ceecee Report post Posted January 6, 2006 Just thought i'd let you all know in case anyone's interested.There's a rather sad story on the final pafe of woman's own this week. It is about a child who when he was two and a half contracted encephalitus.It doesn't say how he got it.Whether it was through a vaccination or not like my daughter.It doesnt say. It goes onto say the encephalitus left him with autism epilepsy and severe learning difficulties. Unfortunately he never recovered and he is now fourteen and doing well at a boarding school. It says in the article he wasin hospital for sixmonths but life was never to be the same again. My daughter contracted encephalitus at four years old following the measels part of the mmr vaccination going into her brain.She too developed autism but within six months she was lucky enought o make a full recovery. What I cant understand is what makes one child recover and another not bearing in mind they were both toddlers.??? Any thought on this gratefully appreciated. I was surprised at seeing this article as from what i have been given to understand whilst encephalitus is not as rare as one would imagine.Autistic encephalitus is very rare. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ameretto Report post Posted January 6, 2006 CeeCee, I have no idea about what may have caused the difference in outcomes, but i am pleased that you and your daughter have been so lucky in terms of recovery. I will certainly try to find the magazine and read the article. The problem, i think, with rare conditions is that, because of their rarity, they get less publicity and so it is harder for parents to contact others in similar situations. It also means that the rest of us are uninformed and have poor awareness of these conditions. It might have been the rarity of the condition that persuaded the magazine to publish the story? Maybe there could be an opportunity for you to raise awareness by approaching magazines with your own story? Of course that entirely depends on how you feel about privacy. Natasha Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ceecee Report post Posted January 6, 2006 Natasha Unfortunately I am unable to do this.I do not wish my father to have any knowledge of myself or my children.He has many difficulties and is not someone who I would wish my children to have any contact with. I think it is an excellent idea to promote awareness of these rare conditions but unfortunately because of my circumstances and the need to remain anonymous to a certain extent I have never gone to the newspapers or magazines. I wish i could because it would help others and also show what happens when the mmr booster vaccination doesn't suit the person it wwas given to. It was certainly a though provoking article for me and well worth a read. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LizK Report post Posted January 6, 2006 I suppose with any brain infection how it affects the person is variable and sadly in some respects luck of the draw. Take meningitis, some children recover completely, some are left with short term disabilites, some with longer lasting disablilities and some sadly die Maybe not the best analogy as bacterial meningitis is treatable with antibiotics but you tend to see a similar spread of outcomes with viral meningitis, just with a lower long term morbidity and mortality rate There are lots of variables. This child might have had a infection that caused the encephalitis, it would depend on which part of the brain was affected and how severely it was affected, also on the resilience of the brain tissue and ability to regenerate. Also a lot of children with generalised brain damage exhibit autistic symptoms without having primary autism if that makes sense Liz x Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tensing Report post Posted January 6, 2006 (edited) I saw a website just the other day asking for peoples stories for the top women's magazines, you just had to fill in the basic details and then they phone you to get the more in depth story, I'll try and find it. edited to add link, here you go. http://www.money4yourstory.co.uk/ Edited January 7, 2006 by Tensing Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ceecee Report post Posted January 7, 2006 Thanks to all of you for your advice replies and opinions. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tally Report post Posted January 7, 2006 ceecee, magazines often use actors to pose for photos and use false names in this type of article. If you explained the need for anonymity, they may well still be interested in your daughter's story. You might also write a letter to the magazine. Most don't publish letters from anonymous senders, but you can request that your name be withheld from publication. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ceecee Report post Posted January 7, 2006 Really I didn't realise this Tally it might be worth looking into further in that case.I have always held back before to protect my children from my father who is not someone we wish to have any contact with. Thanks for the advice.it's appreciated. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites