Teen goes to hospital for tests, leaves 2 years later paralysed: ‘Hope to become a nail technician’ | Trending

At just 13, Megan Dixon first began experiencing symptoms that would soon take over her life. 16, her health had deteriorated so severely that doctors initially suspected she had suffered a stroke. What was supposed to be a short hospital stay turned into a two-year battle for survival, during which she became entirely paralysed, unable to speak, walk, or even open her eyes, reported the BBC. The condition can cause seizures, spasms, and a wide range of other neurological impairments.(Pexel) Eventually, Megan received a diagnosis of Functional Neurological Disorder (FND), a condition in which the brain struggles to send and receive signals to and from the body. Though the nervous system remains structurally intact, it fails to function properly, resulting in a range of severe symptoms such as seizures, paralysis, speech loss, and vision problems. Her condition forced her to move from her family’s home near Bath to the Eagle Wood Neurological Care Centre in Peterborough. “It was not easy. I think it was a lot harder for my mum and dad to have to leave me there on my own, but I couldn’t do anything for myself. I was paralysed from the neck down,” she told the BBC. Megan described herself as extremely vulnerable upon entering the care centre at 18. “I couldn’t see, I couldn’t talk. I hate the word, but I was very vulnerable at the time.” The symptoms had crept in gradually over the years, but in 2021 they intensified dramatically. She was rushed to hospital when she suddenly lost her ability to speak. “I was taken into hospital because they were concerned I had had a stroke, or something, because I lost the ability to talk.” “I was taken for four days of tests and came out of hospital two years later.” According to FND Action, the condition can cause seizures, spasms, and a wide range of other neurological impairments. While the disorder has horically been misunderstood and blamed on psychological trauma alone, current understanding points to trauma as a contributing risk factor, not the root cause. Also read: ‘We heard gunshots, started to run’: Woman who lost father in Pahalgam attack recalls harrowing moment 18 months of therapy“It stops the functioning of signals from the brain to your body from working properly and causes all sorts of neurological symptoms,” Megan explained. “I couldn’t do anything for myself, I lost the ability to talk,” she noted. “I couldn’t see, so I wasn’t able to open my eyes. My brain couldn’t reger the difference between eyes closed and eyes being open,” she added. She also lost her ability to swallow, which led to her being fitted with a feeding tube—first orally, and later through her stomach. At one stage, Megan experienced as many as 50 seizures a day. After undergoing 18 months of intense therapy, her condition has shown marked improvement. “I can move everything now. Obviously I can talk, I can see. I can’t walk and I’m never going to be able to walk again, but that’s because I’ve got contractions in my knees,” she said. “I need surgery in order to bend them because my legs are stuck straight. It’s very painful, but I’m waiting on surgery, and it means I’m never going to be able to walk again.” Megan shared that, at one point, doctors warned her parents she might not survive. “Honestly, it was something I never thought I would be planning when my parents took me to the care home. They thought that was it – that it was going to be my home for the rest of my life. She said, “I was getting to the point that I nearly died in hospital, my body just shut down that much. The doctors did have to tell my parents to prepare for the worst – they didn’t think I would make it to 18 and here I am at 20.” Now 20, Megan is focused on her next chapter—saving up to enrol in an online nail technician course and making plans to move in with her boyfriend. “I really can’t wait to finally move out and get a place with my boyfriend,” she said. “I’m very excited.” Also read: JD Vance opens up about meeting Pope Francis a day before he died: ‘It’s pretty crazy, actually’ Megan now shares her journey on TikTok, inspiring thousands with her story of resilience and recovery. “Every small victory, whether it’s moving a finger, speaking a word, or simply making it through another day is worth celebrating,” she said.