{"id":67447,"date":"2023-10-09T14:14:14","date_gmt":"2023-10-09T14:14:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/talkcelnews.com\/?p=67447"},"modified":"2023-10-09T14:14:14","modified_gmt":"2023-10-09T14:14:14","slug":"my-daughter-12-was-left-fighting-for-life-in-coma-after-vaping-it-was-nightmare-come-true-says-irish-mum-the-sun","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/talkcelnews.com\/lifestyle\/my-daughter-12-was-left-fighting-for-life-in-coma-after-vaping-it-was-nightmare-come-true-says-irish-mum-the-sun\/","title":{"rendered":"My daughter, 12, was left fighting for life in COMA after vaping – it was nightmare come true, says Irish mum | The Sun"},"content":{"rendered":"

AN Irish mum has warned of the dangers of vaping after it left her 12-year-old child in a COMA.<\/p>\n

Mary Griffin, from Belfast, said her daughter, Sarah, who suffers from asthma, almost died after the controversial habit left her struggling to breathe.<\/p>\n


\n<\/p>\n

The young girl, who has since recovered, was sent to ICU on arrival in the Royal Victoria Hospital as she was \u201cdeteriorating very quickly\u201d.<\/p>\n

Doctors worked on Sarah for four-and-a-half hours before having to put her into an induced coma.<\/p>\n

Mary said: \u201cThe doctor showed me an X-ray of Sarah\u2019s lungs and explained one had been badly injured.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe other was therefore working overtime and aggravating her asthma. <\/p>\n

\u201cSarah also had an infection, so everything combined had a massive impact on her body, extremely quickly.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we got to ICU the team worked on Sarah for four and a half hours before having to put her into an induced coma. <\/p>\n

\u201cThere were tubes, wires, and machines everywhere- it was heart-breaking to see her like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAs her mum I just felt so helpless- it was a nightmare come true.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The traumatised mum explained how hospital staff worked tirelessly.<\/p>\n

She added: \u201cSarah had machines breathing for her, doing everything for her, and she was very unstable.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt felt like one step forward, two steps backwards and that went on for a few days. At first, we really didn\u2019t think Sarah would make it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first time the team tried to bring Sarah out of the induced coma she was so agitated the doctors decided it was too early and they would have to induce her again.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey then tried to bring Sarah out of the induced coma again the next day and started removing tubes, reducing her sedation, taking her off the ventilator and slowly brought her back round.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt that stage I had some hope Sarah would be ok. She is a fighter and was absolutely amazing through everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

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With Sarah stabilised the doctors were able to explain to Mary what had happened and how at risk her daughter had been.<\/p>\n

Mary says: \u201cThe doctors explained that if Sarah hadn\u2019t of been vaping, she would have been in a better position to fight off the infection. Vaping had left her lungs very weak.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe doctors said if Sarah had have got to hospital any later the outcome would have been entirely different. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat is something I can\u2019t even think about.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sarah is now recovering at home but the effects of what happened to her will unfortunately be long-term.<\/p>\n

Mary said: \u201cIt has been a traumatising experience for Sarah. It has traumatised me and it didn\u2019t happen to me.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor her to end up in ICU was a terrifying experience and she\u2019s still trying to make sense of it all.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor the rest of her life Sarah will be classed as a high-risk patient if she is admitted to hospital because of the effect this has had on her physically.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis isn\u2019t a case of a hospital stay and that\u2019s it over with. Sarah was discharged with steroids, new inhalers, and a new Personal Asthma Action Plan to help manage her asthma.<\/p>\n

\u201cSarah has been left very lethargic. She is usually full of energy, constantly talking and on the go but she is still recovering and isn\u2019t back to her usual self yet.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe has been through such a trauma. She still has a long road ahead of her, but we are just so grateful to have her back home with us.\u201d<\/p>\n

The pair are speaking out about the dangers of vaping as part of Northern Ireland Chest Heart & Stroke\u2019s new vaping awareness campaign.<\/p>\n

URGENT WARNING<\/h2>\n

Mary said: \u201cWhat Sarah has experienced could easily happen to other young people, and we don\u2019t want that which is why we\u2019re sharing our story and supporting NICHS\u2019s vaping campaign. <\/p>\n

\u201cI have seen children as young as seven and eight-years-old vaping which is just horrendous.<\/p>\n

\u201cSarah hadn\u2019t been vaping heavily but that, coupled with her asthma was such a dangerous combination. <\/p>\n

\u201cYoung people are attracted to the bright colours and flavours of vapes – they might smell and taste sweet, but people need to know about the potential dangers associated with them.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want other young people to see the potential impact vaping can have as it will hopefully make them think twice about doing it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe photos of Sarah in ICU are hard to look at, but we think it\u2019s important young people see these and get a better understanding of the possible dangers. <\/p>\n

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\u201cSarah says that if sharing her story helps save another young person and their family going through the same thing we have then it\u2019s worth doing.\u201d<\/p>\n