Kathleen Wynn
ASMP Advocate

On March 22, 2000, I received a call from Carye's daycare saying that she wasn’t feeling well and that I needed to come get her. I replay that day like an old movie in my head. I had dropped my daughter off at school, kissed her goodbye, and watched her wave as she entered. Carye's after-school program had a trip to the Planetarium planned that afternoon, and I wished I could join her. At 5:10 pm, I got a call from her after-school counselor that Carye had a severe headache and neck ache and was crying for me. By the time I got to the YMCA, she was pale and crying but wasn’t running a fever. They thought the light show had triggered a headache, so I carried her home, gave her Tylenol, and darkened the room to help her rest. After speaking with my mother, a retired nurse, I performed a few tests on her, and while most seemed okay, something about the way her pupils reacted concerned me.

I decided to take Carye to the ER, where she seemed to perk up for a bit. The doctors ran some tests and ultimately sent us home with instructions to alternate between Motrin and Tylenol. We arrived home at about 10 PM, and it seemed that she had started to feel bad again. She began vomiting, screaming in pain, and clutching her legs as they cramped. More red dots appeared on her chest, and I knew something wasn’t right. My sister drove us back to the ER, and Carye suddenly became unresponsive and spiked a high fever. Within hours, we learned she had bacterial meningitis, specifically meningococcal meningitis, and the infection had already progressed into septicemia. The doctors acted fast, pumping her full of antibiotics, but her organs were starting to fail, and her body was covered in purple spots from internal bleeding. An ambulance arrived to transfer her to Robert Wood Johnson (RWJ) Hospital, where she would receive critical care.

At RWJ, the situation was dire. Carye was placed on life support, and a small dialysis machine was brought in to filter her blood, as her kidneys had stopped functioning. I sat by her bed, holding her hand and telling her how much I loved her. Though she was unconscious, I could tell that, somehow, she knew I was there. As hours passed, her body started to respond to the treatments. After days of uncertainty, Carye's condition slowly improved. The doctors, nurses, and the prayers of so many people pulled her through. Against the odds, Carye survived meningococcal meningitis.

While the recovery was long and difficult, Carye’s resilience shone through. Today, she is a thriving young woman, and not a day goes by that I don’t think about how close I came to losing her. Her strength and the incredible care she received saved her life, and we continue to advocate for meningitis awareness to ensure other families don’t have to go through the same ordeal.