Teenager 'feels like walking death sentence' after terrifying headache diagnosis
23.01.2022 - 21:13
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
An aspiring law student says she feels 'like a walking death sentence' after doctors diagnosed her with a terrifying brain condition.
Allesha Barnfield first realised something was wrong when her daily headaches became so crippling that she became bed bound and could not bear noise or light.
The 17-year-old, from Highfields, South Yorkshire, had been studying law but had to drop out of college when her condition became debilitating, the Mirror reports.
In September 2020, her dreams of going to university and pursuing her career were crushed when NHS doctors diagnosed her with Chiari Malformation.
The condition, which causes ligaments in the spine to be tense and tighter than usual, can cause brain tissue to be pulled into a person's spinal cord.
In the worst cases, it can lead to paralysis or so-called 'internal decapitation', which is when the ligaments connecting the skull to the spine are severed.
Petrified by the prognosis, Allesha asked doctors not to tell her how long she has before this might happen.
This condition has ruined my life," she said. "I had dreams of becoming a lawyer and going to university but I can’t go anymore.
“I spend every day confined in my room in complete darkness because I can’t bear the light.
“I find the smallest noises excruciatingly painful, even when someone is talking to me I have to ask them to whisper."
Allesha said she "broke down" when doctors informed her of what the condition could lead to.
“I asked them not to tell me how long I had based on my scans because I just don’t think I can handle knowing," she said.
"I feel like a walking death sentence.”
She said she is suffering from "crippling back pain and neck pain, sickness and fatigue".
The teen "desperately" tried to get