A Dundee woman who spent three weeks in a Turkish hospital has been brought back to the city by air ambulance.
Lynn Anderson was finally deemed well enough to travel after becoming seriously unwell on holiday last month, first with a mystery illness then having a heart attack and developing sepsis.
After three weeks in three different hospitals in Turkey, Lynn is now in Ninewells Hospital where she is likely to remain for months.
Lynn, 60, was on holiday in the town of Dalyan with her partner Gary Menzies when she suddenly collapsed.
She was misdiagnosed with meningitis before having a heart attack in hospital, where she also developed sepsis.
Doctors have yet to establish the original illness which caused her to collapse.
At her worst, Lynn was put on life support, in what Gary described as a “living nightmare”.
Lynn was flown back to Scotland on Thursday but remains seriously ill.
At one stage Gary was asked to sign a do not resuscitate form for Lynn as she wasn’t responding to treatment.
She has since improved but is likely to need treatment at a brain rehabilitation unit when she is well enough.
Gary, who lives with Lynn in the West End, said: “Doctors told me they were having to make a decision about whether to continue with treatment for Lynn.
“They spoke to me about signing a do not resuscitate – there is no way I was doing that, but it was desperately upsetting to have the discussion.”
Lynn, a mum-of-one, has improved enough for her to be moved to the main ward from high dependency.
Lynn asked for ‘trifle and a glass of wine’ in Ninewells
Gary said: “It’s such a relief to have her back in the ward.
“I was able to go to see her and have pretty much a normal conversation.
“She asked for a trifle and a glass of wine which was amazing to hear.
“She is much more alert than she has been for ages however, to most people Lynn will be completely unrecognisable.
“She has lost so much weight and has been linked up to so many tubes for so long.”
Gary said that the couple still haven’t had a full explanation as to what has happened but there is brain damage as a result of everything she has gone through.
He said: “We know for sure she had a heart attack and has had sepsis but we are still in the dark to what is going on.
“All I know is Lynn is going to have to learn to do so many things again for herself, including learn to walk.
“She will be in a wheelchair for a long time and has a long way to go.
“We have a long way to go yet but I am just so relieved that we are home in Dundee and that at the moment, at least, Lynn seems to be making some progress.”
“I just hope things keep going in the right direction.”
Conversation