A Second Act: What Nearly Dying Teaches Us About Really Living

by Matt Morgan

I’ve worked as a doctor for over twenty years, caring for patients who are in the thick fog between life and death. I’ve met hundreds of people who have died, were resuscitated and lived. I’ve long thought that these are the people that we should be listening to, not influencers or business gurus. They know what really matters.

Dr Matt Morgan has met hundreds of people who’ve come back from the dead. Their hearts stopped, their bodies unresponsive, rescued from the brink of death by the modern intensive care techniques he specialises in.

People like Ed, who was walking through a park when there was a bang, a bright light and then nothing. Ed had been hit by a bolt of lightning – 300 million volts, enough to power a city for a day, coursed through his body, short-circuiting his heart. Ed was given life-saving CPR and he survived. He lives a little differently now, every day knowing the thin margins that separate life and death.

In A Second Act, Morgan introduces us to patients who’ve experienced hypothermia, overdoses, heart attacks and transplants to see how their lives have been transformed by the second chance they’ve been given. He shares the lessons they’ve learned, along with his own realisations about life and how to make the most of it. Life shouldn’t be wasted on the living.

Genres: Nonfiction

272 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 16, 2025

About the author

Matt Morgan is a Consultant in Intensive Care Medicine, Honorary Professor at Cardiff University and Curtin University in Australia and regular BMJ columnist.

He has contributed to \>50 scientific articles following his PhD in artificial intelligence. He has spoken at some of the largest book festivals in the world, written articles for diverse publications from The Guardian to Esquire magazine, featured on radio programmes including The Today Program as well as appearing on many television programs from CNN to The BBC.

He gave the 2023 Woodridge Lecture, has spoken at The Wellcome Trust and was nominated for the Royal Society’s David Attenborough prize for public engagement. He was listed in the top fifty most influential health tech people in 2024.

His first book CRITICAL tells remarkable stories of patients in the intensive care unit. His second book, ONE MEDICINE, explores how understanding animals can help treat human disease. His third book A SECOND ACT, tells the stories of patients after surviving a cardiac arrest and what these can teach us about our own lives.

He is a member of the BMJ Commission on the Future of the NHS, ambassador for 2Wish charity, patron for The Humanimal Trust and medical advisor for The National Theatre London’s production of "Nye", the story of Aneurin Bevan starring Michel Sheen. He lives in Cardiff with his family and loves ice cream.

Reviews

[Diana Laffin · Rating 3 out of 5]

The best thing about this book is the stories of people who have survived ‘death’ . Their experiences and reactions to them are moving and humbling.
Their advice and life lessons drawn from them are sound, if rather familiar: get close to nature, nurture friends, live for the moment. Unfortunately the writer is a bit repetitive and long winded in his desire to help us all live more fulfilling lives.

[Jo Marchant · Rating 5 out of 5]

So much love, pride and passion for the work of saving lives is evident through this book. It is a beautiful read.

[Tenalach Farm · Rating 1 out of 5]

A painful book full of grammatical errors. I find this author to be self indulgent and rather painful to read. Disappointing.

[Beth Gwynne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really,really,really good even for an 11 year old like me. My favourite part was the quote “ live for the moments not the things”. I also found the hidden lyrics in blue blood! I am looking forward to reading all his other books now!

[Michele Harrod · Rating 5 out of 5]

What can I say? Dr Matt Morgan has sat me down in my chair, and not only revitalised my love of reading, but more importantly, my love for life. I think I said all that needed to be said in my review of One Medicine, this is really just a follow up to that, like a refresher course, to reinforce the stuff you learn and swear you’ll not forget too soon, but quickly do. There are so many important truths in both of these books.

I live in New Zealand and for some annoying reason, we can’t ‘gift’ via Amazon, so I have brought 9 hard copies of One Medicine, and a month on, I am still waiting for 6 to arrive from overseas. I might need to have a special print run done for this one.

Seriously, we’ve all being getting life so wrong!! We’ve been sold the wrong stories, and we fret over the most ridiculously stupid stuff. And most importantly we’ve been blindfolded to the absolute wonder and privilege, that every day of breathing actually is.

And this book is about people whose hearts literally DID stop. Who got a second shot at life. Mine didn’t quite stop, but years ago, at the age of 36, mine certainly broke and tried to shut down. Good doctors kindly stented it up, and I thought I’d be lucky to get another couple of years out of it. So far, I’ve had 24 more. I know I’m lucky, but I haven’t remembered that often enough. I wish I’d had this book then and read it every year. That refresher course we all need to restore our gratitude.

I’ll sum it up with this (slightly amended quote from Astronaut James Lovell, that Matt included near the end of this book…… “We often say that we hope to go to heaven when we die. In reality, we come to heaven when we’re born”. As for the angels? Read this book, I think you’ll be reminded too, of how many we are surrounded by.

[Norrie Sanders · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some people die, then live again. This book is about them. Not so much about their “near death experience” but about how they died, how they were revived and how it affected them long term. Dr Matt Morgan, an intensive care doctor, has assembled a small cast of people who have had this rare experience. One was a mountaineer who froze to death and was in cardiac arrest for a world record nine hours.
Many of the lessons from these cases are not new, but they do provide reinforcement. And so many people are prepared to come to the aid of a stricken stranger - often putting themselves in harm’s way to do so. A thoughtful and thought provoking book. Just don’t let the death references put you off - it is very much about life.
See the full review at: https://www.queenslandreviewerscollec...

[weemarie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐ rounded down.

Library book 📚

While I enjoyed this book, it wasn't the one I was expecting or hoping for. I was hoping for lots of insights about how to live well from the people who had technically died and been brought back, even from people with NDEs. And while that's what the blurb claims this book is, it isn't really. The amount of advice/insight you get from these people is minimal - most of the book is the author's advice and thoughts. Which are profound and insightful and useful. But they aren't what I reserved this book for, so I was disappointed.

I still made lots of notes and thought it was a worthwhile book. Just not the one I had in mind.

[Leyla Okhai · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliant book with medical, science and historical knowledge brought together with real life stories to help us rethink what life means to us.

[Mark Gibbons · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very worthwhile reading; makes you think

[Helen Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

essential reading

The lyrical prose is one reason to read this book but the sentiments within are important and life changing. Truly you only live through others.

[Kirsty Morrison · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was expecting a bit more from this book, I enjoyed the stories from the people who had survived but I found some of the narrative a bit tangential at times.

[Peta · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars