Kristine Holm-Johnsen (46) from Lørenskog had a scary experience in May 2022. She suddenly became very ill, and her life hung in the balance.
It started with her contracting pneumonia, which caused her to have major breathing problems.
– I have arthritis, and am on immunosuppressive medication. That means I get really sick when I first get sick. And when I got pneumonia in May last year, things started to go really wrong, says Kristine to Dagbladet.
After two days of pneumonia, she sent a message to her parents. “Could you please look after the dog, I have to go to the emergency room”.
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Kristine’s story was first mentioned by Romerikes Blad.
Put in a coma
Kristine was quickly sent on to the hospital. She herself says that her CRP readings were sky high. CRP measures whether you have inflammation in the body, and the normal range for pneumonia is 80 to 200 milligrams per litre, writes Norway’s Health Informatics. Kristine claims she had values over 600.
– I was taken in an ambulance straight to the deacon’s home. There I was told that they had to put me in a coma. Mum said I wasn’t taking it very well and screamed that it couldn’t happen. But that was what they had to do, otherwise I would have died, says Kristine.
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And while Kristine lay in a coma, unaware of what actually happened, the fight for survival began.
Had to take action
After several days on a ventilator, doctors found that her lungs were still not improving. They had to do something.
– They made the decision to move me to Rikshospitalet to put me on an ECMO machine. Briefly explained, this means that they connect me to a machine that takes my blood from the body, adds oxygen to it, and pumps it back, explains Kristine.
This is ECMO treatment
ECMO treatment takes place with the help of a modified heart-lung machine which is connected via plastic tubes to large blood vessels in the body. The machine can be used to relieve a failing heart and/or lungs in both adults and children.
Source: Oslo University Hospital
Slowly but surely, her lungs began to function again. After seven days, they were able to end the ECMO treatment, according to Kristine. And when she was back on a ventilator at the Deacon Home, she was finally to be woken up.
– Cry
– It took several days to wake me up, but I finally woke up. I remember it so well. Because it was absolutely awesome.
When Kristine woke up, she had lost 15 kilos in three weeks. She was still on the ventilator when she woke up, in a state of panic, unaware that this was the new reality.
– It was quite scary, because I had no idea if I had gone well. But when the intensive care nurse saw that I had woken up, I was quickly told that I was going to make a full recovery. It was so good to hear, says Kristine.
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But it wasn’t going to be an easy way back. Because Kristine was very weak, and she says herself that she had no muscles left.
– There was an episode in the hospital that I remember well. I tried to put a bow in my hair, but I didn’t have the strength to do it once. Then I began to cry in despair. I didn’t know a human body could become so weak. I realized it was going to be a long way back.
– Kept going crazy
When Kristine was discharged from the hospital, she moved to her parents’ home for a period. She describes them as absolutely wonderful, and points out that she is so grateful for their help and love.
– But at the same time I was suddenly living at home with mum and dad. As a 45-year-old! I was going crazy myself, laughs Kristine.
A final greeting: – In my mother’s spirit
She says that her mother is a doctor, and knew how important it was that she ate enough. Kristine recalls several episodes where she could hardly eat any food because it hurt her so much, after several weeks of tube feeding.
– But then mum was there and showed “tough love”. She sat in front of me and refused to leave until I had eaten my food. And slowly but surely it became easier to eat, and I noticed that my fingers started to tingle again. Now I had to get back to myself, and that meant crossfit training, says Kristine full of enthusiasm.
– Focuses on the positive
There is little doubt about what Kristine is passionate about. She is a member of CrossFit Lørenskog, which she praises to the skies during the interview. It is there that Kristine found a large part of herself, and she says that it has been fantastic to train there on the way back.
– There are just such wonderful people there. My personal trainer, Mathias, has been helping me back day by day. We started training with 20 kilo deadlifts when I finally got back to the gym. Imagine that! It’s just the rod, really, says Kristine.
RECORD: Here, Kristine sets a personal record for the deadlift. One year after she was in a coma. All Photo: Valgerdur Björnsdottir
She says that it was a hard fight to get back in shape, especially with the arthritis, in addition to a chronic fatigue syndrome.
While the now 46-year-old Kristine was still on the immunosuppressive medication, she worked out at the gym. This despite the fact that she was aware that places where there are many people could be more risky for her.
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– I’m in pain almost all the time, with the arthritis. But I have chosen to focus on the positive. When you’ve almost died once, you want to live a long time, and then I have to stay fit.
Kristine proudly says that now, just one year after she was unable to get out of bed, she has been pushing herself in the gym, and has managed to lift 105 kilograms in the deadlift.
– I feel so lucky. In the hospital, the parents and nurses were there for me. They really looked after me. When I came out, the parents, friends, and those at the gym were there. I would not have recovered without them. And for that I am incredibly grateful.
2023-07-10 06:05:43
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