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Unlike many TV and movie depictions of the condition, being in a coma is a very serious condition that can have long-lasting effects. Most comas do not last more than a few weeks, but some people are stuck in one for months or years. The longer a person is in a coma, the less likely they are to wake up. While the time spent in the coma may differ, the stories of these people waking up are quite remarkable.
10. Sam Carter
In 2008, 60-year-old retired baker Sam Carter had fallen into a coma from severe anemia, which occurs when a person’s red blood cell count gets too low or the blood lacks hemoglobin. In the hospital in Staffordshire, England, Carter had been in a coma for three days, and he was given a 30 percent chance of recovering. The doctor suggested to his wife that she should play some music for him. His wife got a set of headphones and put them on her husband, playing the Rolling Stones classic “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction.” Amazingly, once the song was played, Sam opened his eyes.
Sam says that the song gave him a new energy and pulled him out of the coma. He doesn’t remember much from the coma, but he remembered hearing that song. The song also had special meaning to him as it was the first single he ever bought when he was 17 years old. He said it gave him the push he needed to wake up.
9. Sarah Thomson
In early 2012, 32-year-old Sarah Thomson got a blood clot on her brain, and it ultimately led to her being in a coma for 10 days. When she awoke, she thought it was the year 1998. She thought that her favorite band, the Spice Girls, were still together, and she didn’t know Michael Jackson was dead.
More importantly, she didn’t recognize her children or husband. In 1998, Thomson was 19 years old, had just given birth to her first son, and was still with her ex. So, when her children came in, she was expecting that her eldest would be a baby. Instead, he was 14 years old. She didn’t even remember the other two children. As for her husband, she thought he was someone who worked at the hospital.
Outside of the hospital, Sarah acted like a teenager. She threw tantrums and was rebellious. She listened to loud rock music and dyed her hair wild colors. She said it took a while, but she is readjusting to her life and has re-fallen in love with her husband.
8. Ben McMahon, Sandra Ralic, and Michael Boatwright
Growing up in Australia, Ben McMahon learned French and Mandarin but was never fluent in them. In 2012, he was in a car accident which left him comatose for a week. Doctors said he would be lucky if he survived. He beat the odds and woke up but, oddly, he only spoke Mandarin and couldn’t speak English. He could also write in Mandarin.
Eventually, Ben regained the ability to speak English but didn’t lose the ability to speak Mandarin. Ben still lives in Shanghai, where he attended school and gave walking tours of the city. In fact, his Mandarin is so good it impresses native speakers, and he is the host of a TV show in Shanghai.
While that almost sounds too wild to believe, it’s actually happened to other people. Thirteen-year-old Sandra Ralic, from Kinn, Croatia, was studying German, and she had just started reading German books and watching German television shows but wasn’t fluent in it. Then, she was in a coma for 24 hours. When she came out of the coma, she could only speak in German, and couldn’t speak in her native tongue.
Finally, there is the amazing story of American Michael Boatwright. He woke up in a hospital bed in California speaking Swedish and claiming his name was actually Johan Ek.
Boatwright had lived in Sweden and had a Swedish girlfriend in the past. While many urban legends discuss people waking up from a coma speaking a brand new language, it is not a medically recognized phenomenon. However, people can lose the ability to speak their primary language while retaining access to a secondary language that they already know to some degree. It’s speculated that they seem more fluent in the second language afterward because they no longer default to the first one.
7. Fred Hersch
Fred Hersch, a distinguished and prolific contemporary jazz pianist, relocated to New York City in 1977 at the age of 21. In the early 1990s, he publicly disclosed his diagnosis of AIDS.
In 2008, the disease severely impacted Hersch's health, leading to the development of HIV-related dementia, from which he eventually recovered. Later that year, he experienced critically low blood oxygen levels, resulting in septic shock. As his organs began to fail, Hersch fell into a coma, remaining unconscious for two months before awakening. Following this, he required a feeding tube for eight months.
