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Gemma Speht was an active woman working in wildlife conservation.
She was in Mexico for six months, working in the jungle, and she knew there were risks.
However, she got bitten by an insect while she was on her journey.
“I got bitten by so many insects and I collapsed while I was out there,” says Gemma. “But obviously the medical care is not what it is over here so I flew back.”
She was diagnosed with Bell’s palsy, which is paralysis of the face. If left her needing to wear an eye patch for three months while she recovered from the illness.
However, just when she thought her troubles were behind her, she was struck again. She began suffering arthritis, and headaches.
Soon, she was diagnosed with fibromyalgia.
This condition causes pain all over the body, and makes it difficult for sufferers to move. It messes with brain chemicals, and changes the way the nervous system processes pain—that is, it enhances it.
Gemma says it’s ruined her life. “It has left me housebound and unable to get out and go to places and see people…It’s like constantly living with the flu and I have to weigh up the pain before I do something.
“If I open a bottle my wrist will hurt for the rest of the day.”
She lives on her own, and last week she collapsed. She’ll be spending Christmas in the hospital, having blood work done.
“The condition has made me very depressed and it gives me really bad cabin fever,” says Gemma.
“I have had to abandon everything in my life completely.”
Now, in a big to gain some independence, she’s trying to raise money for an electric wheelchair.
“My dream is to go around the park with my dog because the wheelchair I have at the moment is a pushchair, and people re not around all the time. It would completely change my life.”
