The Blink of an Eye

My Rating: ★★★★

Publisher: The Experiment

Release Date: May 14, 2019

Genre: Memoirs

At the age of 38, Danish scientist Rikke Schmidt Kjærgaard is struck down by an acute bout of bacterial meningitis. Weeks later, she wakes from a coma in intensive care to find herself “locked in,” unable to show she is conscious except by blinking her eyes. Despite a mere 5 percent chance of survival, she makes a miraculous recovery and returns to the world—painfully learning how to breathe, move, eat, and speak again, even resume her work as a scientist. The Blink of an Eye is a celebration of love, family, and every little thing that matters when life is in the balance—by a writer uniquely positioned to describe the journey from death back to life.

My Review ♥️

In the blink of an eye everything can change. One moment your life is moving along, going through your normal routine, living your life. Then you blink. What once was is gone and you are plunged into an unimaginable nightmare that you can't wake up from, quickly becoming trapped inside your own body, the only movement that you can control is a blink. It sounds like a scene from a psychological thriller but this was realty for scientist Rikke Schmidt Kjaergaard on New Years day in 2013.

The whole day Rikke had been feeling off but she chalked it up to the New Years Eve festivities from the night before but as the day wore on Rikke got worse and worse. Her doctor was called to the house later that evening and she was diagnosed with the flu but her symptoms went from bad to worse at an incredibly rapid rate.

She couldn't get warm no matter how many blankets were piled on her, every bit of light pierced her eyes like needles, and her fever was increasing and then dropping at rapid rates. Rikke couldn't hold anything down and couldn't control anything coming out of her body. By morning, everything that was coming out of her body was thick and black. When she started to become paralyzed her husband and doctor knew this was a serious situation and she was rushed to the emergency room. If they would've waited any longer Rikke would not have survived.

The Blink of an Eye is Rikke's point of view during the entire horrific ordeal that completely changed her life. When Rikke was 20 she was diagnosed with systemic lupus erythematosus or SLE. She believed she had her disorder under control but all it took was one attack of bacterial meningitis to almost kill her.

You can feel Rikke's scientific background come through the pages, as well as the anguish and heartbreak that she felt. There are parts that were hard for me to read and brought tears to my eyes. I cannot even begin to imagine what Rikke and her family had to endure.

Though Rikke has a lot of battle scars, she lived to tell the tale which is a miracle in and of itself. I closed the book thankful for my life and felt empowered to face the medical issues I am currently facing. If Rikke can fight so can I! Painful, yet so powerful - The Blink of an Eye is a must read!

*I received a complimentary copy of this book from The Experiment through NetGalley in exchange for an honest, unbiased review. All opinions are my own.