Greta's Story

In September 2022, Greta Beach, a full time working single mum, faced an unexpected and terrifying health crisis.

"When my son was 10 months old, I got meningitis.”

It started while Greta was playing with her boy in the lounge: "I felt like I had a blocked nose and dry nasal passages." Minutes later, she developed an earache that quickly escalated from discomfort to severe pain, preventing her from sleeping. Concerned, she drove herself to A&E, where she was prescribed antibiotic ear drops and pain relief. Despite being grateful for the pain medication, Greta still felt something was wrong. The next day, her ear pain persisted, and by that night her condition had worsened again.

"I didn’t understand what they were saying. When I woke up later, the pressure and pain in my head was gone, and I had a tube behind my ear draining fluid and stitches around the back of my ear." Doctors eventually came in to explain the severity of her situation and how the infection had travelled through her inner ear, through bone, reaching the base of her skull near her brain. "They had to remove bone behind my ear as it was full of infection and place a grommet in my ear to help drain further fluids. They explained that this infection was called meningitis, and it was life-threatening. I remember looking down at my baby and feeling so grateful to be holding him again.”

Greta recalls being in shock as it all happened so fast, and she had so little time to process it. She initially didn't understand what meningitis was; all she had previously heard was that it was contagious. The specialist explained to Greta that there are many different strands of meningitis, and the type she contracted was an aggressive infection known as meningococcal.

Greta's recovery was challenging. "The doctors wanted me to have three good days in the hospital before going home. I stayed in Christchurch Hospital for nearly two weeks, monitored day and night,"

Despite strong antibiotics and pain relief, her symptoms fluctuated, requiring constant medical attention. “I would regularly visit the ENT specialist after being discharged from hospital, who would drain out more infection, this was uncomfortable and painful.”

At one point during her recovery, Greta’s specialist became concerned about her blood tests and feared the infection had spread to her liver. Doctors arranged a liver scan, another MRI, and an eye exam. A neurosurgeon discussed the possibility of a lumbar puncture and skull surgery to remove the infection. Greta overheard talk of a potential ICU transfer. Too sick and weak to process this, Greta recalls just wanting to sleep despite the growing concerns for her health. In a stroke of luck, Greta’s results showed no immediate concerns, and she thankfully avoided skull surgery.

Not only was the physical recovery a tough journey, but Greta also felt isolated and alone during her time in the hospital.

“Although I had family and friends visit regularly, I was feeling emotionally down and I was very tearful throughout my recovery.”

A few days after returning home, while feeding her baby, Greta's right eye started to go fuzzy. She began to experience pins and needles on her right side and lost feeling and movement in her arm and leg, leading her to be rushed Timaru hospital by ambulance. An MRI suggested ongoing nerve damage from the meningitis infection on the left side of her head, which controls the right side of the body.

Greta eventually returned to work part-time, gradually building up to full-time. However, returning to a normal routine was challenging as she tired easily and was prone to colds and infections. Twice, she developed severe ear infections, causing facial swelling and fevers. She was advised to go to Christchurch ED and was admitted for treatment, eventually requiring surgery to insert a long-term grommet/tube in her ear for drainage.

So far, Greta has had two surgeries and continues to have ongoing ear issues while awaiting another surgery, which she hopes will be her last. Through it all, Greta remained resilient. "I recall being in Christchurch hospital for a follow-up appointment, and one of the specialists who cared for me stopped me in the hallway and said he was very impressed by my recovery, as most people end up in ICU and do not have the same result I did."

Reflecting on her ordeal, Greta emphasises the urgency of recognising meningitis symptoms.

"From the moment you get the symptoms, it's like a ticking time bomb because your life depends on urgent medical attention."

Her message is clear: "My symptoms were sudden and subtle, but it is an aggressive disease that took me away from my day-to-day life. It impacts not only you, but everyone in your world. The recovery from meningitis is hard and ongoing because your body remains sick for a long time."