A CNN correspondent who lost his arm in a sudden twist of fate had his story aired for the world to hear on cable television last night.

Miles O’Brien had been visiting the Philippines working on a story when an equipment case fell on his arm, which turned out to be a more serious injury than imagined, according to a CNN report.

Within 48 hours, he developed Acute Compartment Syndrome, which is when intense pressure builds on a group of muscles, nerves, and blood vessels to an extent that it disrupts blood flow.

O’Brien went under general anesthesia not know what would happen, but doctors soon discovered his arm would need ot be amputated if his life was to be saved.

O’Brien, CNN’s top science correspondent until he was laid off in 2008 along with the rest of his unit, emerged from his sleep to find that he was missing an arm, and his brain manifested the presence of a “phantom limb.” It didn’t stop him from going right back out into the field to continue his work without telling his family or friends, according to his colleague, Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

O’Brien’s story was featured in a documentary titled “Miles O’Brien: A Life Lost and Found,” narrated by Gupta and aired on CNN on Tuesday night. O’Brien said he was “taken aback” at how much it affected him emotionally, according to an Associated Press report.

He apparently told Gupta that he contemplated suicide after finding out that he had lost his arm. He checked out of the hospital just two days after surgery and spent a week at a hotel in the Philippines. Gupta found out about the amputation after O’Brien blogged about it, which caused Gupta to worry that he may be delaying “the inevitable psychological crash by not dealing with it emotionally,” according to the AP report.

Since then, O’Brien has been outfitted with a prosthetic arm and has completed a 300-mile bike ride to honor his late sister. Gupta joined him in that ride.