by Chelsea, 13

For a few months I kept feeling out of breath and kept getting headaches and stomach pains. But one day I passed out so my mam ran me down to the hospital.

They took lots of samples of blood and once they had checked it, it came back that I had Aplastic anaemia. They gave me two bags of platelets because my bone marrow kept eating up all my cells and I never had any left. They put me on antibiotics to keep my temperature down.

Before I came home the doctors had lots of chats with me to tell me what to do if I got any symptoms like headache, sickness and a lot more. They gave me a lesson on how to use a thermometer and the correct temperatures for my body.

When I arrived home I had to keep checking my temperature to see if I was alright and not poorly. My mam was always worrying and asking if I was ok.

I go to the hospital two days a week to get my bloods checked. It feels strange but I have to be brave and keep my head up, even though it’s hard and all I want to do is cry. But if I cry it will be harder to get through and my mam will also find it hard. I just wish I was back to my normal self doing x-country but now I get out of breath easily...if I keep doing as the doctors say I will get through it.

This story may have been edited by Children First for Health for editorial and confidentiality reasons only.

For more help and information

The Aplastic Anaemia Trust

The National Blood Service

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