Case Study: Nina - "My first memory was someone saying I’d had a cardiac arrest"

Nina Wallace with her husband with Air Ambulance team.

Nina and her husband, Jon, pictured with the ambulance and air ambulance crews who treated her.

On a Friday evening in February 2023, Nina Wallace, 63, and her husband Jon, 67, were watching Happy Valley at home in Warsash. Married for nearly 40 years, they had no idea their evening was about to take a dramatic turn.

At around 10pm, Nina began feeling hot, clammy and unwell. She headed to the bathroom to cool down. When Jon went to check on her, he found her collapsed on the floor. “I didn’t know what was happening,” says Jon. “I’d never seen anything like it.”

He called neighbour Julia for help and called the emergency services. Whilst on the call, Nina briefly sat up before collapsing again - her skin had turned a greyish-blue. She was in cardiac arrest.

The emergency services call handler instructed Jon to start CPR immediately. Once Jon started, he did not stop until the ambulance crew arrived 12 minutes later. Paramedics shocked her heart five times before it started beating again.

Due to the severity of the situation, the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Air Ambulance team was dispatched to assist. During the journey to University Hospital Southampton, Nina went into cardiac arrest two more times with paramedics successfully resuscitating her each time.

My first memory was someone saying I’d had a cardiac arrest. I told them, ‘Don’t be so bloody stupid,’ and went back to sleep. I couldn't believe it.

Nina Wallace, cardiac arrest survivor

Nina suffered six cracked ribs and a fractured sternum from CPR. She was fitted with two stents and an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) to help regulate her heart rhythm.

Recovery has been challenging - Nina continues to experience fatigue and brain fog but she’s grateful to be alive and celebrates every day.

She added: “I’m the 1 in 10 who survive an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. I’ve seen my grandson Arthur born, watched my son get married, and celebrated our ruby wedding anniversary. I wouldn’t have had those moments without the people who saved me.”

For every minute without CPR and defibrillation, the chance of survival drops by 10%. Nina encourages everyone to learn the skills to help save a life in the ultimate medical emergency.