In a sudden turn of events, Vanja (43) was rushed to the hospital due to a serious health issue. Shortly after being admitted, hospital staff discovered him unconscious on the toilet floor. It was revealed that a fig he had been eating had lodged in his throat, causing his brain to run out of oxygen and resulting in a coma. The idyllic life of the Gudac family crumbled like a house of cards within seconds, as the news was announced on Nova TV’s supplement.

The first 15 days of Vanja’s coma were filled with fear and uncertainty for his loved ones. Doctors initially told them that he would not survive, but later asked when they could take him home. His mother, Vera Gudac, described him as being like a piece of furniture that she no longer wanted to be kept in the hospital.

Vanja responds best to music, videos, and audio messages. For her cousin Vlado Naglić, every video and picture he receives is soul food for him and gives him hope for a better tomorrow. His mother believes that these messages can stimulate his brain and help him recover from his coma.

Domagoj Mikić, a reporter for Dnevnik Nova TV, talked to Marina Raguž, a neurosurgeon at Dubrava Clinical Hospital about Vanja’s case. Raguž confirmed that messages can have an impact on the brain and encouraged families to talk to patients and play music with them as it can stimulate their brains further. She also mentioned several bizarre cases where children who choked or suffocated were candidates for deep brain stimulation through experimental studies which woke up around 30% of subjects who reached the level of consciousness at which they could communicate again.

To become eligible for this treatment method, patients must meet neurophysiological, neuroradiological and clinical criteria such as testing whether there is a signal between the brain and periphery and various radiological tests are done to determine their condition accurately. One patient who improved after being in a deep coma for over a year has been woken up by this method