Geelong man ‘dies’ 28 minutes after basketball game

In November, Phil Zdibel, 57, was playing basketball in Geelong when he went into cardiac arrest caused by a coronary artery aneurysm. Geelong Advertiser reported.

Mr. Zdybel’s son, Joshua, attended the game and called 911, while the nurse on duty began CPR and others found a defibrillator.

Arriving paramedics rushed Mr. Zdybel to the hospital, where he woke up a few days later.

That’s when the doctors told him that he had been dead for 28 minutes.

He described the experience as “out of body”, feeling like he was watching from above.

He said he was grateful that it happened when he was surrounded by so many people and not doing martial arts or working as a taxi driver for people with disabilities.

Mr. Zdybel said that if it had happened at a different time, “no one would have found me.”

“I am a miracle man,” he said.

He added that he was not going anywhere, saying that he had too much to live for.

“All the little things we worry about are not worth worrying about,” he said.

“Don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t do anything.”

The Geelong man was in the hospital for a week, during which time a stent was placed before he was discharged.

He said he believes his fitness, thanks to the martial arts he was about to give up ahead of a fateful day last year, helped him survive.

Mr. Zdybel recently competed with his son in a martial arts competition, but has shown that although he feels mostly well, he is more tired than before.

He added that he hoped everyone learned CPR as it helped save his life.

Originally published as Geelong man ‘dies’ 28 minutes after basketball game