Myself and my husband, Liam were on our mini-moon in Skiathos, Greece, where we were having an amazing time! On our penultimate day, Liam began feeling generally unwell with flu-like symptoms and he developed a rash all over his body.
I took him to a walk-in centre as I was concerned he was septic. We were dismissed by the staff and told he had a cold and to take paracetamol. However, over the course of the day, he deteriorated and an ambulance was called. He was taken in a blue light ambulance to a medical centre (there are no hospitals on the island), where I was not allowed to be in the room with him any longer, as they suspected bacterial meningitis. I was told by the medics that my husband of one week was critically ill and needed to be transferred to Athens on a private medical jet as he needed specialist treatment. I said goodbye to my husband through the ambulance window and recited my wedding vows to him. He was barely conscious at this point, but the fear in his eyes was profound.
I was not allowed to join my husband on the plane to Athens due to him being potentially contagious, so I booked on the first flight to Athens available, which was the following day. Those 24 hours without him were the longest of my life; the fear of the unknown and upset was unbearable.
Liam rang me in the early hours of the morning when he fully regained consciousness. The relief of seeing his face pop up on my phone screen was indescribable. After what felt like forever, I made it to Athens and was briefly allowed to reunite with my husband in full PPE.
I was told by the doctors that my husband had been diagnosed with bacterial meningitis, which was confirmed on a lumbar puncture. The doctors told me that Liam was a miracle, as they all thought he would not make it, given how poorly he was.
After a week of intravenous steroids, antibiotics, fluids and multiple MRI scans, Liam was deemed medically fit for discharge and has luckily made a full recovery.
We are both so thankful to the doctors and nurses who saved his life.
- Sarah, Liam's wife