Famous People with Meningitis
Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wills Wilde
Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish writer and poet. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London’s most popular playwrights in the early 1890s. Today he is remembered for his epigrams, his only novel, his plays, and the circumstances of his imprisonment and early death from cerebral meningitis on 30 November 1900.
Brad Pitt
After returning from a trip to Ethiopia in 2005, Brad Pitt started to complain of symptoms similar to the flu. After checking himself Los Angeles hospital Cedars-Sinai Medical Center on a Monday night in early July, he found out the diagnosis was far worse: he was in fact suffering from viral meningitis, After spending two days in hospital, Brad Pitt was released to recover at home.
John (Rotten) Lydon
Born to Irish parents, John (Johnny Rotten) Lyon is the eldest of three brothers. At the age of seven he contracted a serious bout of meningitis which put him in and out of coma’s for almost a year. Wiping most of his early memories and affecting his eyesight. He was in the Sex Pistols from 1975 to 1978 when they split.
Donald Sutherland
When he fell ill with meningitis in 1979 while filming Kelly’s Heroes, actor Donald Sutherland thought he was done for. He said he remembers how all the pain and suffering he was feeling suddenly vanished as he felt himself leave his body. Physicians later him that he had passed away for a very short time.
Lisa Snowdon
The model was hospitalised in November 2010 when she became seriously ill and was diagnosed with viral meningitis after an MRI and CAT scan showed swelling around her brain and spinal cord. But Lisa, who had experienced symptoms including severe headaches, loss of appetite and weakness, knows she put her health at risk by not getting checked out sooner.
Katie’s Meningitis Story
Katie going for a walk in her cart 16 days after contracting Meningitis
On the 11th of July 2014 we all got ready for a long trip to America to visit my family who we had not seen in around 3 years, it was also the first time that Katie would meet them. On the 16th of July, after a few days of enjoying family time and the great weather, we went shopping in the outlet stores. We had a nice time, if you can call shopping nice! The kids where having fun, at one point running in and out of the rain when there was a thunder storm, which we now know not to do as thunder storms in Florida are a time to take shelter. That evening was just a normal evening; dinner then bed time, again just like with Jessica 18months previously. Katie went to bed with no problem. Janet went to the shop to get some more food and around an hour after going to bed, Katie woke. She had a temp and was moaning, but I just put it down to her running around in the rain, so I told her that when mummy got home I would send her in to see her, to which she said ok. When Janet got home she went into see her and was shocked at how hot she felt, but like me, put it down to the hot weather. She took her temp, which was around 40 C. I was not happy and said i would ask my mum to come over to look after Jessica and we would go to hospital with Katie. In the back of my mind i was thinking about meningitis, but did not say anything, as I did not want to go through it again. On arrival at the hospital we were taken to a room where they took her temp, which was now 42 C. They gave her some Tylenol, took some blood and a urine sample and said that they would be keeping an eye on her. During our time there I had said a few times that her sister had Meningitis last year, but was told that it was not that. I was not very reassured, but as it came from the doctor and nurses I decided that they knew what they were talking about. Katie began to improve as her temp came down and she became more alert. A few hours later, Katie said that she wanted some water, the nurse said it was ok, as we were going home soon. Around a minute later Katie was sick all over me, just as the doctor walked in. He said that she was showing the signs of a fever and we could expect vomiting and diarrhoea for the next week. He gave us a prescription and we went back home. We decided that Janet would stay with Katie in our bed to help her through the night. She vomited a bit through the rest of the night, still moaning, not sleeping well and then became very thirsty. On the morning of the 17th, I woke up and went into the room to see how Janet’s night with Katie went. We took off her vest and as soon as I looked at her, I just new that we were going to have to go through it all again. The dreaded Meningococcal rash had started. We raced back to the hospital. I phoned my brother Aaron to ask him if he was working, as he is an ED Tech in the hospital. I told him that we were coming in, as Katie had a rash just like Jessica did. He told me that he was not working, but would ring the head of the ER to let her know we were on our way and he would meet us there. On arrival to the ER, knowing that every second counted, I jumped out with Katie and Janet parked the car. When she came in we were still waiting. Then we all went in together and that’s when it all started to happen. We were taken into a room where two techs tried to find a vein for an IV, but could not and that’s when the Dr came in. She asked us to go through the last 24hours and once she said “infection control”, our worst fears were confirmed. We all had to gown up, put gloves and face masks on while the Dr was pushing IV fluids and antibiotics into Katie. Then it was time to go to PICU. We all got into the lift and Janet tells me that it was at this point that I said that she wasn’t going to make it. On arrival in PICU I asked if Jessica and I could go somewhere else, as I did not want her to see all the doctors and nurses around Katie. So, we were led to the Family waiting room, which ended up where we would sleep and eat for the next 5 days. After a little wait Aaron arrived with my parents and sister. I decided that I would go and see how they were doing with Katie and that was when I got the biggest scare of my life, seeing my little Katie in a bed on a ventilator fighting for her life. I could do nothing, but just look and watch and after a few minutes I could not take it anymore and i just had to leave in tears. It was a very tense few hours waiting and waiting for any news. In that time we had to give permission for Katie to have a blood transfusion. The next few days for Katie were hard. Her blood pressure was up and down, temp up and down, but then they were happy with her being stable enough to be moved to a bigger room where we had a bed and shower, so we could sleep in the same room. It was hard to begin with, but I got used to the noise of all the alarms going off and what they were for, so it did get easier. We also decided, after about a week, that we should let Jessica see Katie. So with the help from the doctors and child support staff, we talked through what she would see with the help of a doll with tubes. At first she did not want to go in, which was fine, as we did not want to push her into it. But she soon decided herself to visit. When she did see her, it was nice, but she did not want to touch her; that took a few days. Then we were given the news that they were happy with her progress and were going to be lowering her sedation meds, which I found easy to deal with. Seeing Katie slowly waking up, but still with the tube in, was very hard for Janet to cope with. Then on the 28th of July, after 12 days on the ventilator, Katie started to breathe enough on her own that they were happy to turn the ventilator off and pull the tube out. It was such a great relief after almost losing her 12 days earlier. The next 11 days were hard on Katie, as she was being weaned off her meds. We were trying to get her to eat, drink and walk again so that the doctors were happy enough for her to go home. We had a nasty scare when she had a sudden spike in her temp. They rushed a load of tests and quickly found everything to be normal. They put it down to a symptom of withdrawal. Then on day 22, we were told that if she had a good night, then she could go home in the morning. We were so excited, but daren’t believe it until it happened. After 23 days in PICU we finally went home, or at least what was home at the time. I had had a lot of low points in that time as I thought that we were going to lose Katie, but the team in PICU were amazing. They explained everything that they were going to be doing to Katie and what to expect during and following her hospital stay. If it was not for all of the Doctors, nurses, etc then we would not have Katie with us now. Every day since we left the hospital and finally America Katie has improved, Every so often I look at her and remember just how lucky we are to not just have Katie, but also Jessica. Since returning home we have all had the Meningitis B vaccine.
