I was dead for minutes - but there was no 'light at the end of the tunnel'

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Kevin was rushed to hospital in 2021 after complaining of puffy legs from water retention.

He spent a year there under medical care and caught a rare case of calciphylaxis, an disease in which calcium accumulates in small blood vessels of the fat and skin tissues.

Kevin explained that his condition caused his dead skin to erode the live skin, causing blinding pain.

He had the condition for months and said his skin was 'eating away' at him.

The 56-year-old lost five pints of blood as a result and his heart stopped.

"I had three days where my legs were bleeding out - it just wouldn't stop," he added.

During an emergency operation he claims he died and came back to life.

He said: "I knew I had died... I wasn't looking down at my body, but I was separate from my body."

The writer apparently watched medical stuff rush to stop the bleeding and save him during the surreal experience.

"I knew I was bleeding. I knew it was serious. The staff kept coming in and out to stop the bleeding."

And despite there being "no light" at the end of the tunnel, as some describe, Kevin said he felt at peace.

"It was like I was in the spirit realm - I was conscious of what was going on but I had so much peace.

"Then I just went to sleep and I woke up, alive and the bleeding had stopped.

"I knew it wasn't my time to die. The situation has made me refocus my priorities."

Since leaving the hospital, Kevin said his experience was life-changing.

"When I came out of the hospital my family atmosphere changed dramatically.

"I have become more resilient. I know I can bounce back."

What is calciphylaxis and what causes it?

CALCIPHYLAXIS is the term used for a condition called calcific uraemicarteriolopathy, the NHS states.

It's a chronic condition that occurs as a result of a build-up of calcium and phosphate in the small arteries of the body.

Guidance states that this build up can cause a brittle, chalky material to form that can often look like bone.

The condition is very rare and at the moment there is no cure.

The cause of the disease is still relatively unknown but researchers say it is thought to be a combination of the following:

• calcium imbalance in the body
• phosphate imbalance in the body
• Parathyroid hormone imbalance in the body (the parathyroid is a gland that controls calcium levels)

People who have it will often have pain and itchy areas of skin around their stomach, this is caused by inflammation, the NHS states.

Doctors first discovered that Kevin's heart valve had two parts instead of three, causing the sever water retention.

It was after an operation on the valve in 2022 that he caught calciphylaxis.

It is a rare condition that only one in five people are diagnosed with.

He was luckily able to return home to his wife Camille, and made an impressive recovery.

In March last year he said: "I am in the final stages of recovery. In my right leg, I still have some pain but it is not near the level it used to be - I would cry for hours.

"My pain level used to be 100 out of 10 and now it had dropped to a four.

"Everyone said I should be dead," he added.

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