ENCEPHALITIS CASES

Encephalitis Cases

Sheri

My experience with encephalitis began in the summer of l960. I was in the third grade in the Myrtle Beach, South Carolina area. It was a hot summer and humid. We always had mosquitoes during the warm months. A chicken appeared under our garage one-day. The chicken would not move and appeared sick. I petted the chicken and told my mother about it. Within a day or so, I began to feel bad. We did not go to the doctor, except for vaccinations once a year. I remember holding my head and yelling that the pain was terrible, as I bent over a chair in the living room. I remember to this day, it felt like someone had split my head with an ax.

My mother got an appointment and we arrived at the office of Dr. Smith, a wonderful child doctor and so caring toward me on the exam table. He looked into my eyes, asked some questions of me. In a few minutes, he had picked me up in his arms and was carrying me down the street to the hospital. They explained the spinal tap, and I remember two big men holding me gently and telling me to lie still on the hospital table. I was put into quarantine. One thing that I do laugh about was that I was not an assertive child. I told them "no, I was not going to be put in a crib", due to the shortage of hospital beds!

I remember hearing about icing me down in a tub. I was in the hospital about eight days. The days were not very clear to me. I returned home. They expected I would have to learn to walk again, perhaps speech problems. I overheard these remarks. I came home and was treated no differently by my parents. I returned to fourth grade the next month.

After reading some of the other encephalitis stories, I saw some similar problems that we have shared; I had problems understanding math and algebra. I had to study two hours each afternoon on my five book subjects. I would write on a pad, something I had to learn over and over until I could retain it. I made good grades, and it was a strict grading scale during the sixties. I could not take college prep courses. I was not able to follow as quickly as the other students that were in the advanced classes. I took the general classes.

Bright lights always bothered me, noise startles me, I have had depression, and a lot of insecurity and lack of self-confidence. I since have been diagnosed with dystonia, it is in my maternal side of the family, but the encephalitis may have triggered it. I have chronic fatigue immune dysfunction and Fibromyalgia now. I appear just like the picture of myself. I am in a lot of pain, but I have a lot of determination.

I waited from eight years old until I was 46 years old to find a survivor of encephalitis in which to share stories. I never could find material on the illness until this won-derful site. I tried to contact Dr. Smith this year. I never saw him again and never got to thank him as an adult. I do care about all of you that went through this horrible illness.

Sheri Anderson Todd
Alabama, U.S.A.

Posted: July 2, 2000

[ADULTS]	[CHILDREN]	[HELP]	[SUBMIT STORY]	[EMAIL]	[HOME]