Severe allergy on holiday left me paralysed
Malcolm spent 10 months in hospital
A HOLIDAYMAKER was left paralysed from the neck down after suffering a rare reaction.
Malcolm Brown was taken to hospital for emergency treatment after spending the latter part of his break in Turkey with suspected food poisoning.
Wife Janis panicked when he was incapable of clothing or feeding himself as his symptoms worsened when they got back to Edinburgh last summer.
It was later discovered Malcolm was suffering from Guillain-Barre syndrome, a rare condition that causes the body’s immune system to attack the nerves. He spent 10 months in hospital, with Janis, his daughters and his grandchildren unable to visit due to Covid-19 protocols.
Malcolm instead kept in contact using an Amazon Echo device controlled by his voice, only being permitted to see his wife in person for one hour on Christmas Day
He is now able to stand and sit in his wheelchair, though he admits that he may never be in a position to regain his previously busy lifestyle.
Malcolm said: “The hospital team who looked after me were wonderful, but I missed Janis and the rest of the family.”
He added: “I will never stop attempting to improve and I’m not going to give up.”
The condition is thought to be caused by an over-reaction of the immune system which mistakenly attacks the peripheral nerves due to an allergic reaction.
It is thought just two people per 100,000 in the UK suffer from the disease, which has varying levels of severity, each year.
Gain provides information and support for families and patients living with the condition as well as helping fund research to help treat the disease.
Janis has since signed up for a running challenge covering the equivalent distance from Land’s End to John O’Groats to raise money for the charity.