What Is It Like To Be In A Coma? Teen Says She Was Aware Of Everything Around Her [Video]
A California teen suffering from cystic fibrosis was placed into a medically-induced coma for two weeks to help battle a severe infection. During her time in the coma, 18-year-old Claire Wineland says she was aware of everything around her. However, her brain processed that awareness in a hallucinogenic way that manifested itself in a trip to Alaska. The teen says she spent her two week coma “in Alaska” with icy air and beautiful scenery.
The video was uploaded to Claire’s YouTube channel, The Clairity Project, which chronicles the teen’s life with cystic fibrosis. In her most popular video, Claire discusses what it was like to be placed in a medically-induced coma. The teen points out that despite being heavily sedated, she was still completely aware of everything around her.
“And when you’re in a coma you’re still here, you’re aware of everything around you, but it goes through his weird filter thing in your brain, it goes through the drugs. It turns into something else when it hits your consciousness.”
According to the Daily Mail, Claire was placed in a two-week medically-induced coma after she suffered a severe and life-threatening infection. As part of the treatment to battle a extremely high fever, doctors placed ice packs around the teen’s body. Claire says somewhere in her brain she must have related the cold ice packs to Alaska. Therefore, Claire found herself traipsing across the beautiful Alaskan terrain as she breathed in the icy air. Claire says she was aware she was cold but didn’t mind because it was so beautiful in Alaska.
“I’ve never been to Alaska or shown any interest in Alaska. But somewhere in my sleep I kept going to Alaska and there were pine trees and cones and I was staring at the most beautiful scenery, and there was a little deer in the corner. It would be freezing cold and I wouldn’t care.”
Claire says she was also aware of people talking in the room. She says at one point her stepmother and grandmother were talking and she imaged they were all three gossiping in a log cabin together. Claire says that in her dream-state she remembers joining in on the conversation, but in reality she was lying in the hospital bed. Clair says that is the strangest part of the ordeal, having that very real experience but knowing it was all a hallucination.
Despite it all being an elaborate and realistic dream, Claire says she has gained a love of Alaska and realize through the process the people in her life that she truly loves and cares about. What do you think about Claire’s strange account while being placed in a medically-induced coma?
[Image Credit: YouTube]
