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When Emily Charlotte Stiles called home to tell him she had an illness. migraineHis mother was not worried and thought nothing of it,
The 19-year-old girl, who was staying at her boyfriend’s house nearby, suffered from frequent headaches, but these could usually be cured with an early night and some painkillers.
But, hours later the teenager was being airlifted John Radcliffe Hospital At Oxford, she fell when she tried to get out of bed.
His worried parents, Peter and Julia, rush to attend to him as doctors try to treat him Meningitis B. Infection – sometimes deadly bacterial infection Of the meninges that surround the brain and spinal cord.
Emily, who had won a place at Winchester University, dreamed of becoming a special needs teacher, but she never regained consciousness and died more than 12 hours later at the beginning of New Year’s Day 2014, three months before her 20th birthday.
“I know if Emily were still here she would be helping people,” said Emily’s mother, Julia Stiles. Independent“Emily had her whole life ahead of her and she’s missed her life and more importantly, people have missed having Emily in their lives.”
Emily, a teaching assistant from Buckingham, was “fit and fine” over Christmas and had only flu-like symptoms and none of the other classic symptoms. MeningitisSuch as, vomiting, blotchy skin, stiff neck, sensitivity to light, and rash.
“Emily had no rash on her body, not at all, no marks on her body. Emily thought it was a migraine or a flu-like bug, and it took her life within a matter of hours,” Ms Stiles said.
“Whoever is a teacher gets a cold at the end of the term. So it wasn’t particularly unusual, it wasn’t necessarily worrisome. We talked to Emily and she told us she had a little migraine and would fall asleep.”
“She fell asleep early and when she tried to get up in the morning, she collapsed,” he said.
Sadly, Emily’s condition worsened while she slept and the first her parents learned of her life-threatening infection was when they received a call that an ambulance had been called.
“It was very obvious it was serious, it was like the worst scene from a movie,” Ms Styles recalled of the paramedics arriving.
Emily arrived at the hospital late on the morning of December 31, but her condition worsened and as the New Year began, Emily’s close friends and family came to say goodbye to her.
Hours later, Emily’s family had to make the heartbreaking decision to turn off the machines keeping her alive.
Ms Stiles recalled, “Every time we spoke to the adviser it got worse. As midnight approached, when everyone else was celebrating 2014, we were told she would not be attending.”
According to the NHS it is estimated that one in 10 cases of bacterial meningitis is fatal. Vaccines are available for many types of meningitis, but they have recently become less common in teens. vaccination The UKHSA warned that the rates were leaving young people more vulnerable to the disease.
“It doesn’t make sense to me that people wouldn’t take a vaccine that could literally protect them [Emily’s] Life,” Ms Styles, who now lives in Malvern Hills, said, urging others to get their children vaccinated.
“She should take these vaccines, especially when they are available now, absolutely – we had no choice with Emily,” he said.
Unlike young people today, Emily did not have access to the jab that protects against MenB and another vaccine that protects against the four types of meningitis A, C, Y and W.
The MenACWY vaccine – now given to school pupils in Year 9 or Year 10 – was introduced in the UK in summer 2015 due to an increase in cases of MenACWY disease.
Similarly, the vaccine for meningitis B was introduced on the NHS in September 2015 for infants and people with specific underlying medical conditions – it is also available privately.
The latest UK Health Protection Agency (UKHSA) figures show there were 378 cases of the serious bacterial infection invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) in 2024-25. This is up from 340 in the last 12 months.
More than 82 per cent of cases last year – about 313 – were caused by MenB, up from 301 in 2023-24.
The charity Meningitis Now is urging people to familiarize themselves with the symptoms of meningitis and make sure their loved ones are vaccinated.
Meningitis can be fatal and up to half of those who survive bacterial meningitis are left with long-term effects, including hearing loss, brain injury, epilepsy, chronic pain, vision problems, and amputation.
Dr Tom Nutt, chief executive of Meningitis Now, said: “Meningitis can affect anyone at any time, but its rise in teenagers, young adults and infants – some of the most vulnerable groups – shows how important it is to remain vigilant. Early detection saves lives, but prevention through vaccines is the most effective way to protect against this devastating disease.”
When Emily, who would now be 31, died, Ms Styles said she felt as if she was in “some kind of tsunami or vacuum”. But eventually she realized there was something she could do to help and started working with Meningitis Now to get more meningitis vaccinations going.
The whole family, including Emily’s dad Pete and younger sister Sophie, have helped raise awareness over the past 11 years, raising £40,000 for the charity.
Ms Styles said, “I know she would have made a difference to people’s lives. She was a brilliant, caring and lovely person.”