Encephalitis Cases
Lorrie
NORTH CAROLINA, U.S.A.
Posted: August 30, 2008
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Encephalitis Cases
Lorrie
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My sister
Lorrie is 46 years old on May 12th 2008 she was transported
to the ER from her job at BMW. The week before she had told
me that she had a cold sore that just would not go away. She
had symptoms of nausea, fever, diarrhea and was drooling profusely.
The ER treated her for a stomach flu and gave her Imodium, Tylenol
and a prescription for nausea. She was at home for 15 minutes
and had a seizure her friend immediately called an ambulance.
We were told that her survival was at 10% and after 21 days
of antibiotics her condition prompted a peg tube and trach.
This virus ran it course and consumed the size of a baseball
in her brain. The doctors said that she would not be able to
breathe on her own for anymore that 20 minutes. and that we
should consider have a "family meeting". The family agreed to
let God do his work.
She was moved to Palliative care and after breathing on her
own for 3 days, I insisted that she be hydrated and nourished.
I did not want my sister to starve to death since she could
breathe on her own.
This had been such a long road for her. It has been almost 4
months and she is still in the hospital. Lorrie is coherent
and her memory seems good for the most part. She is not walking
and she is still working with a speech therapist (due to the
trach being in for so long she can only faintly whisper), she
also receives physical and occupational therapy daily. She is
able to feed herself and write somewhat but is still very limited.
They put her in a wheelchair and I am able to take her outside,
she loves the fresh air and sunshine.
At this time we are looking for long term rehab for Lorrie.
I have faith that she will continue to battle the after effects
of such a rare illness. The rehab situation is terrible considering
that nursing homes have more people over the age of 60 and rehabilitation
centers are primarily short term care.
I am so proud of Lorrie and her determination
to live and heal. She is my angel on this earth. After reading all of
these other cases on this site I am surprised that there is not any research
or foundations for this virus. I pray that all of you continue to fight
this illness along with my sister.
Update. Since this was first published she has improved
immensely. She was transferred to from a nursing home to an assisted living
in NC and is presently in VT as a participant in the TBI program. She resides
in a residential home with a caregiver and her family, I must say that this
program is amazing and the people that run it are remarkable. They are part
of our family now and we are very blessed to share my sister with them.
Lorrie progressed from a wheelchair and is now walking (in fact she is now going to a gym for physical therapy) her improvement has been a lot of work for her. Her cognitive skills are improving and to speak with her it would be hard to think that she went through this horrible brain injury.
For her birthday we celebrated at a club that our cousin has a country band and we danced for the first time in 2 years. She has an active life to say the least. She is involved with meal preparation daily chores and relearning life skills. All I ever wanted was my sister to have "quality of life" and my dream came true. Although she knows that this recovery will be a lifelong journey, eventually she will learn to be totally self sufficient.
We are thankful everyday for the progress of the recovery. And pray that all HSE survivors have the quality of life that they pray for.
Jill NORTH CAROLINA, U.S.A. Posted: August 30, 2008 |
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