- Sian Colclough, 29, was diagnosed with Chiari malformation in 2011
- The condition causes the lower part of the brain to push into the spine
- As a result she suffers from excruciating headaches about once a week
- To cure the pain she is forced to wear sunglasses when she watches TV
Madlen Davies
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Stephen Matthews For Mailonline
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A mother was left paralysed after becoming pregnant, due to a rare medical condition which affects the spinal cord.
Sian Colclough was seven months pregnant when she lost the ability to move and her body went numb.
Doctors discovered the baby was pressing on the nerves in her back, and an MRI scan revealed she was suffering from a Chiari malformation.
This is where the lower part of the brain pushes down into the spinal canal, blocking the flow of cerebrospinal fluid and crushing the spine.
The condition explained why she suffered headaches – often triggered by sneezing or laughing – that were so unbearable she had to spend hours sitting with sunglasses on and all of the curtains closed.
Sian Colclough was diagnosed with Chiari malformation in 2011, when she was pregnant with her son Lennon, four (left). The condition causes the lower part of the brain to push down into the spine. Another condition has left her reliant on a wheelchair (right)
Sometimes her pain becomes so unbearable she must spend hours indoors with sunglasses on and the curtains closed – to block out light
Though she recovered from paralysis after giving birth to son Lennon, Mrs Colclough still uses a wheelchair due to related illnesses.
The 29-year-old, from Wrexham, North Wales, has Ehler-Danlos syndrome, a disorder where the connective tissues in the body are weak, meaning she dislocates her shoulders at the slightest knock.
It means she can barely cook or make a cup of tea without being left in agony.
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She also suffers from muscle-wasting disease Charcot-Marie-Tooth, which causes chronic fatigue and excruciating nerve pain.
It also means she has lost some sensitivity in her skin and when she cuts or burns herself she can’t feel it and won’t notice until she starts bleeding or gets burn marks.
She also feels like she constantly has pins and needles in her arms and legs and struggles walking long distances, instead using her wheelchair to get around.
WHAT IS A CHIARI MALFORMATION?
A Chiari malformation means the lower parts of the brain have been pushed downwards towards the spinal cord, so they are below the entrance to the skull.
This is where the lowest part of the back of the brain – cerebellar tonsils – drops down into the top of the spinal canal.
In people with a type 1 Chiari malformation – the least serious form of the disease – these brain parts are pushed downwards, because they are too big for the skull.
When symptoms do develop, they may include headaches, dizziness, neck pain, numbness, blurred vision, swallowing problems insomnia, depression, feeling sick and vomiting.
Source: NHS Choices
Mrs Colclough, who is registered disabled, said: ‘I have good days and bad days but when I get really chronic headaches my brain actually feels like it’s going to explode.
‘When it’s really bad I have to have all of the curtains in the house shut and I sit there with sunglasses on watching TV.
‘It’s sort of like constantly having the flu without the cough or runny nose, I have chronic fatigue and on bad days can’t even lift my head off my pillow for two days.
She said: ‘I can feel my spine being crushed by my brain and the pressure is really intense, but it’s something that I’ve had to learn to live with.
‘I get really chronic headaches about once a week where I won’t get out of bed but in between these the pain is a lot more bearable, sometimes these are triggered by something as small as me sneezing or laughing.’
Mrs Colclough was diagnosed with Charcot-Marie-Tooth at just 11-years-old and had no idea she also had a Chiari malformation as many of the symptoms are similar.
Despite battling with these two chronic illnesses, she said her Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome affects her the most and means she often struggles to do small things like make her son dinner or make a cup of tea.
While she continues to have MRI scans every year, she does not currently need surgery to treat her Chiari malformation.
An MRI scan revealed she had Chiari malformation after spending two weeks in hospital paralysed because her unborn son was lying on her nerve
Ms Colclough said: ‘I can feel my spine being crushed by my brain and the pressure is really intense, but it’s something I’ve had to learn to live with’
Mrs Colclough, who is cared for full time by her sister, Ruth Jones, 32, said: ‘I was so blessed to find out that I was pregnant because when I learnt about my other condition I didn’t think my body would be able to carry a child.
‘When I got the diagnosis I was terrified I’d never heard of it before and I feel like since then I’ve found out even some doctors don’t know about it.
‘Lennon is so lovely about the whole thing and he always tries to help me out when he knows I’m struggling, he’ll offer me his hand when I try to get off the sofa it’s the cutest thing.
‘He knows when I’m poorly and he’s become accustom to the way that I am, if I’m feeling really bad one day he’ll just come and lie next to me and watch TV quietly.
‘I do think that my Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome is the thing that’s the hardest to deal with, I’ll dislocate my shoulders on a regular basis and have to put them back in myself which can be really difficult sometimes.’
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