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BORIS Johnson described the chilling moment when he looked death in the face and admitted, “I am a very lucky man.”
He said he was in denial about his health for more than a week after testing positive for coronavirus, and that he was not overly concerned even when ordered to go to the hospital.
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But the harsh reality of his plight quickly came home when he was hooked up to the monitors and transferred to intensive care.
The prime minister told The Sun on Sunday that “the bloody indicators were still going in the wrong direction” and realized that there was no cure for Covid-19.
He added: “I realized that he was getting very serious and I remember saying to myself,” How am I going to get out of this? “
In a lengthy and emotional interview, the Prime Minister gives a graphic account of his darkest hours at the mercy of the killer virus.
Johnson, speaking publicly for the first time about his brush with death, reveals how:
- He was going through “liters and liters” of oxygen before being taken to intensive care;
- Doctors faced a “50-50” decision on whether to place it on a ventilator;
- Contingency plans were drawn up on how to announce his death;
- Despite his deterioration, he refused to accept that he would die;
- Even now, he can’t fathom how the “awesome” NHS heroes managed to save him.
Sitting in his office at 10 Downing Street, Johnson sprouted as he relived the extraordinary two weeks in which he almost lost his own life, but recovered in time to see the birth of another: his new son Wilfred.
He said: “To be honest, the doctors had all kinds of plans on what to do if things went wrong.
“It wasn’t in a particularly bright shape because the oxygen levels in my blood kept dropping.
“But it was thanks to a wonderful and wonderful breastfeeding that I succeeded. They really did and made a big difference.
“I can’t explain how it happened. I don’t know… It was wonderful to see the…”
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Her voice falters as her eyes redden and she stops to breathe deeply.
He continues: “I am excited about it. . . but it was something extraordinary. “
Johnson, 55, admits he initially ignored how serious he was when he tested positive for coronavirus in late March.
He isolated himself on the floor on Downing Street, separated from pregnant fiancé Carrie Symonds, but continued to work at full speed.
The Prime Minister recalled: “The point was that I was in denial because I was working and I continued to do these meetings via video link.
“But I really felt pretty groggy, to be totally honest with you. I felt pretty wasted, not in an intoxicated way, but just, you know, pretty rough. “
Then he suddenly stops and asks, “Have you had this? Well I don’t get it. You don’t want it. He wasn’t struggling to breathe, but he wasn’t in good shape and he wasn’t improving.
“So the doctors were anxious because they thought my readings were not where they wanted them to be.
I realized that he was getting very serious and I remember saying to myself: ‘How am I going to get out of this?
Boris Johnson
“So they said I had to go to St. Thomas.” I said I really didn’t want to go to the hospital.
“It didn’t seem like a good move, but they were pretty firm. Looking back, they were right to force me to go.
“I had the most fantastic attention. It was impressive to see how they cared for people and I was very lucky.”
Johnson made the short trip to the hospital across Westminster Bridge along with his two protection officers.
After a quick evaluation, they put oxygen on him and placed a tube under his nose.
But it soon became apparent that he needed more, so they gave him a great face mask. Events worsened and became “a little scary” when he was transferred to intensive care the next day.
The Prime Minister explained: “There was a stage when they gave me enough oxygen.
“Then they gave me a mask and my intake became quite substantial. I was spending liters and liters of oxygen for a long time.
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“But things started to deteriorate on Monday. I realized that he was getting serious when I was transferred to intensive care.
“I was fully aware and very aware of what was happening. The bad time came when I was 50-50 if they were going to have to put a tube in my windpipe. It was then that he got a little. . . “
He paused to breathe again and a haunted look consumed his face as he added softly: “They were beginning to think about how to handle it in a presentational way. . .
“It was an old difficult moment. I won’t deny it. “
Johnson admits that he was coming to terms, probably for the first time, with his own mortality.
He had been in the hospital several times before, usually with rugby injuries, but nothing like this.
He said, “I have broken my nose, I have broken a finger, I have broken my wrist, I have broken a rib. I have broken almost everything. I have broken all kinds of things, several times in some cases.
“But I have never had anything as serious as this.
REACHING TERMS WITH DEATH
“Well no. All I remember feeling was just frustration. I couldn’t see why I wasn’t getting better.
“I was incredibly frustrated that the bloody indicators kept going in the wrong direction and I thought, ‘There is no medicine for this and there is no cure.’
“That was the stage I was thinking about,” How am I going to get out of this? “
Johnson knew the possible consequences of being put into an induced coma and hooked up to a ventilator. However, he refused to accept that it was over, thanks to his “terrible buoyancy.”
He insisted: “It would be a mistake to say that at any moment I thought:” Oh my God, this is it. “
“Some terrible buoyancy within me convinced me that everything would surely be fine in the end.
“But I was frustrated. I remember seeing many other victims, both entering and leaving intensive care.”
“After three nights, thanks to the miraculous work of the medical team, I returned to the general room without ventilation.
“I felt very lucky because many people have suffered much more than I have.”
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He continued: “I want to emphasize this. There are people I know well, who I am sure we both know well, who are still ventilated, who are still in a coma. There are so many who have suffered, so many families who still face great anxiety.
“So many who have lost loved ones and if you ask me,” Am I motivated by the desire to stop other people’s suffering? “
“Yes, I absolutely am. But I am also driven by an overwhelming desire to win back our country as a whole, healthy again, moving forward in a way that we can and I am very confident that we will succeed. “
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