Unvaccinated Student Has To Relearn Walking, Talking And Eating After COVID-19 Bout

A marketing student in Wales had to relearn how to walk, talk and eat after she was put in an induced coma during her bout with COVID-19 four months ago.

Ffion Barnett tested positive for the coronavirus two days after her 22nd birthday in August 2021, WalesOnline reported. She first suspected she contracted the virus when she lost her sense of taste, according to the outlet.

"I felt a bit rough before that, but I wasn't displaying any of the telltale symptoms. But when I realized I couldn't taste, that's when things got real," said the cafe worker, who lives in the town of Tonypandy.

Barnett explained that she was unvaccinated because she thought being young and having no preexisting health conditions made her “safe.”

After testing positive for the virus, she initially was not "particularly worried” because she was "too focused on being in isolation and getting better."

However, Barnett was later admitted to the Royal Glamorgan Hospital in Llantrisant on Aug. 12, a week after she tested positive, as her breathing had become increasingly labored. She was put on oxygen and taken to a hospital ward before ultimately being admitted to the intensive care unit the next day.

Barnett was then put in an induced coma after doctors became concerned about her high heart rate, which they thought could result in her going into cardiac arrest. She was also struck with COVID-induced pneumonia.

The medication that Barnett received when doctors tried to bring her out of the coma several days later allegedly caused her to hallucinate.

"They tried getting me out of the coma after two or three days, but as I was so agitated, they put me back under. I didn't know what was reality and what wasn't," Barnett said.

She explained that while the experience may have been "terrifying" for her family, in reality, she was "in no state to be frightened" as she was "so out of it."

Barnett was in a coma for five days. Her condition began to improve following a total of 12 days in intensive care and she was put back in the ward.

Prior to that, Barnett said she was given "every machine going" to try and improve her oxygen levels.

"Staff in the hospital were amazing. They literally do not stop. I don't know when they take breaks," Barnett said, adding that there was "always" someone by her side during her stay in the ICU.

Barnett spent a total of two weeks and five days at the Royal Glamorgan Hospital, and toward the end of her stay, she had to relearn how to walk, talk and eat properly again.

Despite the progress she had made in the hospital, she still needed to be looked after once she returned home, including needing help with bathing and preparing food.

Barnett reportedly started losing her hair after she left the hospital, and she has since shaved all of it off. She has received her COVID-19 vaccines and is almost fully recovered from the virus but remains "lethargic" all the time.

“I now want to raise awareness of the importance of the vaccine and how COVID isn't just dangerous for the elderly; it can affect anyone,” Bernett said.

The U.K. has reported a total of 13,722,227 coronavirus cases and 149,416 deaths as of Tuesday, according to data provided by Johns Hopkins University.