My Story

“It was November 2008 and I was three months into my first job as a qualified teacher – my school was difficult, my boss was difficult, the workload was challenging and I was feeling quite overwhelmed.”

“It was a Monday and I had been poorly all weekend with a chest infection. I considered not going in but I had no real choice. The day was awful. By 2pm I was throwing up in a cupboard while teaching year 9 Textiles. I bailed out on the Staff Meeting, sloping out and hoping no one missed me. I went straight to bed, and that was the last thing I really remember about my, pre-meningitis, past-life, former self.”

“The following day my temperature had risen to 40, I was dehydrated and could keep nothing down. I called my GP who triaged me and prescribed sickness tablets; they didn’t help. I felt dreadful. The GP told me to call back in 24 hours if there was no improvement, but by midnight the vomiting became relentless. The pain was unbearable; my hips felt like someone was stabbing me from inside, with shooting pains going down my legs. I could barely stand.”

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