Two months after collapsing at the 36km mark of the Gold Coast Marathon, Camryn Lloyd has woken from a coma and is recovering in hospital, having survived a catastrophic combination of three life-threatening events.

The Palm Beach dad suffered heat stroke while running the July 2 marathon, which triggered a condition called rhabdomyolysis.

Sister Saffron Lloyd said the condition was a response to physical exertion, which caused her brother’s muscles to break down, poisoning his body with potassium.

“He collapsed and due to the stress of that on his body, he suffered a cardiac arrest and needed to be brought back with CPR twice – once on the track and once just before he arrived at the hospital,” she said.

“What happened to Cam had nothing to do with any underlying health issues and can happen to anyone.

“It was a freak accident and a really shocking response to heat stroke.”

Cam’s family – including wife Savannah, four-year-old son Zion, Saffron and mum Donna – were waiting for him to cross the finish line when tragedy struck.

They had been tracking his progress during the race using their mobile phones when Donna noticed he had stopped moving.

“Then we started to see people cross the finish line that were significantly behind him. We thought maybe he had sprained an ankle or something,” she said.

“We went to find a medic to get information. At first they said, ‘there has been an incident but don’t worry, he doesn’t need an ambulance’.”

After a few minutes of confusion, they were then told Cam was in an ambulance being taken to Gold Coast University Hospital.

“We started to walk off and as we did, the medic called Saffron back to her and said: ‘How far is your car? You need to run, he’s had a cardiac arrest’.”

Donna described that moment as “feeling like the world was opening up”.

After arriving at the hospital, the family first understood how gravely ill Cam was when a consultant told them he was the sickest person they had seen in a long time.

“On that first night, the doctor said he was not going to live, and he did. And then they said he wasn’t going to wake up, and he has,” Donna said.

After 51 days in the intensive care unit and an amputation of his right leg, the 29-year-old has started his long journey to recovery.

He is undergoing intense rehabilitation and receives various therapy treatments.

“He has already regained the ability to sit up straight and hold his neck up,” Donna said.

“He is receptive and understands what we’re saying to him. Now, he can do things like a thumbs up.”

The mum laughed through tears as she recalled the first time her son opened his eyes.

“I kissed his head and he moved away, like boys do. I was very excited.”

Little is known about what Cam’s recovery will look like.

The family is encouraging the community’s continued support for Savannah and Zion.

More than $26,000 has been raised through a GoFundMe page set up for the family.

“Doctors haven’t been able to tell us what we can expect, so for us, we’re just hoping to have Cam back. That’s all we can hope and pray for,” Saffron said.

“(This journey) is a real testament to who Cam is as a person – his faith, his church, his friends – it’s really been amazing to see.

“We’ve had people from all over the world reach out to say they are praying for him or have sent funds.”

Cam competed in the marathon to raise money for the West Bali Orphanage, a cause close to his heart after his family volunteered there last year.

In doing so, the dad has raised enough money to pay the orphanages rent for 12 months.

Donna also credits Cam’s survival to the “amazing team” at Gold Coast University Hospital’s intensive care unit and its extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machine.

The machine takes over heart and lung function when a person’s organs aren’t working on their own.

The Lloyd family is currently in the process of knitting a “blanket of love” for Cam and have asked supporters to knit squares to add to it.

“We want to let people know the support they have given has helped us,” Donna said.

“It gives us the strength to keep going, knowing we are held by a community.”