By Brett Lackey for Daily Mail Australia
23:28 June 20, 2023, updated at 00:18 June 21, 2023
- Lily Thai will end her life by euthanasia
- She wants to raise awareness about the rare condition AAG
- Lily is spending her last day ‘chilling out’ with her loved ones
A 23-year-old woman will end her life by euthanasia today.
Lily Thai is scheduled to die south australianvoluntary assisted dying laws, which the state introduced in January.
Surrounded by her loved ones, doctors will administer an intravenous medication that will end Ms. Thai’s life in 10 seconds.
The young woman has been in “excruciating” pain from a rare condition known as autoimmune autonomic ganglionopathy (AAG), in which a person’s body attacks its own nervous system.
He has become friends with patient Annaliese Holland, 23, who also suffers from the same condition.
The couple wants to raise awareness about AAG, hoping that care in their cases will allow symptoms to be diagnosed earlier in others and raise more funds for medical research into the condition.
Since the age of 17, Lily’s debilitating illnesses have affected her quality of life, leaving her bedridden and unable to move.
He is currently receiving hospice care at Laurel Hospice at Flinders Medical Center.
Lily said she was not well enough to go outside in her last days and would instead stay in her bed while her friends and family comforted her. the advertiser informed.
One person who has been by Lily’s side is her close friend and ambulance officer Danika Pederzolli, 28.
Ms. Pederzolli recently took Lily to the beach, with a touching snap that showed the couple sitting in the back of an open ambulance as they enjoyed the view of the ocean and some McDonald’s fries.
Ms Pederzolli, who met Lily through a St John’s Ambulance cadet programme, said she would remember her close friend with a “vibrant attitude, a positive and warm presence”.
“She is such a positive and warm presence in your life and such an intelligent person,” he told the publication.
“She was so happy, and she still is now, it’s no different.”
He described Lily as “a sun in human form” and wrote her a heartfelt note that he gave her along with a teddy bear.
Ms Pederzolli added that it was “pretty horrible” for what Lily was going through and a situation “no young person should be in”, but said the support for her has been “beautiful”.
Lily said the support she’s received after sharing her story has been incredible.
“A lot of people (who) I haven’t talked to in a long time (have reached out), which has been absolutely beautiful,” she said.
Lily signed the paperwork last week confirming her decision to end her life.
She has been battling health issues since she was a teenager, first diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome by a doctor at age 17.
A year later, she contracted an upper respiratory infection that left her unable to walk, defecate, eat or drink without getting sick.
He also received treatment for a cerebrospinal fluid leak.
Lily then traveled to Sydney and finally found some relief through the expert care provided by a team of doctors at Macquarie University Hospital.
He had also seen a surgeon who specialized in patients with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome.
By this stage, his condition had deteriorated to the point that he wore a halo brace, which forms a ring around the patient’s head, preventing him from moving his head or neck while the spine is tilted.
She also had to use a nasal feeding tube as she couldn’t eat anything without getting sick, which left her tipping the scales at 40kg.
Lily underwent spinal fusion surgery and was fitted with a tube to help with stomach acid secretion.
The surgery happened in the middle of the covid pandemic, which means no visitors were allowed. She was released early because she struggled to be alone for such a long period of time.
Lily was then referred to a neuroimmunologist in Sydney, who formally diagnosed AAG.
It was then that he also discovered that his condition had led to multi-organ failure, and a large lesion was found on the left side of his brain.
Lily returned to Adelaide and was admitted to Laurel Hospices at Flinders Medical Center where she spends her days “just surviving”.
He has dealt with the heartbreaking thought that he only had a matter of time before his body gave out.
Lily spends most of her time sleeping in her hospital bed to avoid dealing with the constant chronic pain of her condition.
He had also been a loner, were it not for the family visits and the close friendship he formed with his fellow patient, Mrs. Holland.
Ms. Holland’s symptoms began at age 12 with severe pelvic pain.
Doctors initially believed that she had endometriosis, but after treatment her symptoms worsened.
Doctors examined her for a number of diseases during her teenage years, but were unable to diagnose her.
It wasn’t until she was 19 years old that Annaliese was correctly diagnosed with AAG.
Lily has asked those who wish to honor her legacy to donate to the Hospital Research Foundation. you can donate here.
Discover more from PressNewsAgency
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.