“I feel exhausted and fatigued like never before. The biggest effect has been on my brain and cognitive function.”
“I initially felt a pressure behind my eyes. I assumed this was a migraine, so I went to bed early to sleep it off.
“During the night I suffered chills and sweats and then the sudden onset of the worst headache of my life. This headache was like nothing I had ever experienced and didn’t go away with paracetamol or other medication.
“I couldn’t function out of bed for the next three days, light hurt my eyes and the pain was unbearable.
Concerned about meningitis
“Monday came around and I contacted my GP. They were concerned about meningitis, so called an ambulance which arrived and took me straight in after a brief assessment at home.
“I was seen in A&E but discharged home nine hours later after my blood test came back clear. They prescribed migraine medication.
“I returned home late that night and tried to rest. Over the next 24-48hrs the symptoms didn’t subside, but now I couldn’t lie down without the pain in my head making me feel like it would explode any second.
Begged for help
“I returned to my GP after two days to beg them to do something to help. I had a ‘migraine’ for seven days with no let up. I just knew something was really wrong.
“My GP tried to reassure me, gave me stronger pain relief and said if things were no better in 24 hours to go back to A&E.
“That night I began vomiting and spiking temperatures again. I returned to A&E first thing in the morning.
Pain off the scale
“I was eventually seen by a wonderful junior doctor, who took one look at me and sent me for a CT scan. They discovered I couldn’t be laid flat as the pain was off the scale.
“I was started on antivirals, antibiotics and morphine. For the first time in a week I fell asleep.
“I was then sent for a lumbar puncture, with everyone I saw telling me it’s very unlikely to be positive as my bloods were clear.
“But within four hours my results were back and I did have meningitis. It took a further 48 hours for them to narrow down what had caused it, the chicken pox virus! Instead of coming out on my skin as shingles it had gone to my brain.
Still early in my recovery
“It is still early in my recovery. I feel exhausted and fatigued like never before. The biggest effect has been on my brain and cognitive function. I felt like I was in someone else’s body. I would stumble and miss things. My spatial awareness was awful.
“I struggle to get words out. My thoughts are there, but the connections are slow and my brain doesn’t react like it did.
“The doctors have explained that the pressure that had built up on my brain will take time to go down and for my brain to repair. They have said to expect recovery to take 1 to 1.5 days for every year I am old.
“We are still trying to get back to normal and get me back to work.
“It’s slow progress but overall I feel lucky.”
