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From Sore Throat to ICU Nightmare: Vanessa Abraham’s Mysterious Illness That Baffled Doctors for Months

When Vanessa Abraham, a speech pathologist, first began to feel unwell in 2019, she thought it was just the flu. She was tired, achy, and had a hoarse voice. Doctors prescribed antibiotics — but her condition only worsened.

A week later, in the dead of night, Vanessa collapsed as she tried to stand, gasping for breath. Her husband rushed her to the nearest hospital, where she was admitted to the ICU and placed on a ventilator. The machine helped her breathe, but left her voiceless — a chilling irony for someone who made a living helping others find theirs.

A Medical Mystery Unfolds

Despite extensive tests, doctors couldn’t determine the cause of her sudden deterioration. Two days into her ICU stay, Vanessa was transferred to UC San Diego Health. That’s where she met Jared Rosen — then just a medical student — who quickly became a constant presence at her bedside.

In the ICU, Vanessa’s condition was terrifying. She couldn’t eat, speak, or move most of her body. Her neck was so weak she couldn’t hold up her head. “It was the worst experience I could’ve ever imagined,” she later told CBS News.

Rosen, who had fewer clinical responsibilities, spent long hours with her — talking, comforting, and helping her find ways to communicate. It was the one thing that gave her hope during her darkest hours.

A Slow Recovery Without Answers

Weeks passed. Vanessa was weaned off the ventilator and eventually discharged from the ICU — still without a diagnosis. The lack of answers was nearly as traumatic as the illness itself. Weak and unable to lift her right arm, she entered rehabilitation and began speech, swallowing, and physical therapy.

But emotionally, the damage was deep. She battled intense anxiety and depression. At her lowest point, she found Rosen’s email and reached out. When he replied that he remembered her, she cried. It sparked a glimmer of joy — and the will to keep going.

The Diagnosis: A Rare Neurological Disorder

Four months later, a breakthrough: Vanessa was diagnosed with a rare variant of Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) — a neurological condition where the immune system attacks the nerves. While most cases begin in the legs, Vanessa had an extremely rare form called pharyngeal-cervical-brachial GBS, which affects the throat, neck, and arms.

According to Dr. Kiril Kiprovski of NYU Langone, this variant is so rare it affects just 3% of GBS patients — and only about 1 in 78,000 people are diagnosed with GBS each year. Because there’s no single test for GBS, diagnosis relies heavily on a doctor’s familiarity with the condition — and in Vanessa’s case, it took time.

Once diagnosed, she began receiving intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) therapy — a treatment that helps boost the immune system with donor antibodies. And slowly, her body began to heal.

Healing the Mind and Body

Vanessa accepted that recovery would be slow. "With neurological illnesses, it just takes time for the body to regenerate and heal," she said.

Now, six years later, she still deals with neuromuscular weakness, but she’s back at work and active in the gym. Her time in the ICU shaped her approach with patients — especially those who struggle to speak.

She also reconnected with Jared Rosen, who is now completing a fellowship in critical care. Vanessa’s story even inspired him to pursue a career in intensive care medicine.

Her recovery hasn’t just been physical. Vanessa joined a support group for ICU survivors and began advocating for more awareness around post-ICU trauma. She even wrote a memoir to share her story with the world.

Vanessa’s journey from a sore throat to the brink of death — and back — is a powerful reminder of how fragile life can be, and how healing takes more than medicine. It takes hope, connection, and the strength to keep going when no one has the answers.