On 9th April 2025, my heart stopped.
I’m Adrian Curran, a guitarist and guitar teacher from County Down, and I was working at SRC Banbridge Campus when I suffered a cardiac arrest.
I don’t remember much of what happened next, but I know exactly who I owe my life to: the colleagues and students who acted immediately, the emergency services who responded, and the crew of Air Ambulance Northern Ireland.
This post is my way of explaining what actually happened to my heart that day — partly because people have asked, and partly because I think understanding it properly might help someone else understand what a family member or friend is going through.
It’s also where I’m asking for your help.
On Saturday 21st November 2026, I’m holding an 8-hour Guitar-a-thon at Buttercrane Shopping Centre in Newry, Northern Ireland, to raise money for Air Ambulance Northern Ireland — the service that played such an important part in saving my life.
👉 Donate to the Guitar-a-thon on JustGiving:
https://www.justgiving.com/page/guitarathon-air-ambulance
What Happened When I Suffered a Cardiac Arrest?
I was going about a normal working day when, without warning, my heart went into a dangerous rhythm and stopped pumping properly. I collapsed.
The people around me didn’t hesitate.
My colleagues and students at SRC Banbridge Campus started CPR immediately, keeping blood moving to my brain and vital organs while emergency help was called.
That quick action mattered enormously.
When someone’s heart stops, immediate CPR and early defibrillation can be critical to survival. The fact that CPR was started straight away, followed by the response of the paramedics, emergency services and Air Ambulance Northern Ireland, is the reason I’m able to write this today.
I was taken to hospital, where an emergency angiogram checked for a heart attack. It came back clear — my coronary arteries were completely normal, ruling out a heart attack as the cause.
What Is Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM)?
I’d actually been diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) — specifically, the obstructive form — before any of this happened.
At the time, it was considered moderate, and I was already on medication to manage it. I was living my life, playing guitar, teaching and working, all while managing a condition I understood to be under control.
In simple terms, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is a condition where part of the heart muscle is thicker than it should be.
In my case, it’s the septum — the wall between the two main pumping chambers. That thickened muscle narrows the pathway blood has to pass through as it leaves the heart.
Because the exit is tighter, blood moves through it faster, and that faster flow can even pull part of a heart valve into the way, narrowing things further still.
The important part — and this is something I want people to understand because it’s genuinely reassuring — is that my heart’s actual pumping strength is good.
HCM isn’t the same thing as simply having a weak heart. In my case, I’ve always found it easier to think about the problem as being more about the plumbing and the electrics than the pump itself.
How Can HCM Cause a Dangerous Heart Rhythm?
Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy can, in some people, increase the risk of dangerous abnormal heart rhythms.
In my case, the rhythm was ventricular fibrillation (VF).
During ventricular fibrillation, the heart’s lower chambers are no longer contracting in the normal coordinated way needed to pump blood effectively around the body.
It can happen suddenly and requires immediate emergency treatment.
This is the rhythm I went into when my heart stopped.
It’s exactly why the immediate CPR I received and access to defibrillation were so important that day.
What Is an ICD and Why Did I Need One?
Because I’d suffered a cardiac arrest, I was considered at high risk of another dangerous heart rhythm, so a couple of weeks later I had an ICD — an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator — fitted.
I think of it as a permanent safety net.
The device sits under the skin near my collarbone, with a lead running into my heart. It constantly monitors my heart rhythm.
If it detects a life-threatening rhythm such as VF, it can automatically deliver treatment, including a shock when required, to try to restore a normal rhythm.
In simple terms, it means I now carry that protection with me all the time.
My medication was also increased afterwards to help manage my heart condition and reduce the workload on the heart.
None of this means my heart is fragile or failing. My HCM is being actively managed, and I now have an additional layer of protection that wasn’t there before.
I’ve gone from managing the condition without that safety net to having a device capable of intervening if it’s ever needed.
That’s a much safer position to be in.
Why Am I Raising Money for Air Ambulance Northern Ireland?
I’m raising money for Air Ambulance Northern Ireland because the service played a vital role in the emergency response when I suffered my cardiac arrest in April 2025.
I’ll never be able to properly thank everyone who played a part in me being here — my colleagues and students at SRC Banbridge Campus who stepped in and started CPR, the paramedics and emergency services, and the Air Ambulance Northern Ireland team.
But I can try to give something back.
Air Ambulance Northern Ireland provides Northern Ireland’s Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) in partnership with the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service (NIAS).
The charity needs to raise approximately £3 million every year — around £8,200 every day — to help sustain the air-service element of this lifesaving service, in addition to the public funding provided for the clinical team.
That’s an enormous amount of money to find year after year.
Having experienced first-hand what it means to have that service there when it’s suddenly needed, it’s a cause that means an incredible amount to me.
What Is the Guitar-a-thon for Air Ambulance Northern Ireland?
The Guitar-a-thon for Air Ambulance Northern Ireland is an eight-hour charity music event organised by County Down guitarist and guitar teacher Adrian Curran. It takes place at Buttercrane Shopping Centre in Newry on Saturday 21st November 2026, from 9am to 5pm, raising money for Air Ambulance Northern Ireland.
I’m organising the Guitar-a-thon as my way of saying thank you following the cardiac arrest I suffered in April 2025.
The idea itself is very simple:
Keep guitar music going for eight hours and raise as much money as we can.
I’ll be playing throughout the day, but thankfully nobody is going to be subjected to eight hours of me!
I’ll be joined by local guitarists, singers and musicians who are giving up their time to take part, and hopefully we’ll create a really enjoyable community music event along the way.
When and Where Is the Guitar-a-thon in Newry?
The Guitar-a-thon takes place at Buttercrane Shopping Centre in Newry, Northern Ireland, on Saturday 21st November 2026 from 9am until 5pm.
Event: Guitar-a-thon for Air Ambulance Northern Ireland
Date: Saturday 21st November 2026
Time: 9:00am–5:00pm
Venue: Buttercrane Shopping Centre
Location: Newry, Northern Ireland
In aid of: Air Ambulance Northern Ireland
Organiser: Adrian Curran
What to expect: Eight hours of guitar-based music featuring local guitarists, singers and musicians
Fundraising: Donations through JustGiving and at the event
How Can You Support the Guitar-a-thon?
There are three really simple ways you can support the Guitar-a-thon for Air Ambulance Northern Ireland:
- Donate — every contribution helps, no matter the size. Donations can be made directly through my JustGiving fundraising page.
- Share — sharing the Guitar-a-thon or JustGiving page helps us reach people who might otherwise never hear about it.
- Come along — join us at Buttercrane Shopping Centre, Newry, from 9am–5pm on Saturday 21st November 2026. Enjoy some guitar music, support the musicians taking part and help us make a great day of it.
👉 Donate to the Guitar-a-thon for Air Ambulance Northern Ireland:
https://www.justgiving.com/page/guitarathon-air-ambulance
My Way of Saying Thank You
This is simply my way of using something I love — guitar and music — to say thank you.
Thank you to the people who stepped in when I collapsed.
Thank you to my colleagues and students who started CPR.
Thank you to the emergency services and medical teams who looked after me.
And thank you to Air Ambulance Northern Ireland for being there when I suddenly needed them.
Hopefully, by bringing people together through music, we can raise a meaningful amount of money and help keep this lifesaving service there for the next person who suddenly needs it, just like I did. ❤️🎸
