Girl Who Suffered from Locked-in Syndrome for 18 Months Wakes up after Mom Plays the Piano to Her

A young girl was locked in her body for 18 months and given only a 5% chance of survival. But, her parents refused to give up, so her mom decided to play the piano by her hospital bedside. Then, one day, something peculiar happened.

Pain is inevitable, but seeing your loved ones suffer can take an emotional toll on people. Defying the odds isn't always easy, but sometimes, the most challenging times help us realize our capabilities and give us the strength to pull through.

Stella and John Meldrum from Bradford, Wiltshire, England, underwent something similar with their daughter. Please keep reading to discover more about the couple's ordeal and how they battled the most unlikely circumstances.

AN ASPIRING TEENAGER

Miranda Meldrum was a highly talented singer and loved English, Drama, Psychology, and Biology. The 13-year-old girl was a promising pupil with big dreams for her future, but on April 25, 2017, she experienced something that turned her world upside down.

The young girl suffered a catastrophic brain hemorrhage in the early morning hours. She was rushed to A&E at the Bristol Children's Hospital after experiencing a pounding headache, sudden hearing loss, and paralysis of her arms.

Miranda's mom, Dr. Stella, said she saw more than 20 nurses and doctors wearing gowns and gloves treat her daughter. She added that she had never seen anything like that in her 25 years working as a doctor.

EVERYTHING CHANGED IN MERE SECONDS

The Wiltshire teen was provided immediate medical assistance, but when she woke up from her life-saving surgery, she couldn't move. The operation left Miranda trapped in her body, and she could neither communicate with her surroundings nor make any movement.

Please take a look at another similar story where a girl locked in her own body for four years became an Olympics Champion years later.

She had suffered from locked-in syndrome, a rare brain disorder that causes complete paralysis of all voluntary muscles, leaving the patient unable to speak, chew, swallow, or move. However, sufferers can hear and learn to communicate with their eyes.

SLIM CHANCES OF RECOVERY

According to statistics, patients with locked-in syndrome have an 80% chance of ten-year survival. Stella recalled that her daughter had a 95% chance of remaining trapped in her body, and there was only a 5% chance of her ever waking up.

The Meldrums watched as their daughter lay in her hospital bed, unable to move a limb or speak. Miranda's eye movements assured them she was still in there. Despite all the odds stacked against them, Stella and John refused to give up on their girl.

PLAYING MUSIC TO THEIR DAUGHTER

It was then that Stella thought of something and immediately acted upon it. She brought a keyboard and started playing it for her daughter, knowing Miranda could hear the notes and that the music might encourage movement.

John also sat by his daughter's bedside and played songs to her on the guitar. During her locked-in syndrome, some of the songs played to Miranda included Evanescence's "Wake Me Up Inside" and Dodie's "Intertwined."

A SHOCKING DISCOVERY

After almost three months, Miranda started moving her eyes and blinking. "The only thing she could do was blink the eyes. We knew she was still in there, so I would play songs and Peter Kay DVDs," recalled Stella.

In addition to music therapy, Stella also read letters to Miranda from her loved ones and school friends. When she read the heartfelt notes to her daughter, Stella recollected that she noticed Miranda's subtle hand and body movements. She further added:

"Tears and tears were coming from her eyes reading these letters. Her whole body shook and her arms went up and the little shakings of the legs and everything that she could do she just did like that."

A MIRACULOUS RECOVERY

Slowly, Miranda started touching her fingers on the keyboard and learned sign language. The determined teenager said the three things that helped her recover were music, the pictures of cats on her hospital room's wall, and letters from her friends.

Miranda spent 18 months in the Bristol Children's Hospital and received intensive treatment. After being discharged, she continued to take physiotherapy sessions and began relearning how to walk and talk. Regarding her recovery, she shared:

"Music has been as if someone was holding my hand the whole way through this. It's been my sanity. I could see a light at the end, I knew it was temporary. I was channeling positive thoughts, my brain wouldn't let me think negatively."

SLOW AND STEADY IMPROVEMENT

She returned to St. Laurence School in Bradford on a reduced timetable in May 2019, and everyone, including her peers and teachers, lauded her ongoing rehabilitation into school life.

The Meldrums set up a GoFundMe fundraiser to raise money for their daughter's speedy recovery. Stella, who had been out of work for two years while caring for Miranda, hoped to raise enough money to buy a walker for her daughter and pay for her physiotherapy lessons.

At home, Miranda continued to take her singing and karaoke lessons, and some of her significant aims included walking unaided and singing as she did before the brain hemorrhage.

Undoubtedly, with her willpower and loved ones' support, this teenager defied all the odds and experienced a miraculous recovery. Please share this incredible story with your family and friends.

Please take a look at another similar story where a girl locked in her own body for four years became an Olympics Champion years later. You can read the complete story by clicking here.