Morgan Thain Miller

When Morgan Thain Miller was just 10 years old, she was diagnosed with cerebellitis - a rare condition, typically found in infants, that causes swelling in the cerebellum in the brain, affecting balance and coordination.  In Morgan's case, she was given just a 20 per cent chance of survival after her brain swelled to life-threatening size, and had to relearn how to walk, talk and even feed herself again.

Now aged 19, Morgan has made a significant recovery and is sharing her story to raise awareness of brain injury as well as Headway.

Morgan, a City of Glasgow College HND law graduate, said:

“I was a competitive swimmer when I was younger, and at first, we thought that I had a bout of the flu."

“But when I went to the doctor and got prescribed medication, I had a severe allergic reaction. My eyes rolled back in my head, and my body began convulsing.

“My mum and grandmother rushed me to A&E in Inverness, and by the time we arrived, I had lost the ability to walk, and my mum had to carry me into the children’s ward.”

Doctors and nurses scrambled to understand what was happening to Morgan, and a CT scan at the time found nothing unusual.

Morgan was prescribed more medication, with the dosage adjusted due to her height of then 5 ft 7.

“Unfortunately, that adjustment led to a strong toxic reaction”, Morgan said.

“I experienced several nights of hallucinations- it was terrifying. One night, my heart rate spiked to 200 bpm, it was so scary.

“It wasn’t until a junior doctor reviewed my case and pushed for an MRI that we finally had an answer. I was diagnosed with cerebellitis, a rare swelling in the cerebellum.”

Morgan’s brain had swollen to a life-threatening size, with her family told she had a 20 per cent chance of surviving.

Morgan said: “I had to relearn how to walk, talk, write and even feed myself.

 

“I was ashamed for people to see me in a wheelchair and I just wanted to be ‘normal’ again.”

With the right medication, Morgan slowly recovered and was able to return to school.

However, she says she “never fully processed the trauma” of sustaining her injury until years down the track, after struggling with her mental health.

Morgan sought professional help as well as documenting her recovery on her blog: https://makiablogs.com/

“When I moved to Saltcoats, I realised I didn’t want anyone to feel alone or lost like I did, so I wanted to share my story to help others”, Morgan said.

“I feel I have the opportunity to offer hope to other survivors of brain injury, as well as let them know about the amazing work of Headway.

“When I found Headway it felt like a lightbulb moment, where I realised that there are people like me out there, who live with brain injuries.

“I want others to know that recovery - whether it’s physical, mental, or emotional - is not linear and progress isn’t about speed.

“It does get better. There is light is at the end of the tunnel; It's not going to be dark forever.”

Sam Clarke, Services Manager at Headway, said: “Through openly sharing their stories, people like Morgan are making a huge difference to the work of Headway UK and those individuals and families affected by brain injury.”