James Ronan, 47, from Plaistow, was having a heart attack when he received lifesaving treatment from London Ambulance Service crews.
The lorry driver had returned home from dinner with his stepdaughters when he felt sharp pains in the left side of his chest.
His wife, Veneta, called 999 and, when the paramedics arrived, his heart stopped and he went into cardiac arrest.
“The ambulance crews worked on me for over an hour, and it was not until much later that I learned how severe it was.”
The paramedics used thrombolysis, medication to break down blood clots in his arteries, and 26 shocks from a defibrillator to restart his heart.
He was then taken to the Heart Attack Centre at St Bartholomew’s Hospital, for surgery to open his arteries with stents.
Following his recovery, James met the paramedics at West Ham Ambulance Station to thank them for saving his life.
He added: “They were fantastic.
“I’ll be forever grateful and can’t thank them enough.
“It’s unbelievable.
“I was literally a dead man.”
His wife Veneta said: “He was in so much pain I had to call an ambulance.
“My daughter was screaming and didn’t want me to see what was happening.”
Andy Parker, advanced paramedic at London Ambulance Service, attended to support his colleagues on scene.
Mr Parker said: “James survived his cardiac arrest due to the incredible teamwork of the clinicians on scene.
“It’s great to see that he has made a fantastic recovery.
“It is rare that patients need that many shocks.
“However, it’s vital that bystanders continue to use a defibrillator and do chest compressions until our clinicians arrive.”
James is now looking forward to driving again.
He added: “I can’t wait to get behind the wheel of my lorry.”
Analysis for the Heart Starters campaign has found there are 150 neighbourhoods in London where there is no or limited public access to defibrillators affecting chances of survival.
