The parents of a 13-year-old Shropshire schoolgirl today spoke about how their daughter was left fighting for her life after being struck down by a mystery virus.
Paige Brennan, a pupil at Thomas Telford School, Old Park, Telford, was “perfectly normal” until she came home from school with a headache. Within hours she was having seizures.
Margaret and Jim, her parents, called 999 and Paige was rushed to Telford’s Princess Royal Hospital before being transferred to the intensive care unit at the University Hospital of North Staffordshire, Stoke-on-Trent.
She was later transferred to Birmingham Children’s Hospital, where she remains.
Now, 11 weeks after she was struck down with encephalitis, a rare brain virus, and NMDA, where her antibodies started attacking her brain, Paige is unable to speak or recognise anyone.
She is able to open her eyes and breathe for herself, but her parents said their daughter could be in hospital until Christmas.
Mrs Brennan, 45, from The Rock, Telford, said they and Paige’s sister Chloe, 11, had been overwhelmed with support from friends, family and Paige’s school.
The latest fundraising donation of £1,000 came from staff at Outfit, Forge Retail Park, who walked up The Wrekin with pupils from Thomas Telford School.
Mrs Brennan said: “Paige was a perfectly normal teenager. Then she started having a headache, like a migraine, I gave her paracetamol and she went to school. She came home in the evening and started fitting and having a seizure.
“She has been critically ill, but is now out of intensive care and was put on the high dependency unit and is now on the ward.
“She’s awake but cannot talk or anything… We think she is becoming slightly mo-re aware – we don’t know if she can see and we don’t even think she can recognise us.
“Before she was ill she liked drama and netball and loved going out with her friends and ice-skating.
“It’s going to be a long recovery, but they hope it’s going to be a good recovery.”
Mrs Brennan said: “We want to say a big thank you to everyone who has raised money for Paige and her care when she recovers.”
Paige’s schoolfriends raised hundreds of pounds for her with a non-uniform day.
By Kirsty Smallman
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