Reported personal story
Lucy Dawson — sectioned, given ECT, and it was her immune system
What happened
In October 2016, Lucy Dawson, a 20-year-old student from Grimsby, England, was detained under the Mental Health Act for what was treated as a severe mental breakdown. She spent roughly three to three and a half months in psychiatric care and received three rounds of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT).
What it looked like
A young woman in acute psychiatric crisis. During her illness she had a seizure, fell onto a radiator pipe, and burned her sciatic nerve — leaving her left leg paralysed below the knee.
What the labs found
She was later diagnosed with anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis — the same autoimmune brain inflammation as in Susannah Cahalan's story, found through antibody testing.
What changed
With the autoimmune diagnosis came a different road. Lucy went on to study at Leicester and graduated with a 2:1 in criminology, and she has spoken publicly about what happened to her so other young women are tested sooner.
The test that told the story
Anti-NMDA receptor antibody testing.
Sources: Grimsby Telegraph (full interview); Metro reporting; Encephalitis Society / Astriid profiles; Guardian-derived accounts.