At the age of 12, Martin Pistorius fell ill with a mysterious illness that ultimately robbed him of speech and movement. While doctors believed that Martin had been reduced to the mental capacity of a baby, he laid trapped inside his own body, fully aware of everything that was happening around him.
You have to read Martin’s incredible story…
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This is the last known photograph of Martin Pistorius before he was incapacitated by a mysterious and terrifying illness. Back in 1975, Martin was sent home with a sore throat. Other symptoms quickly began to develop.
Martin began to sleep all the time and stopped communicating altogether. After 18 months, he was wheelchair-bound. Doctors treated him for cryptococcal meningitis, a fungal infection of the brain, as well as tuberculosis of the brain.
This picture shows Martin as he began to progressively lose control of his body. He became trapped in his own body but remained conscious and awake.
The mysterious illness put a strain on Martin’s family, but they continued to provide care for him. Here he is pictured with his father, Rodney, at some point during his illness. Doctors had little faith that he would recover, but he was cared for at home and in special daycare centers, motionless for more than a decade.
In an interview with Today, Martin described what the experience was like. “What really got to me was the complete and utter powerlessness. Every single aspect of your life is controlled and determined by someone else. They decided where you are, what you eat, whether you sit or lie down, in what position you lie in, everything,” he said.
It may sound silly, but Martin expressed how he was subjected to endless episodes of Barney & Friends, a show that continues to trigger painful memories to this day.
“I can’t listen to or watch Barney now… Barney played, I guess you could say, a tormenting role in my life,” said Martin. He added that “For years, I would get flashbacks and have nightmares.” The torment wasn’t limited to Barney reruns. “I would be forced to drink scalding tea or fed until I was sick, then I’d be slapped, shouted at, made to feel worthless, then would come the sexual attacks from women who were supposed to be looking after me,” he told Daily Mail. The allegations were never substantiated due to lack of evidence.As time passed, the toll became heavier and heavier on his mother. One day, his mother had something troubling to say to him while he lay in bed next to her.
“I hope you die. I know that’s a horrible thing to say. I just wanted some sort of relief,” she said.
Martin explained that he was quite sympathetic with his mother; he understood where she was coming from.
“But at the same time, particularly as I worked through all the emotions, I felt only love and compassion for my mother. My mother often felt that she wasn’t a good mom and couldn’t take care of me. One of the hardest things for me was I couldn’t tell her that, ‘No, you are doing great,'” said Martin.
Just when all hope seemed lost, someone special came into Martin’s life that would change things forever.
A new care worker assigned to Martin in 2001 noticed that he would try to send subtle signals of consciousness to her.
She immediately requested that Martin be reevaluated. With the help of special equipment, Martin was able to slowly express himself through speech.