A popular fitness influencer has been left hospitalized and fighting for her life in Bali. As reported by the Daily Mail, what Khiana Smith first dismissed as a painful yet normal injury turned out to be something much more terrifying.
"Life is so precious," she announced to fans on social media. "One minute I'm healthy travelling the world, living my dream life... And the next I'm bed bound in ICU in Bali with a brain infection that could have killed me."
She said that her original symptoms began with a painful headache. While it was so painful she ended up bedbound from it, she didn't think much of it. "I don't know what happened, like I seriously don't," she said. "I just woke up one day, and I just had the worst headache, like I couldn't even get out of bed."
But then, her symptoms got worse. The fitness influencer explained that her worst symptoms were "extreme head pains, dizziness, slurred speech, slurred vision, and a severe sensitivity to light." She also noted she was simultaneously fighting pneumonia.
She said her brain infection, which has been categorized as bacterial meningitis, has left her with memory problems. "I have lost a lot of memory... I really struggle to remember things."
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What Infection Does the Fitness Influencer Have?
Bacterial meningitis is the inflammation of the meninges caused by a bacterial infection. According to the Cleveland Clinic, the meninges are the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord.
If someone gets bacterial meningitis, it can cause increased pressure on the brain, causing several problems. For the fitness influencer, this means she cannot fly home to her native Australia, as the increased pressure in the plane cabin can put her life in danger - meaning she is having to navigate language barriers amid other issues.
She said of her being in Bali, "Being in a foreign country, they're doing their best, but the language barrier is hard, and feeling like your whole life is in other people's hands, and you don't have proper answers."
We hope that her recovery goes well, and she is able to return to Australia soon.
