In the blink of an eye

the long version

On 1 May 2000 Hasso von Bredow's life was forever changed. The young and active father of three suffered a massive stroke at the base of his brainstem, leaving him totally paralysed and unable to speak. With his mind as cognitive and as active as it had always been, his body became his painful prison. IN THE BLINK OF AN EYE is Hasso's moving and life-affirming memoir. At 42 Hasso had to come to terms with a life 'locked in', being dependent on others for every breath, but worst of all, losing his most precious of possessions: his voice. The only way Hasso could communicate with the world was by blinking his eyes. And using coded blinking and state of the art technology, he wrote this incredibly moving memoir letter by letter, helped only by his wife and carer, Catherine.