
But Dr Alexander himself contracted a most rare form of bacterial meningitis and his brain went into shut down. He was in a coma for seven full days. His body worked, but his brain was dead. After six days his condition was so critical that his family was told that there was a 97% mortality rate, and those few who survived would be in a persistent vegetative state. But he bounced back and eventually recovered. While he was in the coma he had a most vivid and memorable NDE. That story is remarkable, but the book is worth reading simply to go through the amazingly rare illness and miraculous recovery that he experienced.