Elena is a mother of several children. Following her fifth delivery, she was diagnosed with meningoencephalitis. As a result, she lost the ability to speak and could only communicate through slight movements of her head. Elena requires rehabilitation in order to recover.
“Mom, I survived”
– I won’t be able to raise them! – Lyubov begins to wipe away her tears within five minutes of the conversation. Her grandchildren are running around: four-year-old Damir and three-year-old Venera, while seven-month-old Marcel is sleeping in her arms. – How will I raise them? – she repeats softly, affectionately watching 11-year-old Eldar, who is dusting the shelves, and 16-year-old Ksyusha, who is sweeping the floor.
Lyubov recalls how dramatically her life changed right after the New Year. Her daughter brought her older children during the winter holidays as Elena was approaching the due date for her fifth child. A week later, her son-in-law handed her the newborn baby and vanished. By then, Elena was already in intensive care on a ventilator.
A week before giving birth, Elena called her mother to check on how the older children were doing and mentioned that her throat hurt. The following day, she was in tears: “Mom, I’m dying; my ear hurts, and my jaw hurts.”
Lyubov became understandably worried: it turned out that her daughter had phlegmon of the submandibular region—a very serious condition where purulent inflammation can damage the brain.
— They took her to the hospital, — Lyubov recalls. — Then a text message arrived: “Mom, thank God, I survived. They performed an operation and removed two teeth.” Shortly after, Lena called to say she had given birth. She was 38 weeks pregnant. They induced labor and discharged her a week later.
The family pleaded with their daughter to come back home, but Elena chose to return with the baby to her husband in the village of Mirny. She also brought her older children. Almost immediately, however, she stopped answering calls. One of her sons called his grandmother to say that their mother was lying down and not getting up. She wasn’t even eating. When the ambulance arrived, Elena was already unconscious.
— The doctors were shocked: “We discharged her healthy!” Lena was swiftly taken to intensive care, where they performed a tracheostomy because she was unable to breathe. She stayed there for a month, — says Lyubov.
The infection reached her brain, leading to sepsis. Elena was diagnosed with secondary meningoencephalitis. Leaving all the children in the care of Ksenia, Elena’s eldest daughter, the parents rushed to the hospital.
“We hired a nurse, brought her pureed food in jars, and fed her. My daughter was screaming in pain all the time,” Lyubov recalls.
“The doctors said my daughter would recover.”
Elena’s brain was damaged to the extent that she could not speak. She could only nod or shake her head, and raised and closed her eyes in response to her mother’s questions. After meningoencephalitis, the doctors recorded “encephalopathy” in her medical history. The mother of several children was brought home in a wheelchair.
– The doctors, of course, saved her, – Lyubov continues, – Five people entered the ward and stated that the damage was moderate. We asked if she would be like this for the rest of her life. We were informed that she would recover and even be able to work.
However, during the medical and social examination, the psychologist concluded that she should be granted disability status; discussions of her returning to work were off the table.
Moreover, neighbors informed Lyubov and her husband about the importance of rehabilitation. They also contacted the Ministry of Health, sharing that no doctor had visited Elena’s home for two months.
— After that, two therapists came first, measured her blood pressure and mine, and that was all. They started offering me pills, insisting that “it’s all on you.” A neurologist from the district later visited us; she was very kind: “How can I help you?” We requested rehabilitation, and she prescribed a two-week course for free.
After the treatment, Elena showed improvements: her muscles strengthened, she became more stable while walking, and could walk further than before. However, she requires several more treatment sessions, and compulsory medical insurance does not cover these yet, so she faces a long wait. Lyubov had no choice but to seek help from a charity organization. Locals even brought clothing for her children and daughter.
— Our post office manager shared our situation online, and people started to help; I felt so ashamed that I cried, saying: “We don’t need anything!” — explains Lyubov.
After her hospital stay, Elena’s husband came twice and said he wanted to take only two children with him. It is extremely challenging for Lyubov to care for both her grandchildren and her daughter, but she is reluctant to give anyone up. “He said he doesn’t need the baby. My heart almost stopped. But, of course, how can I stand against their father? If he wants to take him, he will; the law is on his side,” Lyubov says, leaning toward the waking baby.
An elderly woman, along with her daughter and children, is nearly always alone. Her husband works from morning until evening harvesting winter crops with a tractor, and he also suffers from ischemia and vision issues. Lyubov’s blood pressure constantly fluctuates.
Elena occupies one room in the apartment entirely; the children often run there, calling out: “Mom, Mom!” However, the woman tires easily and sleeps a lot. Lyubov is relieved that Elena can at least eat and use the restroom on her own. “Though, she has become quite sensitive,” Lyubov adds. “She spilled a bowl of soup on the bed, and I can barely handle it from fatigue. I said: ‘When will this end?’ Then she dashed barefoot to the door as if to leave. I had a child screaming in my arms and had to bring her back. Thankfully, a neighbor was home and convinced her to return upstairs.”
Simultaneously, Lyubov and her husband continue their daughter’s rehabilitation at home. They try to engage her in exercises, utilize special pedals, massage circles, and a horizontal bar. However, she needs professional rehabilitation. The elderly couple struggles to feed their children on their limited pensions. Please help Elena!
The Pravmir Foundation supports adults and children who require assistance in restoring impaired or lost functions after surgeries, injuries, road accidents, strokes, and other illnesses, facilitating rehabilitation. You can help not just once, but by subscribing to a monthly donation of 100, 300, 500, or more rubles.
