GREENSBORO, N.C. — By now, you probably know the story: Caitlin Little was a rising track and cross country star at Southeast Guilford High School in the fall of 2017 when a teammate accidently hit her in the side of the head, and Caitlin hasn’t been the same since.
She developed levels of amnesia almost immediately. And, for a while, things did get better – by the following April, she could remember the day as she lived it but when she slept, her brain seemed to reset and she woke up with no memory of the day before … yeah, like that movie, “Fifty First Dates.”
Now, nearly two-and-a-half years on from the accident, things aren’t much better.
“She is sleeping, which is a good thing,” says her mom, Jennifer. “But her digestive system is not working at all, so she is still on liquid only and a lot of support to get that to move through the system because the stomach – everything – is paralyzed, nothing functions.”
When Jennifer asks Caitlin how she would describe the way her heart is working, Caitlin thinks about it for a minute.
“It feels like it’s working too hard. Like, I feel like I can feel each beat which you’re not supposed to think about,” Caitlin says.
She’s had a bad reaction to much of the treatment that has been prescribed for her. And, of late, her memory is receding.
“Still 60 seconds, sometimes shorter. It’s been that way since May,” says Jennifer with a sigh.
So, now, much of their work revolves around finding ways for Caitlin to cope with her condition. One generous couple donated a service dog.
“We need some help getting him trained to help take care of Caitlin,” says Jennifer – and it looks like they’ve found another generous soul to help with that.
Meanwhile, her father, Chris, continues his search for answers.
“I sleep with my laptop beside me or on my chest,” says Chris. “If I wake up at 12:00 at night or 1:00 in the morning or 2:00 in the morning, I do research. I have doctor’s conferences playing on YouTube in the background, hoping I’ll pick up something useful.”
And he just might have. See the twist in the story that has given the Littles some hope in this edition of Caitlin Can’t Remember in the Buckley Report.
A GoFundMe has been set up to help the Little family.
For previous stories and video:
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