Sunday night I was round a friend’s house mulling the sudden death of my dad and I came over with a bit of a headache.

Went home, drank wine still mulling said death and headache got worse. Thinking it was a) the stress of everything going on and be the wine banged down a paracetamol and went to bed.

Woke up in the night coughing, head pounding. More painkillers and a glass of water and back to sleep.

Monday was a day for getting stuff ready to fly over to Paris and was in Morrisons sorting out supplies and by this stage my headache was pretty ferocious. It didn’t feel like any headache I had ever had and looked at my arms and noticed a faint rash down both arms.

Went home and did the glass test and the rash didn’t disappear. I didn’t want to overreact so Mrs Danny called the GP for advice and he told me to go straight and see him. He was by no means convinced it was meningitis but didn’t like what he saw either so gave me a shot of antibiotics just in case (as per standard protocol in these cases) and sent me straight to A&E (would have blue lighted me if Mrs D hadn’t been with me to drive) with a letter and I was straight in to see a doctor.

Ended up in the infectious diseases ward at the Hallamshire in Sheffield for three days – they still weren’t convinced it was meningitis but they pumped me full of antibiotics just in case and in the end the tests have come back and it is.

It may be the viral version in which case there isn’t much they can do but if it is the bacterial version then the doctor’s actions and me getting in to see him so quickly may have saved me from being very poorly indeed or even dead.

So guys if you are at all unsure get it checked out and let a medic decide. If you are still not sure get a second opinion.

As a PS the NHS has performed faultlessly on this occasion – my GP was brilliant (usually is to be fair), A&E didn’t mess around and I have received the best possible care at the Hallamshire.

I am now home with some outpatient appointments for the final doses of antibiotics and with luck I will be still able to make my dad’s funeral on Monday.

Head still bloody hurts though…

It didn’t feel like any headache I had ever had

How so?

It may be the viral version

Lucky boy if it is just that….relatively speaking,

Cheers,

Dr Dre.

Good post, thanks.

Some week you’re having. There will be better ones soon.

@Jamie – you deleted that rather good link. As for the headache – it was just the most intense throbbing pressurised pain I have ever felt. The slightest movement made it unbearable.

By Monday morning paracetamol didn’t touch it and it usually at least takes the edge off for me. By the time I was in A&E full strength codeine didn’t do anything and even morphine only had a limited effect.

It was so far beyond any headache I had experienced – I just knew it wasn’t right…

The glass test isn’t reliable so don’t count on it.

Severe illness, marks like blood spots or bruises in skin, photosensitivity (being in a dark room with eyes tight shut and head under duvet is still too bright for you), unable to tilt head forward. The marks in the skin usually develop quite late so you need to be seen ASAP by that point

😯 glad to hear you are in the mend. Friend of mine had viral meningitis and it put her out for nearly two months.

@Jamie – you deleted that rather good link. As for the headache – it was just the most intense throbbing pressurised pain I have ever felt. The slightest movement made it unbearable.

Was editing my post and somehow deleted it. Bloody 15min edit window… *shakes fist*

http://www.meningitisnow.org/meningitis-info/signs-and-symptoms/adults/

Good man for getting it sorted.

I had a similar experience aged about 10 yrs old. Went down with a bonkers headache at school which ‘spread’ into my neck and left shoulder/arm. Felt worse that evening and went to bed. Deteriorated further overnight so my mum dialled 999. Ambulance arrived. Medics told her they suspected viral menangitis, at which point she burst into tears.

Courted off to ICU and remained there for 5 days. Felt like sh1t for the first 2-3 days, with sickness and other stuff kicking in. Turned out to be a virus that caused my left lung to collapse.

Don’t remember if it was actually the menangitis virus. Either way it was horrible.

Get well soon and glad to hear they caught well done that GP. The Anto-biotics would kill or reduce the chance of sepsis but yes not kill the virus.

As a footnote don’t mess about with a GP call 999.

Glad you got it sorted quick

Know what you mean about the headaches. I’ve had viral Meningistis twice.

never feel the need to take pills for a headache now, all the rest are but a dull ache

Condolences about your dad, just been through the same with my partner,.

Nearly lost my first year uni flat mate to this. Called gp out in the night who decided it was flu.

Two of us went off early in the morning for a club thing. Came back two days later to find he had been blue lighted to Southampton General an hour after we left less than four hours after the doc has basically told him he was wasting his time. Spent a lot of time on icu but luckily made a full recovery in the longer term.

Best of luck with the recovery Danny.

Thanks all for the kind thoughts. Thing is I was so close to trying to man up and setting off for the south coast to look after grannybgoode but once I saw the rash (and I know that is not the only indicator) that tipped the decision in to staying.

So glad I made that call…

I used to work on an ICU and it’s a devastating illness, always saw big numbers just after the uni term began. Get well soon and sorry about your Dad.

My cousin had it as a baby, the docs called to see if the helicopter was available to get him to Newcastle before settling for one of the fastest ambulance rides going.

It’s a very serious thing I think my awareness was kicked off by being at Uni in the late 90’s where there seemed to be 1 or 2 cases every year.

My mother had viral meningitis, her useless GP told her it was flu (blinding headache unable to bear light and to weak to stand). By the time he thought it was something more serious, all of the above x 10 plus rashes, and blue lighted her it had taken hold and destroyed her coclia nerves (whetever it is in you inner ear that does hearing and balance)leaving her deaf and unable to walk.

I had bacterial at uni in 92.

A friend had been taken to hospital with it one Friday in early autumn term. I felt a bit out of it on the Sunday, sort of like I was coming down with a cold.

Woke up Monday morning at 7 with a headache and feeling more out of it, went to flat next door to tell a friend that I wouldn’t go running with him as planned, but could he please knock for me at 8:15 so I could grab a lift onto campus with him. He said fine and I headed back to bed. After about half an hour of dozing (and feeling worse and worse) I can remember climbing into my (full on mountaineering) sleeping bag because I was so cold – I think the only thing that stopped me overdosing on paracetamol was that I only had one tablet left – and then having the duvet over that, but still feeling freezing. Needing to throw up, I managed to crawl out of my bedroom under the duvet but only made it half way down the hallway before doing so, and then collapsing. Thankfully my friend from next door then arrived to let me know it was uni time. He apparently then dragged me to his car and drove me to the uni health centre, they called an ambulance and my next memories start about two weeks later.

The worst of it came on so fast – less than a hour between not feeling up to a 5k run and being gone. The out of itness of the fever meant I never noticed my neck being sore neck, and the headache took second place to it as well. The only rash I got was from my allergic reaction to penicillin.

My friend died.

It’s a horrible disease. I’d never heard of it before this all happened, since then it seems everywhere I’ve been I’ve met people whose familys have suffered because of it.