Elena’s Journey: A Mother’s Struggle with Meningoencephalitis
health recovery, family support, neurological rehabilitation">
“Mom, I survived”
– I won’t be able to raise them! – already in the fifth minute of the conversation, Lyubov begins to wipe away tears. Her grandchildren are running around: four-year-old Damir and three-year-old Venera, seven-month-old Marcel is sleeping in her arms. – How will I raise them? – she repeats more quietly, tenderly watching 11-year-old Eldar, who is wiping the shelves from dust, and 16-year-old Ksyusha, who is sweeping the floor.
Lyubov recalls how her life changed dramatically right after the New Year. Her daughter brought her older children during the winter holidays: Elena was approaching the due date for her fifth birth. A week later, her son-in-law gave his mother-in-law the newborn baby and disappeared. By that time, Elena was already in intensive care on a ventilator.
A week before the birth, Elena called her mother to find out how the older children were doing and said that her throat was hurting. The next day she was already crying: “Mom, I’m dying, my ear hurts, my jaw hurts.”
Lyubov became worried, and for good reason: it turned out that her daughter had phlegmon of the submandibular region – a very dangerous condition when, as a result of purulent inflammation of the tissue, the brain can be damaged.
— They took her to the hospital, — Lyubov recalls. — Then a text message came: “Mom, thank God, I survived. They did an operation, took out two teeth.” And then Lena called and said that she had given birth. She was 38 weeks pregnant. They induced labor and discharged her a week later.
The parents begged their daughter to come to them, but Elena returned to her husband in the village of Mirny with the baby. She also took the older children. But almost immediately, the woman stopped answering calls. One of the sons called his grandmother and said that his mother was lying down and would not get up. And she was not even eating. When the ambulance arrived, Elena was already unconscious.
— The doctors were shocked: “We discharged her healthy!” Lena was immediately sent to intensive care, they put in a tracheostomy, she couldn’t breathe. She spent a month there, — says Lyubov.
The infection reached the brain, sepsis set in. Elena was diagnosed with secondary meningoencephalitis. Leaving all the children in the care of Ksenia, Elena’s eldest daughter, the parents rushed to the hospital.
“We hired a nurse, brought her pureed food in jars, fed her. My daughter was screaming in pain all the time,” Lyubov recalls.
“The doctors said that my daughter will recover.”
Elena’s brain was damaged so much that she could not speak. She only nodded or shook her head, closed and opened her eyes to her mother’s questions. After meningoencephalitis, the doctors wrote “encephalopathy” in her medical record. The mother of many children left home in a wheelchair.
– The doctors, of course, saved her, – continues Lyubov, – Five people came to the ward and said that the damage was moderate. We asked: is she like this for the rest of her life? We were told that she would recover and even go to work.
But during the medical and social examination, the psychologist concluded that she should be granted disability status; there can be no talk of any work.
And neighbors told Lyubov and her husband about the rehabilitation. They also complained to the Ministry of Health that not a single doctor had come to Elena’s home for two months.
— After that, two therapists came first, measured her blood pressure and mine. And that was it. They started offering me pills, because “it’s all on you.” And then a neurologist came to us from the district, a nice woman: “How can I help you?” We asked for rehabilitation. She prescribed us a 2-week course for free.
After the course, Elena felt better: her muscles got stronger, she became more stable when walking and can walk further than before. But she needs several more courses. And compulsory medical insurance does not cover this yet, she has to wait a long time. Lyubov had no other options except to turn to a charity fund. Even clothes for her children and daughter were brought to her by fellow villagers.
— Our post office manager wrote on the Internet that we were in a difficult situation, people started helping, and I was so ashamed that I cried: don’t need anything! — says Lyubov.
After the hospital, Elena’s husband came twice and said that he wanted to take only two children. It is very difficult for Lyubov to look after both her grandchildren and her daughter, but she does not want to give anyone up. “He said that he does not need the little one. My heart almost stopped. But of course, how can I go against my father, if he wants to take him, he will take him, the law is on his side,” Lyubov leans towards the awakened baby.
An elderly woman with her daughter and her children is almost always alone. Her husband now harvests winter crops on a tractor from morning to evening, and he also has ischemia and vision problems. Lyubov’s blood pressure constantly fluctuates.
Elena was given one room in the apartment entirely, the children often run there: “Mom, Mom!”, but the woman gets tired quickly and sleeps a lot. Lyubov is glad that Elena can at least eat and go to the toilet herself. “True, she has become very touchy,” Lyubov adds. “She poured a bowl of soup on the bed, and I can’t stand it anymore from fatigue, I say: ‘When will this end!’ And she runs barefoot to the door, like, she’s leaving. And down the stairs! And here I have a child screaming in my arms, and I have to drag her back. Luckily, a neighbor was at home, she persuaded her to go back up.”
At the same time, Lyubov and her husband continue their daughter’s rehabilitation at home. They try to do exercises with her, use special pedals, massage circles, and a horizontal bar. But professional rehabilitation is needed. The old people can barely feed their children on their pensions. Please help Elena!
The Pravmir Foundation helps adults and children who need to restore impaired or lost functions after operations, injuries, road accidents, accidents, strokes, and other diseases, undergo rehabilitation. You can help not only one-time but also by subscribing to a regular monthly donation of 100, 300, 500, or more rubles.
