“Please listen to your body and don’t wait to get checked if something feels wrong.”
This time last year Sara, from Perthshire, started to have headaches. She wasn’t worried at first, but she went downhill fast, as she tells us here.
“I had headaches, seizures, paralysed on one side of my body, memory loss and developed a rash few days into treatment.
“On the 1st of February 2025 I was fighting bacterial meningitis and encephalitis.
“I had really bad headaches for three days straight. I didn’t think too much of it at first, but then I became paralysed down one side of my body and lost my memory. My mum realised something was off and called an ambulance that then rushed me to hospital.
"During my first night, I had two seizures that lasted around 10 minutes each, which was terrifying. Doctors later called my parents in to tell them if we had waited any longer to come in, things could have ended very badly.
Month in hospital
“I was diagnosed with bacterial meningitis and encephalitis, serious infections that affect the brain. I ended up spending a month in hospital, followed by six months of recovery before I felt like myself again.
“A year later doctors have discovered I have a rare immunity deficiency which can make it harder for my immune system to fight certain infections but even now, it’s still unknown exactly how I got meningitis.
“I’m sharing this to raise awareness because the symptoms don’t always seem extreme at first.
“Headaches, confusion, weakness, memory loss — these aren’t things to ignore. Meningitis and encephalitis can progress fast and getting help early can save your life.
Listen to your body
“One of the biggest signs of meningitis people wait for is a rash, I never developed a rash until days into my treatment so please listen to your body and don’t wait to get checked if something feels wrong.
“I’m incredibly grateful to still be here, this time last year I couldn’t even walk and a year later I’m graduating college and moving out to begin University.
“It’s been a slow year but I have still accomplished a lot more than I thought I would have, especially with the support of my family and the NHS.”
