Woman Wakes Up Paralysed After Feeling A Crick In Her Neck | HuffPost Life

'I just thought I had pulled a muscle.'

PA Real Life

Caroline Hall felt a sharp pain in her neck as she bent down one day at work.

The next day, the 38-year-old RSPCA inspector from Bolton, Lancashire, woke up paralysed, unable to move or feel anything below her head.

“I was absolutely terrified” she said. “I thought I was going to die.

“The day before, I just thought I had pulled a muscle and even told a colleague it was nothing that a glass of wine and a hot bath couldn’t fix.”

PA Real Life

Caroline Hall in hospital

Before her hospitalisation - which doctors have since told her was due to a spinal stroke - Hall was fit and healthy.

She had never even had a hospital appointment.

Then, one day in January 2012, she was out on a job at a farm in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester.

Bending down to take a rug off a horse in a stable, she felt a pain in the left hand side of her neck.

“I continued working, thinking it was nothing to worry about, but half an hour later I was feeling very unwell, drained and a bit out of it,” she said.

“My colleague told me to go and sit down in the van.

“Suddenly I got the most horrific pain in the world in my neck. I had to put my fist in my mouth to stop me screaming.

“I watched as my left arm slid down my body and the left side of my body drooped.

“I had no movement in that side and I knew I’d had a stroke from watching adverts on TV.

“I was really scared but thought I’d be okay if I just stayed strong until the ambulance arrived.”

Hall’s colleague, who had heard her muffled screams, had phoned an ambulance.

She was taken to the Tameside General Hospital and kept in the resuscitation area as, on the way, she had started having breathing difficulties.

Terrified, she believed she was going to die.

Before long, she became “locked in” for a few hours – meaning she could hear and see everything around her but could not speak or do anything.

She said: “Doctors were telling me to blink and move my toes but I couldn’t.

“My friends were there begging me to stay alive.”

PA Real Life

Caroline Hall with her partner Simon before her injury

Hall fell into a coma that night and was transferred to the Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust.

When she woke up the next morning in intensive care, she was totally paralysed from the neck down.

She was on a ventilator as her lungs had shut down.

Two MRI scans confirmed that she had suffered a spinal stroke, a rare condition in which blood flow to the spine is interrupted, potentially leading to paralysis.

The scans also showed she had a birth defect which she had never known about – the blood vessels around her spine had not joined up properly and one of them had burst, causing the spinal damage.

Doctors were not sure what the long term effects would be, or whether the paralysis would be permanent.

Three weeks later, though, Hall managed to move a finger after being “bullied into it” by her friend Vicki McDonald.

She describes the moment as “brilliant”, saying it gave her hope that she may fully regain her movement.

In February 2012, she was moved to the Spinal Injury Centre at the Southport and Ormskirk Hospital, where she underwent physiotherapy and occupational therapy.

She also relearned how to breathe independently, and was taught to use an electric wheelchair.

PA Real Life

She said: “I sobbed when I first sat in it. I couldn’t believe that this was where life had taken me.”

Over the next couple of months, movement in Hall’s right side slowly came back.

However, to this day, she still experiences weakness and cannot feel temperature or pain.

Her left side is still paralysed and she is unable to identify where her limbs are - for example if her leg is under or over the bed sheets.

She left hospital in August 2012 and used a manual wheelchair for a couple of years.

Then in August 2014 she was given a scooter by Aspire, a charity which supports people with spinal injuries, which she said has changed her life and made her much more independent.

“I’m so lucky that I’m here and have the best family and friends anyone could ask for,” she said.

“There have been some low and terrible times but I had such good support during those times that I made it through.”

Hall was helped by Aspire thanks to money generated from its annual fundraising event. For information, visit www.aspirechannelswim.co.uk.

21 Rare Diseases

Stiff Person Syndrome(01 of20)

People who suffer from this acquired neurological disorder experience repeated, often painful, muscle spasms as well as muscular rigidity and stiffness. According to the National Organization of Rare Diseases, spasms can occur at random or they can be caused by something as seemingly benign as light physical contact or an unexpected noise. The cause of Stiff Person Syndrome isn't yet known, but symptoms can be stabilized with medication. Left untreated, however, a person can lose the ability to walk.

Gigantism(02 of20)

This disease, which according to the NIH is most often caused by a begnin tumor in the pituitary gland, results in an excess of GH, or growth hormone. This causes sufferers to grow abnormally large, not just in terms of height, weight but also organ size. It results in complications like delayed puberty, increased sweating, and secretion of breast milk.

Pica(03 of20)

Characterized as an eating disorder, Pica causes people to eat what the National Organization for Rare Disorders describes as "non-nutritive" things. That umbrella term can include (but isn't limited to) dirt, clay, paper, and paint. Interestingly, it's not unusual for young kids to experience transient pica as a kind of phase, and pregnant women are also known to develop temporary pica cravings. The cause? Unknown. But in order to be diagnosed with full-blown Pica, a person's symptoms must last for more than a month.

Maple Syrup Urine Disease(04 of20)

MSUD, which is passed down through families, is a life-threatening metabolic disorder passed down through families that stems from the body's inability to process certain amino acids, leading to a build-up of them in the body. According to the NIH, symptoms usually surface in early infancy and can include vomiting, lack of energy, seizures, and developmental delays. MSUD takes its name from another symptom -- the urine in affected infants smells like caramel or maple syrup.

Situs Inversus(05 of20)

Situs Inversus is a congential condition in which internal organs of stomach and chest lie in mirror image of their normal body position -- something many sufferers aren't aware of until they seek medical help for an unrelated problem. People with Situs Inversus typically wear some form of identification to help doctors in the case of a medical emergency.

