A HEARTBROKEN dad has spoken of the moment his beloved daughter suddenly passed away after catching meningitis.
Sara Stelzer, 18, had just started studying at university when she started complaining of having a bad headache.
That headache, coupled with feeling generally run down and sick, meant that the teen ended up sleeping through some of her classes leading up to the weekend.
“We thought it was flu – we told her to rest and go to the student health centre,” Dad Greg, 63, told Fox News.
“She was more concerned with missing classes than how bad she felt.”
But Sara then developed a blotchy, purple rash – a telltale symptom of meningitis.
By the Tuesday, she was in A&E.
A friend texted her parents to break the news and by the time they managed to get to their daughter’s bedside in San Diego, California, she was already in a coma.
It was then that doctors realised that Sara’s meningitis was too advanced and that there was nothing to be done about it.
The infection had spread to her brain and spinal cord – causing her to suffer a stroke.
By the time her parents got to her, Sara was brain dead and within two days, she had passed away.
Her mum Laurie, 51, told Yahoo Lifestyle: “We had no idea that these flu-like symptoms could develop and kill her within 36 hours.”
Symptoms of meningitis
Meningitis can affect anyone but it’s most common in babies, teens and young adults.
It’s often mistaken for being flu and in some cases, people can seem hungover.
But the longer you leave it, the more at risk you become of things like blood poisoning – which can be fatal.
You can get the Meningitis B vaccine at Boots for £220.
Symptoms of meningitis develop suddenly and can include:
- a high temperature (fever) of 38C or above
- being sick
- a headache
- a rash that does not fade when a glass is rolled over it (but this will not always develop)
- a stiff neck
- a dislike of bright lights
- drowsiness or unresponsiveness
- fits (seizures)
You need to seek medical help ASAP.
Even when people do survive meningitis, it can leave them with life-long issues such as hearing or vision loss, epilepsy, amputations and memory problems.
Sara had actually had a combination vaccine against meningitis.
Meningococcal disease is caused primarily by five types of bacteria – A, C, W, Y and B.
Kids aged between 11 and 12 usually get a combination vaccine before receiving a booster at 16 to prevent meningitis A, C, W and Y.
From 16, you can also have a specific jab against meningitis B – but Sara, like many young people, didn’t have it.
Her parents are now campaigning for the meningitis B vaccine to be actively pushed on young people.
In the UK, babies receive the meningitis B vaccine at 8 weeks, 16 weeks and a year, as part of the NHS childhood vaccination programme.
“You don’t realize how your body and mind is affected by a loss like that — the first year was a fog,” dad Greg explained.
“My older daughter took a semester off [from college]. We grieved our way, went to support groups and counseling.
“But, when the fog lifted, we felt that we needed to do something.”
Greg and Laurie are now travelling around to different universities to warn students, staff and parents about just how deadly MenB can be.
“We felt the need to get the word out about this terrible disease and started a campaign to speak at universities.
“Our story is simple: We tell our story then we present a PowerPoint presentation explaining what meningitis is, what the symptoms are and how at-risk students can protect themselves with the vaccine,” Greg said.
At Sara’s uni, three other students were diagnosed with the disease last year but survived.
Thanks to the Stelzers’ efforts, someone recognised one of the students symptoms as something more severe than flu.
And as of this autumn, San Diego State Uni is forcing all new students to have a meningococcal serogroup B vaccine.
MORE ON MENINGITIS
“Prevention is a lot better than dealing with it after it happens — we go to any and every school to try and push for it. Had we known this, Sara would still be with us today,” he said.
“For us, this has been like therapy — it’s Sara’s legacy. It keeps her memory alive.
And for us, it has been very rewarding.”
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