Holiday nightmare for Shania and family

22-YEAR-OLD DIAGNOSED WITH RARE CONDITION AFTER HAVING SEIZURES

- KATIE OBORN

A PLYMOUTH family were on holiday in Mallorca when an unexpected emergency turned their world upside down. Shania Melvin, aged 22, was rushed to hospital in Spain after becoming paralysed.

Shania, from Plympton, suffered numerous seizures that left her unable to move or speak. She was diagnosed with a bacterial meningitis – a serious infection which causes inflammation of the protective membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord.

Before she was taken ill, Shania had a busy life – going out with friends, exercising at the gym and working as a Gaia Spa therapist.

But, after spending over two weeks in a Spanish hospital, followed by another six weeks in Derriford Hospital, she was given a life-changing diagnosis. Shania was told she had a rare condition called Functional Neurological Disorder (FND).