Mother Thought She Had the Flu. She Eventually Learned the Truth and Was Left Unable to Walk for 2 Years

NEED TO KNOW

• Vicki Purdey, from Dorset, England, was diagnosed with a life-altering illness after her flu-like symptoms worsened

• “Over a few days, I just felt worse and thankfully, my mom was there to call the ambulance,” she recalled

• Purdey, 37, is now reliant on a wheelchair while also suffering from brain fog and frequent eye spasms

A mother is trying to regain her mobility after an illness that began with flu-like symptoms left her unable to walk.

Vicki Purdey, a mother of two from Dorset, England, was “fit and well” before experiencing symptoms — including a fever, severe headaches, muscle aches and light sensitivity — in March 2024. In an interview with news agency SWNS, Purdey, 37, recalled thinking that she just had a “seasonal illness” before her life-altering diagnosis.

It wasn’t until her 75-year-old mom, Julie, found out that she had begun to vomit and slur her words that she dialed the U.K.’s emergency telephone number 999.

“I was fit and well and at the height of my life,” Purdey told SWNS. “So when I first started feeling unwell, I thought it was just the flu.”

She continued, “I remember waking up with a headache and some pains and not thinking much of them. I honestly thought it was just the flu and the symptoms would subside. But over a few days, I just felt worse and thankfully, my mom was there to call the ambulance.”

Purdey was admitted to Poole Hospital on April 1 of that year after being unable to touch her chin to her chest when asked by doctors. A series of tests and a lumbar puncture then confirmed that she had viral meningitis.

“At the hospital, I was pumped with antibiotics as my body was somewhat shutting down,” Purdey recalled, per SWNS. “But when I heard meningitis, the words hit me like a train.”

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While receiving hospital treatment, Purdey said her body showed a “few signs” that she wasn’t fully recovering.

“I remember walking to the loo and I just lost the coordination to walk,” she said. “It was the strangest thing and doctors assumed it was because I was [kept] in bed for ages.”

“On top of this, I also developed short-term memory loss and there was a time when I couldn’t recognize my neighbor,” Purdey added.

The mother was discharged after a week but readmitted on April 15 with recurrent meningitis. She found out the illness had affected the neurological pathways of her brain so much that she “lost most use” of her legs.

Further testing led to her being diagnosed with a functional neurological disorder (FND). The condition, triggered by meningitis, causes the brain to have trouble sending and receiving signals, resulting in a wide range of issues, such as loss of sensation and touch in the body.

Purdey believes she may have contracted the illness a week before she was diagnosed.

“My boy was feeling unwell and I was sitting in A&E,” she said of her 6-year-old son, Freddie. “It seemed like the only place where I would have been exposed and my symptoms soon started later.”

Purdey’s second hospital admission lasted four days. She was told that her mobility would likely take a few weeks to return. However, two years have since passed with her reliant on a wheelchair to get around.

“I essentially lost sensation from the waist down and my independence took a severe hit,” said Purdey, per SWNS, adding that it’s been “incredibly isolating.”

“Never did I think it would be meningitis,” Purdey added. “Many people think it’s an illness that only affects babies and young persons — but that’s not the case.

“It had me nearly at death’s door and there are times now where I can’t be the mom or wife I want to be,” she continued. “FND has impacted my ability to coordinate and walk and it needs more awareness and resources.”

Purdey regularly attends physiotherapy and exercises to boost her mobility. Her hip sockets are “back to front,” rotating her top half 180 degrees, according to SWNS. Due to the FND diagnosis, she also suffers from brain fog and around 20 eye spasms a day.

“I still have little sensation in my legs and rely on my wheelchair,” said Purdey. “I suffer with flare-ups occasionally and it means I need to re-learn how to walk in a new way each time. It’s a battle, but I am learning more about myself and the support from friends and family has been great.”

The mother said resources for FND sufferers are “limited” despite the rising number of people who have the condition.

“I’ve had a real rubbish past couple of years and I wouldn’t wish it on anyone,” Purdey told SWNS. “Even though I am trying my hardest to recover. I don’t think I ever will, but I hope my story can help others to become more aware of the symptoms of meningitis and FND.”

“You are not alone,” she concluded.

Read the original article on People