Meningitis stories

Spurred on by the impact that pneumococcal meningitis has had on his father-in-law Tim, Alex is fundraising and training hard for the upcoming Derby 10k

Nine months after being diagnosed with viral meningitis, Karolina is still suffering from a variety of after-effects

After contracting meningococcal septicaemia as a baby, Nicole has been left unable to do anything for herself. Mum Linda shares their story

Thain was given just hours to live by the time he was diagnosed with viral and bacterial meningitis. Luckily, he pulled through but has been left with after-effects, as mum Jennifer tells us

What Claire thought was a cold turned out to be something a lot more serious as she found herself hospitalised for two weeks

Now 5 years old, Travis was 2 when he became very poorly with meningococcal meningitis and septicaemia, and now suffers after-effects. Mum Natalie tells his story

Despite being left with lifelong after-effects of TB meningitis, Riley doesn't let anything hold him back

Quick thinking by Juley's husband saved her life when she became ill with pneumococcal meningitis, but she has been left with a range of after-effects

When Chloe contracted meningitis at age 19, she came close to dying and lost her ability to see, hear and walk. Thankfully despite significant after-effects, she is making a good recovery.

Stephen's meningitis story began when a severe headache, lethargy, aching muscles and sensitivity to light struck in April and he knew something serious was wrong.

Sarah Lockey, our new Community Fundraiser for the North of England, holds our cause very close to her heart as her daughter Tilly contracted the disease at 15 months old. Here she shares their heart-breaking, yet inspirational story

Georgia contracted bacterial meningitis at two years old, Georgia is now 15 and has bilateral cochlear implants

It was a traumatic experience seeing my child so poorly, and caused me lots of anxiety. As a family, we are very nervous now when he gets ill

The doctor explained that they were doing everything they could to keep Arran alive but that it might be at the expense of his hands and arms or feet and legs.

Young Tyler had a difficult start in life and was diagnosed with meningitis at just a couple of days old, leaving him with severe autism and needing 24-hour care

Five years after contracting viral meningitis, feeling as recovered as I'll ever be, I'm delighted to be running the London Marathon

When Rachel contracted meningitis at one year old, she had to relearn how to crawl and walk. 24 years on, she wants to support others who have been affected

Rina and her husband Lee thought that she was just fighting a common cold, but her symptoms soon turned for the worse

Roxanne's son, William, developed pneumococcal meningitis from an ear infection three days after his first birthday.

Emma's son Matthew contracted meningitis when he was a baby, and has been left with after effects including learning difficulties.

Meningitis laid Dave low two years ago, he’s taking on a professional wrestler to raise funds for Meningitis Now!

Demi contracted streptococcal meningitis, which has left her with lifelong after-effects. Rhiannon, from Haverfordwest in Pembrokeshire tells their story here

Angela's son Ashton was clingy, had a temperature and didn't want to lie flat - she had no idea these were the early symptoms of pneumococcal meningitis

Naomi Paterson’s son George was just 11 months only when he fought pneumococcal meningitis and septicaemia

Kye, contracted meningococcal septicaemia C on Mothers’ Day in March this year, just six days after his baby sister Layla was born

In 2011 Clarissa’s daughter Aleisha contracted pneumococcal meningitis at 13-weeks-old, changing all their lives. As Clarissa puts it, ‘The unknown was about to hit us.’ She tells their story here

Smiley eight-month-old Taylor Marshall’s life changed dramatically when he fell ill with meningococcal group w meningitis and septicaemia in April

Alison, from Newport in Gwent, shares the story of how her son, Jacob, became ill with MenB and septicaemia and the after-effects with which he is now learning to live

When seven-year-old Isabelle, of Derby, came home from school feeling under the weather, her parents thought she was suffering from a stomach bug

Apryl-Louise Middleton, of Gloucester, was celebrating Halloween with friends when she first noticed onset symptoms of meningitis

Freya’s life changed forever when she contracted GBS meningitis and septicaemia in 2005, after spending weeks in hospital critically ill with the disease, Freya now suffers a series of after-effects including blindness and cerebral palsy

I would urge all parents to be mindful of the symptoms of meningitis and be assertive. I can never forgive myself for not pushing, and being the ‘good patient’ when I knew my son was desperately ill.

Kelly’s 4-year-old son Harry, from Northampton, fell ill with meningitis seven years ago

Finn was two-and-a-half years old when he contracted meningococcal septicaemia in June 2011

Bella had been suffering cold like symptoms but on the 28 December her condition deteriorated as she began vomiting, developing a fever and rapid breathing

Trembling, a temperature, cold hands and feet and vomiting first alerted Gemma Lessells, of Fife, that there was something very wrong with her little boy, Matthew

One month before her first birthday Matilda had a high temperature, was off her food and seemed out of character

A rash was one of the last signs that eight-year-old Mia had contracted meningococcal group B meningitis and encephalitis in January last year

While on her travels in China, 23-year-old Georgia, of Hertfordshire, began suffering with on-going headaches, dizziness and a general feeling of 'un-wellness'

Dean Lahan, 18, of Stockport, lost his right leg and most of his fingers when he contracted meningococcal meningitis in 1999, aged just 18 months old

Faye, of Newcastle upon Tyne, fell ill with meningitis as a four-month-old

Paula’s baby son Oliver developed E Coli bacterial meningitis, which left him with many after-effects. But, 17 years later, the Bristol youngster is proving doctors wrong and is an inspiration to his family.

In October 2014, 11-year-old Nathaniel Gate, of Reading, was sent home from school with a high temperature and later began vomiting violently, his parents contacted the out of hours GP

In February 2015, Charlotte Hannibal, now 19, had just returned to university after visiting her family when she suffered a number of flu-like symptoms

Jamie-Leigh Rockett, now 18, of Watford, had just finished her GCSE’s when she contracted viral meningitis in June 2012

Despite her concerns, worried mother Lesley Swift, 26, was unable to get a doctor to visit her seven-year-old daughter, Lauren

Baby Harrison Whiteman was just four days old when he contracted a life-threatening illness, spending the first three weeks of his life in intensive care

When Katie Schmidt, 26, Bognor Regis, was told her daughter had contracted strep B meningitis in May she was heartbroken

Charlotte Stuart, 20 of Tunbridge Wells, was 19 and studying Architecture at the University of Cambridge when she was diagnosed with meningococcal group W (Men W)

Jemma, from Eastleigh in Hampshire, was a 19-year-old student building her future when she was laid low by the Y strain of meningitis

When her baby girl came down with a soaring temperature, quick-thinking mother, Becky Preece of Shrewsbury, trusted her instincts and phoned for help

Little Liam Reid, from Stourport-on-Severn in Worcestershire, fell ill at six-weeks-old in November 2005

Maison Farmer, Swindon, battles everyday with the severe after-effects bacterial meningitis can cause. He contracted the disease in March 2012, just twelve weeks after he was born

Lillie Mai, of Maryport in Cumbria, was a healthy and happy 14-week-old when she developed a runny nose and got the shivers. There were no obvious signs of meningitis and first-time mum Belinda thought she’d just come down with the cold she’d had the week