West Sussex businessman who was one of the first Covid patients to be put into a coma writes a book about his survival experience
A West Sussex businessman who became a Covid research champion has written a book about his experience, after surviving as one of the first people infected with the virus to be put into an induced coma.
Laurence Penn from Thakeham was infected in early March 2020, before the lockdown, and Covid hit him hard, despite him being a pretty fit 54-year-old at the time with no underlying health conditions.
His book Bed No.1 From Coma to Cycling: The Resilient Recovery of a Covid Survivor tells the story of his battle with Covid-19 and the lives of the people who helped him fight the deadly virus sweeping the globe.
Laurence said: "I’ve always thrown myself into physical challenges. Even in my mid-50s I felt very fit. I needed to be, with the amount of travelling around the globe that I was doing for my work in the world of IT-managed services, running a large, international sales team. That was before the pandemic.
"I have written the book about my experiences and recovery from Covid in 2020. This true story will share my glimpse of death, and show the resilience, love, skill and selflessness of the NHS teams that lived and worked through my nightmare."
As managing director of Hove-based Employment International, Laurence did not give Covid much thought when he visited Dubai in December 2019 and again in February 2020. Unfortunately, he had a meeting with a colleague who it later transpired had the virus.
Laurence said: "Two weeks later, I began to go downhill as the virus made its way through my respiratory system, slowly shutting me down. Oxygen seemed harder and harder to come by.
"The NHS 111 service triggered the emergency services. I was whisked away to hospital where the story begins. I was one of the first people to be put into an induced coma – into Bed Number 1 in Worthing Hospital’s ICU."
Laurence spent 29 days in a coma. Sadly, during the time he was in intensive care, there were around 120 other patients who did not survive.
Being taken out of the coma in May was a 'very strange experience accompanied by bizarre dreams and hallucinations’.
Laurence had lost more than two stones during his time in hospital. His vocal cords were damaged, so he could hardly speak, and his heart raced with the slightest exercise.
He had spent 47 days in Worthing Hospital and even after leaving, there was still a long journey to recovery, including physiotherapy and speech and language therapy.
Exactly a year after he was put into a coma, Laurence completed the South Downs Way challenge in just one day, on March 31, 2021, and raised thousands of pounds to provide mental health and wellbeing support for staff at the hospital.
Laurence, 59, has also given back to the NHS by taking part in Covid-19 research, using smartwatch technology to help analysts observe the recovery of patients who were hospitalised in critical care with Covid-19.
More information about the book can be found at www.bednumberone.com and orders can be made online there.