Bodybuilder mum unable to walk and left bedbound after waking up with brain fog
A bodybuilding mum has been left bedbound after suffering a terrifying mystery illness which doctors initially thought she was making up.
Melody Wakelin was even told she could have Munchausen's syndrome - where a person seeks medical attention for fake or self-inflicted symptoms. The 41-year-old can barely walk after suffering symptoms which started with a brain fog and led to tremors, muscle spasms, vision problems and difficulty standing. It has left her feeling ''like a piece of furniture'', she says.
She first fell ill in 2017, three weeks after competing in a bodybuilding competition. But when doctors said they could not find the cause of her problems she did her own research and uncovered the frightening truth.
Melody was finally diagnosed with atlantoaxial instability (AAI) in September 2023. The condition means her brain is sinking into her spinal canal and her skull is sliding down onto her neck.
Melody competes in a bodybuilding competition (Melody Wakelin / SWNS)The slightest bump on the head or sudden neck movement could "completely crush" her brain stem and in extreme cases lead to death. She is now desperately trying to raise cash for a life-saving operation.
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Melody said: "I went from being a bodybuilder to being bedbound. I can't walk, and I struggle to stand and even sit up now. I could be internally decapitated if I bump my head or move my head too suddenly, it's terrifying."
The fitness fanatic started bodybuilding after losing 16.5 stone, going from 25st to 8st 7lbs and a size 8 to 10. But just weeks after coming second in a competition in 2017, she started experience severe “brain fog”.
The debilitating symptoms continued and she had no explanation about what had caused them. Eventually she saw a specialist who believes it was linked to her condition Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome – which affects her connective tissue, the Liverpool Echo reports.
Melody with husband Jack and kids Wentworth and Hudson, before becoming ill in 2017. (Melody Wakelin / SWNS)
Melody after diagnosis with Atlantoaxial instability (Melody Wakelin / SWNS)Melody, from Ashford in Kent, says: "I've deteriorated to the point where I need a wheelchair to get about and I've lost all independence. I’m basically a piece of furniture and can’t move. I'm terrified I don't get the surgery, it will get worse, and I'll be left paralysed or die.
"I had to quit work, and I can’t really look after the kids or even leave the house. My kids were five and seven when this first happened, most upsetting for me. I always wanted to be a mother and having this happen has completely taken it away from me. I ended up gaining the weight back and some doctors suggested that was the cause of my problems."
She is now hoping to raise £115,000 for treatment abroad. The help isn't available on the NHS, so she will have to pay. Her best hope is a spinal surgeon in Spain. "He is one of the top specialists in the world with experience performing this surgery on a person with EDS," she says.
"I'm really scared, I'm getting worse each day and I'm scared I might die. I've read about the surgery being life-changing and it's my final hope. I'm scared I won't get to see my kids grow-up and I'll do anything to feel normal again."
Her husband has set-up a GoFundMe page and the family are trying to raise the cash to cover all the costs. More can be found here.
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