People from every generation have credited a near death experience with changing their life forever.  Kirk Kirkpatrick is one of those people.

It was a humid August evening in south Louisiana, like so many summer nights there are.  Kirk Kirkpatrick was resting in his favorite recliner in the den reading his newest science fiction novel when the phone rang.  Physically exhausted after having endured several invasive medical tests earlier in the day at Ochsner Clinic in New Orleans, Kirk answered the phone unenthusiastically.

“Hello?” he said.

“May I speak to Elijah Kirkpatrick, please?” the voice replied.

Assuming he was the victim of a telemarketer’s sales pitch, Kirk began to tease the caller asking where she was calling from and declining her attempt to sell him a line of credit.

“Please, Mr. Kirkpatrick,” the voice cried.  “This is Ochsner Clinic in New Orleans calling.  Please go to the Baton Rouge General Hospital emergency room on Summa Drive immediately.  They are waiting for you.”

“What is this all about?” Kirk asked.

“You are about to go into a diabetic coma.  Please go now!” she answered.

It turns out the blood work Kirk had done earlier in the day revealed abnormally high sugar levels indicating diabetes.  The revelation hit Kirk like the first drops of a cold shower in the morning.  Shock.  Fear.  Confusion.  So many emotions ran through Kirk’s body as his wife, Susan, rushed him to the emergency room that evening.

When he arrived, doctors and nurses were waiting as promised, and began taking blood samples.  New tests confirmed what the doctors in New Orleans suspected earlier in the day.  Kirk’s blood sugar was 720, leaving him dangerously close to slipping into a diabetic coma.  A normal random blood sugar result is lower than 100.  Kirk remained in the hospital for four days under heavy watch before he was allowed to return home.

Kirk knew that he had taken his health for granted and it had nearly cost him his life.  When left untreated, a diabetic coma can be fatal.  After speaking with doctors and researching his new condition, Kirk learned there are three contributing factors to battling diabetes: reducing stress, improving lifestyle choices and exercising.  Kirk tackled these immediately.  He retired from his job with the state of Louisiana, instantly reducing the stress work introduced to his life; he joined a health club and hired a personal trainer; and he began taking his medicine regularly and was adhering to a strict diet.

It was out of this experience though that Kirk was able to tap into his lifelong hobby and make it his life’s passion.  Several days after returning home from the hospital, Kirk noticed an advertisement in the Baton Rouge newspaper for a hypnosis school that was preparing to begin offering classes.  Kirk hypnotized his first person when he was an 18-year-old student at LSU.  Over the past 40 years, Kirk had dabbled in hypnosis, learning what he could through books and lectures.  But this was his chance to become a master of hypnotherapy.  As he slowly regained his strength over the next four months, Kirk began taking classes to become a certified hypnotherapist.

In December, just four months after nearly dying due to complications from diabetes, Kirk regained control of his life.

He used his self-hypnosis to control his diet and dedicate himself to his workouts.  In June 2006, less than one year after being rushed to the hospital as he slipped toward a diabetic coma, Kirk Kirkpatrick was able with the help of his primary care physician to slowly reduce his medication until he was entirely off of all diabetic medicine.

“The subconscious mind is a powerful ally,” Kirkpatrick says, “if you allow it to be.”