It's almost two years to the day that Sebbie became ill (and I had a minor strop about missing a yoga class until I realised just how poorly he was) and he has barely talked about what he went through since but out of the blue, he has said he wants to set himself a double challenge: raising £1000 to support the Paediatric High Dependency and Intensive Care Unit and families on this unit at John Radcliffe hospital, and running 5k a day over the period of time he was so unwell. So here we are - about to head out for the first run of the month ahead and he is raring to go!

In his own words, Sebbie said he really wants to "give back to the people who helped me when I was poorly" and we all want to support him in this endeavour; we were all incredibly well looked after whilst he was in Oxford and we know that in part, this is down to others fundraising to ensure all the many different bits of equipment he needed to help him recover were available.

A brief recap for anyone new to this story: Robb took Sebbie into hospital on 11th May 2024 after he had been unwell and off school for a couple of days. Sebbie had been incredibly sick and was sporting a stubborn temperature of 40 degrees that refused to go anywhere. He remained in our local hospital until the following Tuesday, being sick relentlessly and not actually cooling down at all. In the middle of one of the very disturbed nights, he hallucinated that there were Storm Troopers at the bottom of his bed... things weren't good and they went downhill quickly on the following Tuesday when Sebbie was blue lighted up to John Radcliffe with a lot of medical staff in the ambulance alongside him and me. At John Radcliffe, we met with what felt like a Council of Elders who all pulled strokey-beard faces and scratched their heads a lot. He went straight onto the Paediatric High Dependency Unit where he was closely monitored as the medical staff tried to rule out things it could be. Whilst in John Radcliffe, Sebbie had surgery to rule out appendicitis and then spent a day or so in a medically induced coma in Intensive Care, as well as a bone marrow biopsy for HLH and leukaemia. His heart wasn't working properly and his organs were all significantly enlarged due to the PIMS-TS it turned out he was battling.

PIMS-TS is a post Covid immune response where the body thinks it is still fighting Covid even though it isn't. Sebbie's immune system was pumping out so many white blood cells that his body was in a terrible state - he couldn't see properly and when he went in for surgery, it was made abundantly clear to us that there could be very serious heart implications for him and that he may return to us with his bowel outside his body. Sebbie moved back to the High Dependency Unit for a few days where his recovery included a deep level of disdain for his father and a very healthy first post-op meal: 7/8 of a digestive biscuit.

He finally came home on 21st May, half a stone lighter and very weak and weary. It took a good period of time for him to recuperate and he was inundated with lovely visits from family and friends, as well as a lot of incredible get well soon gifts. A highlight of his recovery was being able to make it to his football team's end of season awards where he received the "Players' player of the season" award. The photos above are less than 4 weeks apart - a testament to the fact that when Sebbie wants to do something, he gets it done!

It was all very terrifying for everyone involved and Sebbie had some tough PTSD to work through afterwards but as ever with the NHS, we were supported by staff who really cared and had all the equipment needed to help Sebbie get back on his feet. There was also the now familiar family room off the PICU so Robb and I could get a cuppa and some space to breathe when it all felt like too much. We are delighted and super proud that he wants to raise money for this cause and are dusting off running shoes and bikes so we can support him without ruining our ageing bodies too much!

Thank you in advance for supporting him with his double challenge.

Oxford Hospitals Charity is transforming care for patients and staff throughout the John Radcliffe, Churchill, Horton General, Oxford Children’s Hospital and Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre. Your donations are crucial. Your gift could help fund vital medical research and training, as well as essential equipment to provide life-changing care. Donations help transform hospital spaces and provide the little things that make a big difference to patients and staff.