The Astonishing Case of Human Hibernation: A 35-Year-Old Man Sleeps for Three Weeks in Japan

Rare but true: This occurred about a decade ago, during one of the harshest winters in western Japan. That winter, local news announced that Mitsuoka Uchikoshi, age 35, was missing on Mount Rokko, where he had gone hiking.

Uchikoshi fell asleep on the second day of his hike, and his body entered a prolonged coma-like state lasting—not more nor less—three consecutive weeks, which doctors have termed 'human hibernation'.

When Uchikoshi was miraculously discovered by rescue teams who happened to be in the area, he was taken to the hospital without a pulse, and his body temperature was 15 degrees below what is considered normal for a healthy person. "When we received him, we saw that he was suffering from severe hypothermia and most of his bodily systems had collapsed," explained Dr. Shinichi Sato to local media. Interestingly, when Uchikoshi returned to a state of 'wakefulness', he remembered nothing of the three weeks he had been missing, except that he had fallen asleep.

According to Dr. Sato, this is a medical miracle, as despite the 'hibernation' causing some slow-down in his body systems, his brain activity continued as usual, preventing any damage.

The doctor's explanation offers a small glimpse into the majesty and greatness of Hashem, who preempted the remedy by creating a system that "knows how to survive even in such extreme conditions, thanks to a mechanism that instructs the brain to release less oxygen to the body cells to ensure the survival of all organs," the doctor said.

Watch here the incredible footage of a bear awakening from its hibernation: