Fortunately, Connie responded well to treatment and made a good recovery as Penny, from Sheffield, tells us here.
“My daughter was 22 months old when she became unwell. Her first symptoms were on a Sunday and were fever and loss of appetite.
“The following day I stayed off work with her. She was having shivering episodes when she was feverish. I took her to the GP who thought she might have an ear infection and gave us a prescription for some antibiotics to get if she was no better in the next day or so.
“She seemed a bit better the following morning, but my husband still stayed off work with her and during the day she became a bit more lethargic again.
“When I got home from work she was sleeping on the sofa and still had fever and wasn’t interested in eating, but she was drinking well. We decided to get the antibiotics.
Feverish and unsettled
“Overnight that night she was feverish and very unsettled and vomited a few times. In the morning she was very lethargic and breathing quite fast.
“When stroking her head I noticed her soft spot was bulging and I knew I immediately had to get her to the hospital.
“We live just a five-minute drive from our local hospital so I grabbed a few things and bundled her in the car.
“In A&E they triaged her and took her straight to see the doctor, who thought she had possible symptoms of sepsis and meningitis. They gave her antibiotics and fluids straight away.
“Later that day she had a lumbar puncture and that confirmed that she had meningitis. She was also started on steroids.
Smiled and chatted a little
“She remained very drowsy most of the day but that evening as we were moved from the admissions unit to the ward she woke up and smiled and chatted to me a little, which was such a relief!
“She stayed in hospital for four days, gradually improving every day. She continued her antibiotics for two weeks in total under OPAT - the outpatient team who came to our home to give her antibiotics.
“We had a couple of trips back to the hospital in that time for reviews and new cannulas.
“She thankfully passed her hearing test a few weeks later and is now a healthy and happy almost-6-year-old! Thankfully meningitis has no impact on our family life now - we feel very lucky.”
