Sarah almost died three times in a single year due to condition doctors never noticed

At just 38, Sarah Harkness has already survived three near-death experiences brought on by a serious medical condition that doctors didn't discover until it almost killed her.

The ordeal began in 2019, when her body slowly began to deteriorate after being diagnosed with idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH), causing high pressure around her brain.

Doctors also discovered she was suffering from postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), which can cause her heart rate to spike suddenly, but it shouldn't have caused her body to shut down.

"My bowels had completely gone to sleep and for three weeks I deteriorated in hospital," Harkness tells 9Honey. It was during that hospital stay that she almost died for the first time.

"I was put in the ICU on total parenteral nutrition (TPN), I was fed through a needle into my neck and had a nasogastric tube… it was looking pretty dicey as to whether I would recover."

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Thankfully, Harkness pulled through and though she had to relearn how to walk, doctors said she was incredibly lucky to have survived the scary ordeal.

But not long after, the Sydney mum-of-three had another terrifying brush with death that had nothing to do with the conditions she'd been diagnosed with.

It came out of nowhere while Harkness was driving to the chemist with her husband and suddenly felt her "whole body going offline" and her heart rate and blood pressure spiked. 

Harkness thought it was a stroke and ended up on a hospital resuscitation table unable to move, breathe or communicate. 

Despite the horrifying symptoms, she survived again; only to have a third near-death experience soon after that left her so traumatised she still can't speak about it.

Knowing how close she came to dying each time motivated Harkness to get her affairs in order, despite the fact she's not even 40 yet, starting with her Will.

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"I wanted to make sure my assets, my wishes and my legacy were all documented," she says.

"Everyone's human and will at some point pass away, we should all be so lucky to get the chance to get a Will done. Your family will be grateful for the foresight."

After a close friend died without a Will just over a year ago, Harkness saw firsthand how not having one can put an already grieving family through even more anguish and confusion.

After her own near-death experiences, she wants to protect her husband and children from that fate. Not only did getting a Will done protect them, it gave her a sense of security and control.

"When doctors repeatedly tell you that there's nothing more they can do for you and yet you walk out of the hospital and defy those odds, there's always a sense of achievement," she explains. "It's the same getting your Will done."

In January this year, she finally got an explanation for all the mystery symptoms and near misses that almost claimed her life when doctors diagnosed her with autonomic dysreflexia. 

The condition emerges in patients who have suffered a spinal cord injury; in Harkness' case, compression to the C1 and C2 nerves near the base of her skull.

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"This finally provided the full picture of why my body had been in a progressive state of deterioration for the past four years," she explains.

"Essentially, it causes my body to increase its stress response to stimuli… my heart rate increases exponentially, I get high blood pressure and can go into a coma or die."

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Though the diagnosis provided answers about her brushes with death, it also means a whole host of everyday stimuli can be dangerous to the Sydney mum and could land her in hospital again.

She also has ongoing health issues as a result of autonomic dysreflexia, as well as POTS and IIH.

"Lack of oxygen to my brain has caused bleeds, I have tachycardia [medical term for a heart rate over 100 beats a minute] every day," she adds. "I have to survive on heart failure medications and now with a brain shunt."

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Harkness is sharing her story to encourage other Aussies to get their Wills in order, regardless of how old or healthy they are, as there's no knowing what the future holds.

Having faced her own mortality three times, the mum-of-three hopes to live a full and happy life with her family but is grateful for the peace of mind having a Will offers.

"It shouldn't take almost dying to have your house in order. Anyone can get a will and it's peace of mind… having my will done gives me that freedom," she says.

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