But as his symptoms worsened and he began vomiting, 30-year-old Kristof, from Manchester, knew he needed to get medical help. He tells us his story:
“It was about 9pm on a Tuesday evening and all of a sudden I was hit with the worst headache I have ever experienced. I wasn't overly worried, as I thought it might just be stress, but my symptoms just got worse.
“I contacted my GP and after a few appointments I was taken to my local hospital in an ambulance. Even then, I worried I was being overly cautious, but I could tell something was wrong.
“I was in hospital for 6 nights, and due to Covid-19 no visitors were allowed, which made things harder, but the nurses and doctors were great under all the pressure of what was going on. Eventually, after many tests including a lumbar puncture and CT scans, it was confirmed as viral meningitis.
Still struggling
“I don't think I appreciated the severity of it until I left hospital and researched it. I am now just over 5 weeks out of hospital and in the early stages of recovery. I’m still struggling a lot with headaches, pressure in my head, backache, earache and exhaustion, but having reached out to Meningitis Now I feel more supported in my recovery and know that someone is always there to reach out to.
“I’m currently off work and my after-effects make it harder to function, but with time and the right support I’m confident I will get better – I just have to take it one day at a time.”
