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My husband is John L, (NYC) he's 38 years old. In mid May 2000 he became violently ill with
severe headaches and a lot of vomiting. We went to the doctor and the doctor said that
maybe John had a stomach virus or perhaps food poisoning from the sandwich he ate a few
days before. OK, we went home only to see him take a turn for the worse, a couple of days
later the headaches were very intense and the vomiting wasn't stopping. On May 25, while
driving in the car, John seemed to be losing his mind, he kept bumping into the curb with
the car. He always drives with one hand, so I became terrified of being in an accident.
We managed to get home somehow, he wouldn't eat, and just went to bed. He looked white as a ghost, I knew I had to call 911. They took him to the hospital
where they suspected meningitis. They did a spinal tap which showed abnormal, all blood work was normal. I couldn't understand what was
happening. I went home as he was heavily sedated. The next day he was in ICU and looked fine, they sent him home 3 days later without
a diagnosis, he tested negative for meningitis and encephalitis.
One week later, on June 6, he came home from work acting like a zombie, he didn't even recognize me. How terrifying! He looked spacey, and laid down. He
was vomiting all over the room, and having convulsions, and even had a seizure, he knocked the lamp down and broke it. I was horrified,
I called 911 again. We went to another hospital, where they had an MRI, EEG and cat scan done. They still didn't know what was wrong with
him, and John was delirious! I came to the hospital the next day, the doctor wanted my permission for a cat scan on his brain, John was
in no shape to say yes. I was frantic, came to see him, he was not himself, I was concerned about his mental state. The doctor's finally
had a diagnosis after 3 days on Acyclovir (they knew it was a viral infection) but didn't know what kind. After 4 days the doctor finally
called me and said "John had viral encephalitis." John showed up negative before for this. The doctor told me he would be OK. His immune
system responded well to the medication. They also tested him for West Nile Virus. He did go fishing a week prior to his illness, where
I thought a mosquito might have bit him. He was in the hospital for 2 weeks on IV Acyclovir.
Now, 2 months later John is healthy, back at work, and we are trying to get on with our lives. He is doing better! I still have many flashbacks from this
horror scene. So Daniel, I do believe God looked out for him. I know what this disease can do to people, many do not survive, many are
brain damaged, or unable to walk and talk. I am thankful of modern medicine and the doctor's who knew what they were doing. Now, like
I said 2 months. later, it seems that John got encephalitis from the fish he caught that week, he ate the poison. The poison was in the
head of the fish, we would of had news about West Nile Encephalitis by now, 3 people in NYC were tested positive for it.
We have to get across to the medical field, not to take this disease lightly. As rare as it is
people are still getting it. Don't take chances, get them on antibiotics, so they can reduce
the damage and suffering!
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By his wife Stacy
New York, U.S.A.
Posted: Sept. 5, 2000 |
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