Fitness influencer 'fighting for her life' in ICU after contracting deadly infection in tourist hotspot
Australian fitness creator and online coach Khiana Smith has spent more than a week bedridden in hospital in Indonesia, including time in an intensive care unit.
PerthNow reports that Smith has been hospitalized with bacterial meningitis, a serious infection that inflames the protective membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord.
Pneumonia and fluid on her lungs have added to her health problems.
Without urgent treatment, the illness can quickly become life-threatening.
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Smith, who runs the Her Method fitness and nutrition business, has been keeping her TikTok followers updated on her condition from the hospital in Bali.
She told them: "Life is so precious, 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."
How did Khiana Smith get meningitis
Smith's ordeal began when she 'just woke up one day' with 'the worst headache' and could not get out of bed.
Her symptoms then escalated to extreme head pain, dizziness, slurred speech, blurred vision and severe sensitivity to light.
An IV drip at her villa failed to ease them, and a doctor who assessed her urgently called an ambulance. "I think I really underestimated the severity of the situation," she said from her ICU bed.
"I don't know what happened, like I seriously don't," she said. Smith has no idea how she contracted the infection or why her condition worsened so quickly.
The illness has also affected her memory, with Smith saying: "I have lost a lot of memory, like I really struggle to remember things."
Smith has found the language barrier difficult while trying to understand her condition, adding to the strain of being critically ill so far from home. Although she says those treating her are 'doing their best', she described feeling that 'your whole life is in other people's hands' without proper answers.
"I feel absolutely helpless and I just wanna go home," she said. Smith is desperate to return to Australia, but she has been unable to fly because of her brain infection and concerns about the effects of cabin pressure.
What are the symptoms of meningitis?
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the symptoms of bacterial meningitis can develop suddenly and heavily mimic a severe case of the flu.
The classic warning signs in adults and older children include a sudden high fever, a severe headache, a stiff neck, nausea or vomiting, increased sensitivity to light (photophobia), and altered mental status or confusion.
Because the infection causes severe inflammation of the protective membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord, it can rapidly escalate into a life-threatening emergency within a matter of hours, making immediate medical intervention critical.
Followers have been pouring messages of support onto her social media pages, and some have asked when she might be able to return to Australia. "Is there any talk of getting you home? It's so serious, I feel like it would be a lot easier for you in an Australian hospital mentally," one wrote.
Another follower, who had recently spent a week in hospital, offered words of encouragement, adding: "Things will change, sending you so much healing and love."
Smith did share a brighter update more recently, saying she felt slightly better after getting out of bed and walking for the first time in more than a week.
Smith, who said she has always taken her health seriously by eating well and exercising regularly, urged her followers: "Don't take your life or health for granted ever."
Topics: Health, World News, Life
Thomas Bamford