My winter of love: I went to rescue my boyfriend from rabid dogs – and realised how brave I was

When I woke up alone, I was terrified he was in an alley somewhere, animals feeding on his face. I am forever grateful for what I learned that night

It was New Year's Eve, and we were in an unheated stone hut. Adam and I had hit it off at a silent meditation retreat in Minneapolis, and I'd invited him to spend Christmas break with me in India. At the time, ringing in 2018 in a little village framed by the granite formations and snow-streaked peaks of the Himalayas had seemed like a fairytale. But that night the mercury dipped so low that my vital organs muttered system failure" and powered down. I buried myself under quilts with concrete-level cotton padding.

It's 7pm," Adam protested.