Almost two years ago Judith Simpson's heart stopped beating – and for a few tense hours it was touch and go for the mother of two.
Simpson (whose name has been changed for privacy) suffered a sudden cardiac arrest not long after developing severe chest pains while on her way to work in Auckland.
"I remember walking in and joking with colleagues, pretending nothing was wrong," she says. But, moments later, as she walked towards reception, she unexpectedly collapsed.
"The last thing I remember seeing was the glass doors closing in front of me. That was my last memory for two hours - when I came to in hospital, I awoke to see six or seven people standing around me and I still had no idea what had happened.
For Simpson, who works as a lecturer in sport leadership and management and has always been fit and healthy, the incident came completely out of the blue. A former A Grade squash player who also played netball and touch, ran marathons and spent almost two years on cycling trips, a cardiac arrest was the last thing she expected to happen.
"The day was like any normal day," she says. "But, without warning, I experienced pretty intense pain in the chest like something was pressing my sternum. I didn't really comprehend the seriousness of what was happening."
Although undergoing tests during the two weeks she was in hospital, the cause of the cardiac arrest remains a mystery.
"My heart decided to stop but we don't know why," she says. "The human body is an incredible machine and too often we take it for granted; we think we know what's ahead of us, but we don't. We should make the most of every day."
Simpson says the cardiac arrest reinforced to her that a medical emergency is unexpected, stressful and can happen to anyone at any time.
"Although you can never be completely prepared for one, having an ambulance membership from the St John Supporter Scheme can take some of the worry away so you can concentrate on the important things like your family and getting better."
Simpson, who had previously been a member of the scheme (it had lapsed at the time of the emergency) re-joined after the cardiac arrest to cover herself and her family. She also decided to offer memberships as a gift to other family members, friends and colleagues.
"I have the utmost appreciation for what our ambulance officers do and my emergency made me realise again the difference I can make by supporting St John for all that they have done for me."
Pip Garrett, the National Supporter Scheme manager for St John New Zealand, says membership provides peace of mind knowing that when an emergency strikes you can concentrate on your health – not the bill.
"If you ever need an ambulance in a medical emergency, St John has a standard call-out fee of $98 per trip," she says. "So, it makes sense to get an annual ambulance membership for $90 that covers your whole family for a year. It also takes away any financial barriers to call 111 as under the scheme members don't pay the call-out fee."
Garrett says any excess funds from the scheme are used by St John to provide new emergency vehicles, lifesaving equipment and to improve the health and wellbeing of New Zealand communities.
Fortunately, Simpson has recovered well and is experiencing no ongoing complications. Since her emergency she has got back to cycling – including a family cycle in December 2020 from Aoraki Mt Cook to Oamaru – and is tempted to start playing squash again.
But mostly she is grateful to have survived. "I remember the first Christmas after I had the attack, I saw a flowering Pohutukawa and thought 'wow' I almost wasn't here to see that. I think the same whenever I see a monarch butterfly."
For more information on the St John Supporter Scheme ambulance membership and how you can join go to: www.stjohn.org.nz/support-us/join-our-supporter-scheme/