Jennifer, Warburton Victoria
My name is Jennifer, I am 56 years of age and live in Warburton, Victoria. This is my story of my contact with Meningococcal disease.
Saturday 5th August 2006 I had a full day and attended a seminar and went to bed feeling fine.
Sunday 6th August 2006 Woke about 3:00am freezing across my shoulders so I put on a warm top, went to the toilet and then back to bed and to sleep. Woke at 7:00am feeling very hot, nauseas with a very stiff neck and the worst headache I have ever experienced. I also found when I opened the curtains my eyes didn’t like the light and I closed them again. I have never had a migraine and thought that was what I was suffering from. I phoned my neighbour to tell her I was unwell and wouldn’t be taking her son to Sunday school. Going to the toilet I had a lot of trouble and pain in moving my right left. I went back to bed and to sleep.
Next thing I knew I heard my neighbour’s voice at my back door calling ‘Jennifer, are you all right?’ I staggered to the back door to let them in. There was also another neighbour Genevive with them who was a nurse and she had become concerned when they had not seen my around. They asked me ‘What day it was’? I thought this rather an odd question and answered Sunday afternoon, they then informed me it was actually late Monday afternoon.
They came back in with me and Genevive sat with me and took my pulse, she suggested they phone for an ambulance. Weeks later I asked her ‘did she know it was Meningococcal disease’ and she said ‘no’ but my pulse had told her there was something very wrong with the fact I was having great difficulty walking because of my right leg she actually thought I had had a partial stroke.
When the ambulance arrived and they checked me over they found my legs were covered in bruises!. They thought I had just fallen over and not remembered. It was actually Meningococcal rash!. I had also lost the hearing in my left ear it was discovered some days later as I had not heard my neighbour, my parents and a friend phoning Sunday and Monday.
Arriving at Maroondah hospital emergency the staff did blood tests and put me on a drip. The blood test showed I had a massive infection somewhere in my body and they fortunately started me on a massive dose of intravenous antibiotics which actually saved my life.
There was something very wrong with my white blood cell count and I had several sorts of x-rays and medial procedures. On the Wednesday I was transferred to Ringwood private hospital. I presented with confusion and they said if I had been 25 years older they would have put it down to dementia. I had lots more tests to discover what was wrong and on Friday they did a lumbar puncture and the diagnose of Bacterial Meningococcal Meningitis was made. Because of the antibiotics the bacteria ere already dead in my spinal fluid but they were still there. The doctors said that if my neighbours had waited to Tuesday morning before checking on me I would have died. The doctors had not suspected Bacteria Meningococcal Meningitis because I wasn’t the right age!
The health department were called and my neighbours and family were given antibiotics.
Other specialists were called to treat my problems and a plastic surgeon was involved as the sites of the drip and blood tests had had the Meningococcal bacteria attached and for a while it was thought I would need skin grafts.
In hospital each time it was tried to give me oral antibiotics instead of intravenous my temperature would go up again, so after 3 weeks a PICC line was put in and I was allowed to go home. District nurses came in each day to administer the antibiotics until I was able to tolerate oral antibiotics. I suffer from a very dry mouth.
In hospital I was having trouble walking with my right knee swelling and needing fluid drained off. The fluid contained dead meningococcal bacteria in it. I had to use a walking frame to get around from August 2006 to March 2007 as my knee has been diagnosed with arthritis as well as my thumb, shoulder and arm.
In March 2007 I started experiencing bladder problems and lower back pain that turned out to be a bladder and kidney infection. The infection was cleared but I was still having balder problems and in June 2007 I lost control of my balder and after being referred to an urologist specialist it was found the Meningococcal bacteria had shrunk my bladder. My bladder was stretched and I was put on medication which costs $87.00 per month.
A recovery time of 6-12 months was mentioned but I am slowly realising that it may be years before I can recover and may never completely.
Problems I am left with include – No hearing in left ear, dry mouth, scars on my arm, arthritis in knee, thumb and investigating shoulder and arm. Breathlessness, bladder problems, short term memory loss, problems with concentration and tire very easily. I realise that I have got off rather lightly compared to other victims and I am trying to learn to adjust and live with my problems.
