My Ivy, 9, was paralysed from the neck down on life support – docs blamed a virus, but I knew her neck pain wasn’t right

IVY Amos was always a “happy, healthy” child until she fell ill with what doctors first thought was a virus.

But to her parents’ horror, it soon turned out to be something far more serious, a rare neurological condition that left the schoolgirl paralysed from the neck down.

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The nine-year-old, from Bath, was eventually diagnosed with transverse myelitis, a condition caused by inflammation of the spinal cord.

Her mum, Georgia Wynes, said Ivy had “never had any health problems at all, her whole life”, until February 2024 when she suddenly became unwell.

Ivy’s battle began that month, when she was eight.

She had been poorly with what was believed to be a virus, and Georgia had taken her “back and forth” to the doctors.

However, on February 27 Ivy suffered a seizure at home.

She had to be flown over in an air ambulance to Bristol Children’s Hospital, where she was diagnosed with viral meningitis.

After a week in hospital, Ivy was discharged with antibiotics and seemed to be improving, returning daily to the local hospital for doses.

But one day Georgia spotted that something “wasn’t right” with Ivy.

“I just knew in my instincts that something wasn’t right, and she was complaining of a pain in her neck,” she explained.

“I begged them, there and then, and I said: ‘Please, can you check her over?’

An MRI scan of Ivy’s brain revealed nothing unusal, but they kept her in anyway.

Within hours, she began losing feeling in her feet and the paralysis crept up her body until she could no longer move anything below her neck.

At this point, doctors sent Ivy for another MRI scan, this time on her spine, which revealed it was inflamed.

She was rushed to Bristol Children’s Hospital ocne again, where she was diagnosed with transverse myelitis.

According to the NHS, transverse myelitis is a rare neurological condition caused by inflammation of the spinal cord.

It damages the nerves and can leave permanent scars or lesions which interrupt communication between the spinal cord and the rest of the body.

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Symptoms can include muscle weakness in the legs and arms, mobility problems, numbness and pain – and in Ivy’s case, near-total paralysis.

“Ivy was paralysed from her neck down, she couldn’t move a muscle in her body,” Georgia said.

She was in intensive care for between nine and 10 weeks, during which she was placed on a ventilator to help her breathe and required a tracheostomy.

Fighting back

Since then, she has had months of physio and has regained movement in her upper body.

But her legs remained still, and doctors warned her family she might never walk again.

Refusing to give up, Georgia searched for specialist help and discovered Neurokinex, a charity offering activity-based rehab for people with spinal injuries.

Through Neurokinex’s Step Up scheme, Ivy was given a free week of intensive sessions funded by donations.

Now she attends twice a week, and to her delight, the therapy involves plenty of fun.

Now Ivy does two one-hour sessions per week – during which the schoolgirl says she “plays a lot of games” as part of her rehabilitation.

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This includes“Taylor Swift quizzes”, which she loves, but Georgia hopes to be able to increase the amount of time Ivy attends Neurokinex’s Bristol clinic when finances allow since it is so beneficial to her recovery.

“I just feel like Neurokinex has been another lifeline for us,” she said.

Thanks to the hard work, Ivy can now walk with a frame and has even returned to school.

She and her family are now determined to give back – raising money for Neurokinex so other children can benefit.

The goal, Georgia said, is “to raise £50,000”.

“That will help so many people be able to have that free week and really get to feel how Neurokinex is so amazing.”