Trigger Thumb(06 of20)

Trigger thumb, or trigger finger as it's sometimes known, causes a person's finger or thumb to get caught in a locked position. According to the Mayo Clinic, it can then stay stuck or straighten with a painful "snap." The cause? It depends. Trigger Thumb is the result of a narrowing of the sheath around the tendon in the problem figure, but that can be caused by a lot of things, including any activity that requires people to grip things frequently. Trigger Thumb is also more frequent in women.

Scurvy(07 of20)

Once the disease of sailors and pirates, scurvy does still exist in the United States, though predominantly in older, malnourished adults. It usually stems from a Vitamin C deficiency, which can result in gum disease, skin leisons, and swelling of the joints. (credit:Getty )

Wilson's Disease(08 of20)

This progressive genetic disorder causes sufferers to store excess copper in tissues, including the brain and liver. Though the Mayo Clinic says that the body depends on copper in order to use iron and sugar, too much of it in the body can have real consequences. Which is why sufferers of Wilson's Disease are prone to liver failure.

Foreign Accent Syndrome(09 of20)

According to researchers at the University of Texas at Dallas, this speech disorder causes people to experience a sudden shift in their accents and though it is known to be caused by things like brain trauma, conversion disorder, or multiple sclerosis, an exact reason behind the syndrome is unknown. Sufferers of FAS dramatically shift their speech in terms of timing and intonation, which often causes them to sound foreign, but they remain totally comprehensible. Documented accent shifts include from American English to British and from British to French.

Carcinoid Syndrome(10 of20)

According to the National Organization of Rare Diseases, about 10 percent of people with carcinoid tumors -- which the Mayo Clinic says are slow growing tumors that produce excess serotonin and usually appear in the gastrointestinal tract or lungs -- get this syndrome. It occurs only in patients whose tumors have metastasized to the liver. The symptoms? Wheezing, hotness, and extreme facial blushing.

Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome(11 of20)

Children and adults afflicted with CVS experience recurrent episodes of severe vomiting, which can last for days, followed by sudden periods of no vomiting. While kids are likely to experience more frequent attacks, adults's often last longer. To date, the cause of CVS is unknown.

Peeling Skin Syndrome(12 of20)

This obscure, genetic skin disorder does exactly what its name implies: causes sufferers to experience constant shedding of their skin. (In some patients, peeling is limited to the feet and hands.) Along with that, sufferers often feel itching and redness -- symptoms that can appear from birth or develop later in life. Although the exact cause is unknown, a mutation in the TGM5 gene has been identified in many sufferers.

Platelet Storage Pool Deficiency(13 of20)

This is a blanket designation for several rare platelet abnormalities, most of which lead to mild or moderate bleeding disorders. According to the NIH, the problem stems having limited granules -- the parts of platelets that, among other things, store ADP -- the energy released when a molecular bond is broken. That reduction in storage space inhibits the platelets' ability to secrete ADP in a speedy fashion, which is thought to be what causes the bleeding. Classic symptoms of a Platelet Storage Pool Deficiency are nosebleeds, excessive bruising, and profuse bleeding in surgery.·

ACDC(14 of20)

Only nine people in the United States are known to have this disease, which was just given a name in a recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine. ACDC, or arterial calcification due to CD73 deficiency, results in calcium build-ups in the arteries below the waist of sufferers and in the joints of their hands and feet. According to the NIH, the breakthrough discovery found that the disease is related to a variant in the NT5E gene.3

Conversion Disorder(15 of20)

This condition, which typically occurs after an extremely stressful emotional event, causes a person to experience sudden blindness or paralysis that can't be otherwise explained. People with mental illlnesses are at particularly high risk and psychological treatment can help lessen the symptoms.·

Ochronosis(16 of20)

Ochronosis results in black or blue external tissues, often the ear cartilage or eye, though it can occur throughout the body. It affects people who suffer from certain metabolic disorders, but it can also be caused by exposure, though scientists aren't exactly sure to what. Not just a cosmetic issue, the affected areas can become brittle and degenerate over time.

VLCAD Deficiency(17 of20)

This condition, which is caused by genetic mutations in the so-called ACADVL gene, keeps people from converting certain fats to energy. According to the NIH, the deficiency often presents during infancy in symptoms including low blood sugar, weakness, and lethargy.

Hairy Tongue(18 of20)

As the name suggests, Hairy Tongue is a condition in which the tongue develops a black, hairy texture. According to the Mayo Clinic, the disease is "harmless" and is caused by an overgrowth of bacteria in the mouth, which can be treated with antibiotics. The NIH reports that hairy Tongue can also present as brown, yellow, or green discoloration. ·

Ochoa (Urofacial) Syndrome, or, Peculiar Facial Expression(19 of20)

This obscure, inherited disorder presents at birth and causes infants to grimace when, in fact, they are attempting to smile. The disorder also includes an extreme urinary abnormality: an obstruction that interrupts the connection between nerve signals in the spinal cord and bladder, leading to incontinence. Though treatment does exist in the form of antibiotics and bladder re-education, some patients can develop renal failure in their teens and 20's, which can be life-threatening.

Progeria(20 of20)

According to the Mayo Clinic, only around 130 cases of this devastating genetic disorder have been documented since it was discovered in 1886. Affected babies normally appear normal at birth, but within 12 months begin to have symptoms like hair loss and wrinkles. According to the Mayo Clinic, progeria is caused by a genetic mutation, but not one that's passed down through families; it's a chance event that affects only one egg or sperm. The average life expectancy for sufferers is 13.

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