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Former athlete who suffered cardiac arrest teaches others to save lives

CHARLOTTE — Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin is in critical condition after an on-field collapse during the Monday Night Football game against the Cincinnati Bengals.

The team says Hamlin went into cardiac arrest after a hit.

The 24-year-old is currently in the hospital, sedated and undergoing further testing.

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A family spokesperson tweeted a statement thanking everyone for their support during this challenging time.

“Your generosity and compassion mean the world to us,” the tweet read.

Several Buffalo teammates stayed in Cincinnati to show their support while others returned to New York.

Channel 9′s DaShawn Brown spoke with a former athlete who went through a similar experience on the basketball court.

“For me, I was playing 20-plus years and then all of a sudden, this happened,” said Omar Carter, a former App State basketball player and now founder of the Omar Carter Foundation.

Ten years ago, Carter was playing basketball in Charlotte’s Grady Cole Center when his heart stopped for 13 minutes.  He received CPR immediately, along with help from an automatic defibrillator, commonly known as an AED.

Carter said he initially shielded himself from images showing the moment when Hamlin collapsed.

“What we don’t talk about is what happens after the fact,” he said.

“Mentally, how it affects that particular person months, weeks, days years later.”

Carter said he doesn’t remember going into cardiac arrest but is haunted by the impact it has had on his family.

“Hearing the stories and hearing how much pain loved ones were in is just as bad,” he said.

Through the Omar Carter Foundation, the 35-year-old Carter currently teaches thousands of people, including athletes, how to perform bystander CPR. His work also includes spreading awareness on the proper use of an AED.

Carter was diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, which is a disease when the heart muscle is abnormally thick, making it difficult for the heart to pump blood.  He currently lives with an ICD, a defibrillator that’s been implanted into his chest.

“I just hope number one, Damar is good. His family is good also knowing this is going to be a long road to recovery, not physically but also mentally,” he said.,

“Hopefully they know organizations like ours are here just to talk.”

VIDEO: Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin in critical condition after cardiac arrest, team says