The ten months spent bedridden significantly affected his physical health and motor skills. Over the subsequent year, Hersch dedicated himself to physical therapy and continued practicing the piano. Remarkably, playing the piano served as a motivational tool for his recovery. By 2010, he had returned to performing. Researchers found it noteworthy that Hersch recalled eight dreams from his coma and composed the 90-minute concert 'My Coma Dreams' based on these memories. While coma dreams are known to be vivid, Columbia University's Dr. Rita Charon noted that words alone cannot fully capture the experience of a coma dream. Music may provide deeper insights into the mysteries of coma and unconscious thought.
6. Jarrett Carland
On August 16, 2009, 17-year-old Jarrett Carland and his best friend were involved in a tragic car accident. His best friend lost his life, and Carland was left in a persistent vegetative state. Doctors were doubtful of his recovery, indicating a slim chance of him ever regaining consciousness.
During his therapy, part of Carland’s treatment involved listening to music. While other patients in his care center listened to calm and soothing tunes, Jarrett's parents played the country music legend Charlie Daniels' song, 'The Devil Went Down to Georgia.' After four months in a coma, this song triggered a reaction, and slowly, Jarrett began to awaken. Six months later, Jarrett had the opportunity to meet Charlie Daniels at the Riverbend Music Festival in Chattanooga, Tennessee. His family remains hopeful for a full recovery.
5. Munira Abdulla
In 1991, Munira Abdulla was involved in a car accident while driving her son, Omar Webair, home from school in the United Arab Emirates. Munira, aged 32, sustained severe brain injuries, while her son only had minor bruises. Despite numerous treatments at hospitals across the UAE, the UK, and Germany, doctors were certain she would never regain consciousness.
However, in an extraordinary turn of events, Munira woke up in June 2018. Her family shared her story to inspire others with loved ones in long-term comas. Munira had been receiving therapy at the Schoen Clinic in Bad Aibling, Germany, where she regained consciousness after months of treatment. When she first arrived, the only signs of movement were her eyes, which could track people and objects.
Omar Webair, 32, was overjoyed when his mother, Munira Abdulla, began making sounds after 27 years in a coma. Soon, she was speaking his name, greeting doctors in Arabic, and reciting Quran verses. 'I never gave up on her because I always had a feeling that one day she will wake up,' said Omar.
Munira Abdulla is still recovering but can now communicate her basic needs and feelings. She now lives in Abu Dhabi.
4. Gary Dockery
Gary Dockery was 33 years old when he was one of two officers from the Walden, Tennessee police department called to a domestic disturbance on September 17, 1988. When he approached the house, he was shot once in the head. The other officer did CPR and called an ambulance. Medics got him to the hospital, and doctors were forced to perform a surgery that removed 20 percent of his brain. However, it was too risky to remove the bullet or the skull fragments. Dockery lay in a vegetative state for over seven years.
On February 11, 1996, Gary Dockery's family was discussing his medical options, contemplating whether to proceed with surgery to remove fluid from his lungs or to let him pass away. It was during this conversation that Gary began to speak.
Over the next 18 hours, Gary engaged in conversations with his family, recognizing them and recalling memories from his past, such as the names of his horses and camping trips. He was eager to attend the annual camping trip the following year. However, he did not remember the shooting incident and was unaware of the time that had elapsed.
After these 18 hours, Gary's speech diminished, though he became more aware and was learning to use a motorized wheelchair. Tragically, just a year after speaking, Gary passed away from a blood clot in his lung on April 15, 1997.
3. Haleigh Poutre
At the age of four, Haleigh Poutre was removed from her mother's care and placed with her Aunt Holli. She lived with her aunt, her aunt’s then-husband Jason Strickland, and three other children for years before Holli formally adopted her. Despite multiple reports to Massachusetts social services between September 2001 and September 2002 about Haleigh’s condition, where she was often found bruised and neglected, the situation continued. Holli claimed that Haleigh simply bruised herself.
On September 11, 2005, when Haleigh was 11, she was rushed to the hospital after losing consciousness. The doctors discovered that her brain had been so severely damaged that it resembled the impact from a high-speed crash. The extent of her injuries left her in a coma, and doctors feared she would never regain consciousness. On September 20, both Holli and Jason Strickland were arrested for assault. After being released on bail, Holli visited her grandmother, where they made a suicide pact, leading to her grandmother shooting Holli, then herself.
With Strickland now the only one facing assault charges, the state moved to remove Haleigh from life support. As her stepfather, Strickland filed a petition to become her 'de facto' parent, hoping to keep her on life support. He argued that if Haleigh died, he would face murder charges.
The state prevailed, and Haleigh was taken off life support on January 18, 2008. Miraculously, she began breathing on her own and responding to commands. Over time, she regained the ability to smile, wave, and say a few words, though she remained in a wheelchair. She now communicates mainly through a letter board attached to her wheelchair. Astonishingly, after two years, Haleigh was able to testify at Strickland’s trial. Although Holli was considered the mastermind, Strickland was sentenced to 12–15 years in prison in November 2008.
Haleigh’s case led to significant changes in how social services in Massachusetts handle abuse allegations. In September 2010, at 16, Haleigh was adopted by her foster parents, Keith and Becky Arnett, after spending two years in their care.
2. Terry Wallis
In July 1984, 19-year-old Terry Wallis and his friend were involved in a severe car accident when their vehicle plunged into a creek. His friend was killed, and Terry, who was found the next day, was left in a coma. His family, including his wife and six-week-old daughter, took care of him as the world continued on for 19 years.
That was until June 11, 2003, when Terry first started talking. The first thing he said was “Mom” when he saw his mother. It was followed by “Pepsi” and then “milk,” and eventually, it got to the point where he was speaking in full sentences. His memories were good, but he was completely unaware of how much time had passed, and he had a hard time grasping that it was 2003. In the past 19 years, so much had changed. To him, Ronald Reagan was president, but when he woke up, a second Bush had been elected. He missed the whole Clinton administration. He missed the September 11 attacks and the ensuing war in Iraq, just to name a few.
Wallis was left paralyzed from the crash but talks fairly coherently and in full sentences. Doctors are unsure why he woke up, but he has been studied quite a bit because of his unique story. Doctors believed that over the 19 years, Terry’s brain essentially rewired itself. Once there were enough connections, it made his brain “wake up.”
1. Sarah Scantlin
In 1984, Sarah Scantlin was an energetic 18-year-old college freshman with a zest for life. Popular and attractive, Sarah had many friends, and she was the leader of her dance group in college. On September 21, Sarah was leaving a bar in Hutchinson, Kansas and, while crossing the road, a car hit her, knocking her into oncoming traffic.
The drunk driver fled the scene without stopping. Her skull was crushed when a second car hit her, but she was still alive. She was taken to the hospital, and her head injuries were extensive; the only thing she could do on her own was breathe. She was in a coma for a month. Her parents chose to keep her alive, even being told that she would probably never wake up again. Sarah was moved into a nursing home in April 1985.
In the nursing home, Sarah learned to swallow so she could eat without a feeding tube. The staff also tried to get her to communicate with blinks; she did occasionally, but for the most part, she was unresponsive. After being in the hospital for 16 years, an employee at the nursing home, Pat Rincon, worked on trying to get Sarah to communicate, even though she wasn’t trained in speech therapy.
Every day for four years, Rincon would work with Sarah and encourage her whenever she made a noise. A year after Rincon started working with her, Sarah began screaming. She would use these screams to communicate. For instance, she screamed when her parents were leaving her or when the television was on the wrong channel.
On January 12, 2005, Sarah said her first word since her skull was crushed. Pat was reading a story to Sarah when another patient interrupted them. Pat told the patient she would be with them shortly if that was okay. Then Sarah repeated the word 'okay.' After nearly two decades of existing between a coma and reality, Sarah was talking again. After a month of working with her, Sarah called her mom and dad at home, who were overwhelmed to hear their daughter's voice once more.
Due to the injuries she sustained in the accident and the prolonged period in the coma, Sarah’s body was significantly affected, and she now relies on a wheelchair. She can only speak a few words at a time but has found ways to communicate with others. Despite being almost 40 years old when she emerged from the coma, Sarah believes she is still a 19-year-old teenager.
