like they were literally pulling the plug.”
“The doctors didn’t believe I would survive, and even if I did, they didn’t think I would be able to be a candidate for rehabilitation, and even if I was, it would take around two years to walk or even talk.”
Evan miraculously sprung to life a few hours after he was taken off the ECMO machine on April 1st, 2016 in the middle of the night, and believed he’d been kidnapped until his mother arrived.
“I woke in a confused panic. A doctor and two nurses asked me what my name was and if I could hear them. I was so discombobulated they had to restrain my wrists and ankles, I thought I had been kidnapped,” said Evan.
“Eventually, my mom was brought into the room. Seeing her calmed me down enough to realise I was in the hospital. I grabbed her arm and told her, “Mom, I don’t want to die!”
“But she replied, “You’re not going to die. You already did.”
Evan had the quickest recovery on record at his hospital, since after a day and a half of being in the ICU, he was moved to a regular hospital room, which he only stayed in for three more days before going home.
“I had to do physical therapy three times a week for the next two months after that to recover,” said Evan.
“I learned that the paramedic, Ed, who revived me six out of the eight times that day in the ambulance, was covering for someone else, as he was stationed at a different firehouse in Los Angeles, so I met up with him and we instantly became friends.”
“He also confided in me that he was considering leaving his job since he had worked there for ten years at the time, but him reviving me inspired him enough to stay in the job. It gave him a whole new perspective on his work.”
“I can still get tied up in the stresses of life like everyone else, but try to meditate and take time to enjoy things and take breathers.”
“I’ve always thought of myself as a kind person, but since the incident, I have been overly exuberant, whether it’s reaching out to help other people through helping an elderly person on the street or mentoring people in writing.”
Evan’s mother got checked after worrying about her son.
“They said to her, you were a ticking time bomb,” said Evan.
“She had 98-99% blockage in three of her arteries, so she went in on a Friday and they kept her in the hospital over the weekend, as she needed surgery on Monday. She had a triple bypass surgery that Monday morning.”
“They said your son’s case saved your life.”
ENDS