Day 7
Finished
Jessica’s Meningitis Story
Jessica in Hospital after recovering from Meningitis January 2013
The 26th of January 2013 was a normal day. We spent a family day out in Dublin, shopping for new shoes for Jessica. After a long day we went for a nice pint and then home for dinner. It was a normal evening, Jessica not wanting to go to bed – she had a little sniffle, but that was it. After a bed time story she feel asleep at around 8pm.
A couple of hours later she woke up crying and saying that she felt sick and was hungry, so after a few minutes we gave her a grape and that seemed to calm her down. She had a little temperature, but we put it down to the sniffle and that she was crying. What kid doesn’t have a temp every so often? Then a few minutes later she showed the signs of being sick so we took her to bathroom where she was sick in the bath. So, after around 20 minutes she said that she was better and we read her a story and she fell asleep again. Around an hour later she woke again, but this time she was sick in her bed, which is very unusual for her as she has only ever vomitted a couple of times. By this stage, her temperature was a little higher (39oC) but nothing to worry about. She was a little bit irritable, but I just put it down to being sick. I said that as I was still up she could sit with me on the sofa for a while. A few hours later she was asleep on the sofa, so I decided to leave her there and I would sleep on the floor so she could get some sleep. Around 4am I woke up for some reason and looked at Jessica and thought that she looked uncomfortable, so I thought that I would lay her down flat and noticed that she had wet herself, which she has never done before. So, I took her to the bathroom to change and wash her, which is when everything in our lives changed.
I noticed that she had a rash and that all her body was warm and I just felt that it was not normal in my mind. I had a thought about Meningitis, but I wasn’t sure, so I woke Janet and asked her to phone for an Ambulance. While we were waiting, I cleaned up and got dressed then went outside to let the Ambulance in the gate. By this stage, Jessica was lethargic and her hands and feet were cool. It was hard to tell whether she was just sleepy, or actually losing consciousness.
I was outside for what seemed like an age, then when they arrived they looked at her and said that they where going to give her Penicillin in the ambulance and then take her to hospital and to get some things for her. I thought, ‘What do you take? Clothes, coat and her new shoes!’ Janet said that she would stay, as she didn’t want to wake Katie, so I carried Jessica out to the Ambulance and put her on the the bed. This was when I felt worried and scared. They asked all the normal questions about allergies and that they were going to put a line in to give her some penicillin. After a few tries, they had no luck so put two shots directly in to each buttock and we left with the lights flashing. By this stage, things were getting worse and I was asked to try and keep her awake, as she was unresponsive. So, I was shaking her leg and calling out her name. At one stage, the Paramedic leant through the hatch and spoke to the driver and that was when I knew that things were very serious as I felt the Ambulance go a lot faster. All the time he was trying to put a line in but with no luck.
On arrival at the hospital Jessica was taken straight into the rescus room and I tried to follow, but was asked to give them Jessica’s details first, then I was allowed in. There were Doctors, nurses, lines and needles and then my little Jessica in the middle of what seemed like mayhem. After a little while, I went up to Jessica’s head and she started to talk to me and things started to calm down. Then I was asked if Janet was on her way. In all the mayhem I forgot about Janet, so I was told to ring her and tell her to come in asap. They told me that they had given Jessica treatment for meningitis and that so far she was responding well. When Janet arrived, Jessica was still lying down with the oxygen mask, but she had been asking for her and was talking. I am so glad that she did not see everything that had happened before she arrived. After a while, Jessica was transferred to PICU. Then I made the phone calls to our families. We were lucky that Janet’s Mum was around, as she spent the next week looking after Katie as me and Janet where taking it in shifts to be with Jessica. After 6 days in PICU, where she was given outstanding care, she was transferred on to a ward where her little sister came to visit and she just perked up so much. After 2 nights she was given the all clear and we were told she could go home. She was amazingly fine, not even on medications. The only thing was that she wouldn’t walk because all the heel prick tests had made her feet sore.
The next week was hard for us all, trying to get back into a normal routine. That was when I decided to do the solo sponsored cycle for Crumlin Children’s Hospital to repay them for saving Jessica’s life. If through doing this cycle I raise awareness about Meningitis and save a life, then the pain of it will be well worth it. If you wish to help me in anyway you can, either by sponsoring me or just sending me an email of support while I do this, then thank you. And please pass this on, as the more people that read our story then the bigger the chance that more lives could be saved.
Dan, Janet, Jessica and Katie