‘I was climbing Mt Lofty and now I might never walk again’: Millie Taras battle with chronic illness

A woman in her 20s is facing the possibility of never walking again after a cough triggered a plethora of debilitating disabilities which have left her bed-bound, unable to feed herself.

Millie Taras was fit and healthy, regularly climbing Mount Lofty, but now she’s bed bound and may never walk again.

She said doctors believe a cough she contracted five years ago triggered a range of disabilities which have left the 29-year-old bed bound, unable to feed herself.

“It’s flicked a trigger in my body that can’t be flicked back … there’s no way to turn it back off,” the West Croydon woman said.

“This random cough I got changed my life forever.”

Millie has been in hospital for the past seven weeks – first at Ashford Hospital and now in the Royal Adelaide.

She is currently awaiting a time when she is stable enough to be transferred to the inpatient rehab unit at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, where she will discover whether walking will ever be a possibility for her after she began suffering seizures.

Millie Taras has been battling a range of disabilities for five years and most recently was diagnosed with functional neurological disorder. Picture: Supplied

She has been staying in hospital for the last seven weeks since her diagnosis after she began suffering with intense seizures. Picture: Supplied

“They’re basically losing hope every day I don’t get movement,” she said.

“The longer you don’t use a body part … the harder it is to regain that back.”

Most recently diagnosed with functional neurological disorder (FND) — a neurological condition caused by changes in how brain networks work — Millie suffers with debilitating seizures.

Her seizures last anywhere between two minutes and three hours and occur multiple times a day.

“It’s quite debilitating and very fatiguing and I’m in constant pain 24/7 with it all,” she said.

“There’s a lot more symptoms than just the seizures itself … I’m paralysed waist down.

“They’re hopeful that will rehab and time I will build my strength back up but they’re kind of saying that it’s been seven weeks and there’s been no improvement and that rehab may not be a viable option.”

Since suffering from seizures Mille has been unable to get out of bed. Picture: Supplied

Millie is also tube fed as her stomach is paralysed. Picture: Supplied

Since being in hospital, Millie has been unable to get out of bed. She suffers with migraines and usually is unable to lift her head off the pillow.

“I’ve gotten out of bed twice in the last two weeks,” she said.

Since contracting a cough five years ago Millie has been battling a range of disabilities which have caused her to have five abdominal surgeries in the past three years. She is currently being tube fed as her stomach is paralysed.

Millie struggles with incontinence, cognitive issues, involuntary body tremors and chronic pain.

Millie has struggled to be believed by doctors throughout her health journey. Picture: Supplied

She said her bowels have been on the brink of perforating and doctors believed she was suffering with anxiety. Picture: Supplied

For Millie being understood and believed throughout her diagnosis process was difficult.

“There’s a lot of people like me that have invisible illnesses that do slip through the cracks and we’ve had to fight so hard to be seen and heard for the last five years, it has drained a lot, emotionally and physically,” she said.

“The amount of times doctors said to me it was anxiety or that it was in my head to just to be more mindful about it, and realistically what was happening was my bowels were perforating and I needed emergency surgery before my bowels exploded inside me, just goes to show how doctors are quite challenged when it comes to invisible illnesses.

“It isn’t all in our heads, there are real symptoms, it is so debilitating for people … just because you can’t see it doesn’t mean it isn’t there.”

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