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In 2013, when Kaitlyn Dobrow was just 18 years old, she developed severe bacterial meningitis. She woke up that morning feeling weak and dizzy.
Her knees buckled under her and she fell in and out of consciousness. When Dobrow made it over to her mother, she was advised to stay home from work.
In the next hour of rest, however, Dobrow realized she could no longer even stand up.
At that point, her mother called 911. Dobrow’s face and thighs were beginning to be covered with dark bruises, and by the time Dobrow made it to the hospital, her hands and feet were black.
She recalled later that her body was purple and so swollen that she “looked nine months pregnant.”
The doctors diagnosed Dobrow with bacterial meningitis, a condition where the brain and spine become inflamed from bacterial infection.
They didn’t mention many details about treatment, but Dobrow admitted, she subconsciously knew that her limbs would have to be amputated. So many other things were going wrong – so much of her skin was falling off that she had to have her head shaved so the doctors could perform necessary skin grafts, her lung collapsed, and her IV got ripped out of her neck.
When Dobrow finally came to, in a stable condition, she was fully dependent on her parents for support and had to return home, unable to do any of the sports and physical activities she’d once loved so dearly.
Initially, Dobrow spent her time in a wheelchair. After she became more comfortable with her new body, she had prosthetic legs and arms fitted, so she could gradually regain her independence.
Now, fitted with appropriate new legs and arms, Dobrow is putting all of her energy into attending cosmetology school.
"God told me 2016 is going to be my year,” Dobrow explained of her newfound passion. “I'm excited but nervous to actually get my life started. I've been so coddled for years and so taken care of. Now I have to start doing it on my own."
Dobrow has since started her own YouTube makeup tutorial channel and her makeup looks can be seen all over her Instagram.
You can watch a video of her talking about her journey here:
