A photo from open sources
Young woman recovered from intolerable headaches after doctors taught her to “drink” her own brain liquid.
26-year-old Sam Chaplin suffered from a rare disease that called intracranial hypertension.
This leads to the accumulation of fluid in the skull, presses on the brain and in extreme cases it can even lead to blindness. Sam’s condition was so dire that she was bedridden and doctors believed that she was close to a stroke.
A photo from open sources
But after they found a way to remove excess fluid from her brain into her stomach, her life has changed. Drain, also known as gastroperitoneal shunt, connected the brain and stomach, allowing it digest your brain fluid and reduce pressure on the brain.
“Before, my life was pretty pathetic. I spent days on end in bed and I was filled with self-pity. I did not want live because I didn’t have life as such, but only terrible headache. I tried many drugs that either didn’t help at all, or gave a short effect, therefore, when my doctor advised me to install a shunt, I grabbed hold of this opportunity, says Sam.
A photo from open sources
Sam first noticed signs of illness in January 2010 during work at the bar.
“I was working at the bar and suddenly it got worse sight, I could not make out clients. Everything was blurry with me before my eyes and I felt very strange. Was really scared and I immediately went to the hospital, “she said.
A photo from open sources
Sam was referred to a number of professionals who they suspected that she might have a brain tumor. Fortunately after conducting a series of tests, a brain tumor was excluded from list of possible causes of the disease. However, the doctors were not able to determine what happened to her. The experts found out the true the cause of her health problems only after lumbar puncture.
The human brain is surrounded by a fluid that protects the brain from hitting the skull wall, but Sam’s body turned out to be produces this fluid three times the norm. Even after diagnosing and taking 17 different drugs per day, Sam continued to suffer from terrible headaches.
And only in May last year, a girl was given a shunt for draining excess fluid. Sam hoped for immediate relief, but it took her brain time to get used to a foreign body. After some time, Sam’s brain has adapted to change since then she lives a normal life again. Life time
