Find us on Facebook
A Race Against Time
On the 5th March 2008, 2½ year old Holly Ireland was diagnosed with Pneumococcal Meningitis and Septicaemia. For Holly’s mum Gill and dad Craig, this was the news they had been dreading. Their little girl was placed on a life support machine and transferred from Victoria A&E in Kirkcaldy to the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Edinburgh. Craig and Gill were told to ‘prepare for the worst’ but fortunately, after 11 days in intensive care, Holly survived. However, severe brain damage had left her unable to sit, stand, walk, talk, see effectively or retain any of the skills you would associate with a 2 year old child. After six months in the hospital and having made very little progress, Holly returned home to continue her recovery, as a doctor advised that home is the best form of therapy. Gill and Craig were determined to give Holly every chance to make as good a recovery as possible.
Seventeen months have now passed since meningitis struck and it has been a long, slow journey for Holly and her family. However, with the support of her parents, a Child Development Centre, her physio, speech & language and occupational therapists, Holly has continued to make good progress. She has gone from grasping how to sit up on her own, to commando crawling, onto four point crawling and she is now learning to stand independently and walk with support. Holly was attempting to talk and could say mamma, dada, no and Pat after a few months of returning home from Hospital. Although she is not saying any more words, she is currently working with a speech therapist and learning to show Gill and Craig what she wants by using pictures. Holly’s eyesight has also improved significantly and it is now at a range of what is expected for a three year old. Unfortunately, Holly still suffers from frequent epileptic seizures and medication is being tried and tested to alleviate these.
Since Holly returned home from the Sick Kids Hospital, Gill and Craig have kept a diary to document her progress and to keep family and friends updated.
Sunday 1st February 2009
“Since my last update on the 22nd November, Holly has made lots of progress both physically and cognitively. She has reached the huge milestone of being able to sit up on her own and god is she pleased with herself!!! She smiles and laughs and looks around to see who is watching her (which of course we always are!)”
Reading through Gill and Craig’s diary is both touching and saddening. They talk about their little girl who was so full of life and mischief until meningitis struck and who was just a shadow of herself when she returned home from Hospital. As time passes and you read on and hear how Holly is improving and how her personality is returning, you are filled with hope and affection for this incredibly determined little girl and for Gill and Craig, whose love for their daughter shines through.
Monday 25th May 2009
“She crawled to her folder of pictures last week & handed me the picture of Chocolate Buttons!! She's not stupid!! And of course, we HAVE to give her what she wants as this shows her that her communication works. If I chose not to give her the buttons then she would stop handing me the pictures if she didn't think it was working.”
Gill and Craig will not find out what Holly is fully capable of for at least two years from the date she contracted meningitis. They hope Holly will make enough of a recovery to allow her to lead a meaningful life.
Gill and Craig were keen to raise awareness of the condition and to raise funds to support people who contract meningitis, support people who care for those who contract meningitis and to aid children and families affected by meningitis. Meningitis is a disease which can kill in hours. It is literally a race against time. With all this in mind, Gill and Craig thought up the incredible challenge to “race against time” and cover 96 miles of the West Highland Way in 24 hours or less. No easy feat!!!
With the help of family and friends, Gill and Craig undertook the organising of this epic event and on the 26th and 27th of June, over 50 relay runners pounded the paths of the West Highland Way to raise the pounds in aid of Holly. The Race Against Time Challenge 2009 was completed in 22 hours and raised an extraordinary £28,000, which will be donated to The Sick Kids Friends Foundation, The Meningitis Trust and High Valleyfield Child Development Centre in Fife, all of which have played a vital role in supporting Holly and her family.
The Sick Kids Friends Foundation would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who was involved in making Race Against Time 2009, possible. Whether you ran in the relay or cheered from the finish line, your support is very much appreciated and will help us to continue to make sick kids better! A very special thank you goes to the Ireland family. You are an inspiration to us all!
