The Delirium Wards
Seriously...24 Sep 2021

The Delirium Wards

Ten years ago, in 2011, David Aaronovitch felt like he was losing his grip on reality. He'd been placed in a coma, after a surgery gone wrong. Now he was awake and in Intensive Care.

Every time he closed his eyes the inside of his eyelids would display a kaleidoscope of red, black and yellow violent cartoon images. Faces appeared before him like odd animation of computer game avatars. That was just the beginning. For the next four days and night David experienced what he describes as a "waking nightmare".

These types of hallucinations are called delirium and are a very common side effect of being placed in an induced coma.

Now the number of people experiencing delirium is on the rise. That's because those who are critically ill with Covid often have to be ventilated. While it helps their bodies fight the virus, and will often save their lives, the mental toll can be as serious as the physical one. Increasingly, patients are leaving hospital physically healed but mentally scarred.

In this powerful and immersive documentary David Aaronovitch hears from three people who have struggled with delirium, and shares his own experience.

Producer: Caitlin Smith Executive Producer: Peter McManus Researcher: Anna Miles Sound Design: Eloise Whitmore

With thanks to Paul Henderson, Zara Slattery, Robin Hanbury-Tenison, ICU nurse Crystal Wilson and Dr Dorothy Wade of Barking Havering and Redbridge Universities Hospital Trust and North EAst London Foundation Trust.

Image courtesy of Zara Slattery.

Episoder(484)

Conflict on Campus

Conflict on Campus

Examining how the Israel-Gaza war is affecting students here in the UK. Anwar Akhtar is a director at the Samosa Project, a media and arts charity working to create understanding across cultures. He h...

18 Jun 202429min

The Switch

The Switch

Three people from three different eras reveal what it's like to live with multiple personalities, or Dissociative Identity Disorder.A retired librarian who lived through the disorder's most controvers...

14 Jun 202428min

The Beaches

The Beaches

A top secret little-known mission that changed the outcome of World War II. Not Alan Turing's Enigma code-breaking mission but a daring foray, conducted behind enemy lines on the shores of Normandy. H...

7 Jun 202428min

Broken Politicians, Broken Politics

Broken Politicians, Broken Politics

Are British politicians at breaking point? In this new digital age with its high level of public scrutiny, the sheer amount of abuse, disdain and direct threat politicians get is causing their mental ...

4 Jun 202428min

Portugal’s Carnation Revolution

Portugal’s Carnation Revolution

25th April 2024 marked the 50th anniversary of Portugal's 'Carnation Revolution', which overthrew the authoritarian dictatorship of the Estado Novo ('New State') which had governed Portugal since the ...

21 Mai 202428min

Night Train

Night Train

In literature and film, night trains are the setting for intrigue and romance, espionage and sudden death. And in real life too they’re places of possibility and the expectation of new adventures. Wri...

17 Mai 202457min

True Crime 1599

True Crime 1599

For the last decade, True Crime has become ubiquitous on television and podcasts. Yet despite its current popularity, it’s not a new phenomenon. In this programme, author Charles Nicholl take us back ...

14 Mai 202428min

Haiti - Descent Into Anarchy

Haiti - Descent Into Anarchy

With criminal gangs now controlling most of Haiti's capital and no function government, Mike Thomson explores what caused this spiralling descent to Anarchy in this predominately Christian, Caribbean ...

7 Mai 202428min

Populært innen Samfunn

rss-spartsklubben
giver-og-gjengen-vg
aftenpodden
konspirasjonspodden
aftenpodden-usa
popradet
lydartikler-fra-aftenposten
rss-nesten-hele-uka-med-lepperod
rss-henlagt-andy-larsgaard
alt-fortalt
grenselos
wolfgang-wee-uncut
min-barneoppdragelse
fladseth
rss-dette-ma-aldri-skje-igjen
synnve-og-vanessa
rss-dannet-uten-piano
krisemoter
rss-frekvens-med-anine-olsen
198-land-med-einar-trnquist