What a northeast Fresno woman is going through after suffering from West Nile Virus
FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- For the first time in seven years, a resident in Fresno County has died from the West Nile Virus.
The Health Department confirmed the death on Thursday morning.
Right now, a northeast Fresno woman is recovering at home from the virus.
Just days ago Laura Hardwick was released from a rehab facility after spending two weeks at Clovis Community Hospital.
The virus has not only affected her body, but also her brain.
The 64-year-old woman cannot walk without a walker, eat without someone feeding her or spell her name.
On the Fourth of the July, Laura says she was bitten by multiple mosquitoes while at her daughter's home in Clovis.
The next day she started facing bouts of nausea, stomach pains, and body aches.
"I went to the doctor, he said it was pneumonia," she says.
But after taking antibiotics, Laura kept getting weaker.
That is when she went to Clovis Community Hospital.
Her husband says they then learned his wife had been misdiagnosed by her private doctor.
"He had all the results in her hand but he still treated for pneumonia and they tested her for West Nile and the doctor said she had West Nile," Tom Hardwick says.
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Now, this mother of four and grandmother of seven is dealing with a long recovery.
And her husband of 43 years says he is going to do everything he can to get his wife back to good health.
Laura says the night she was bit, she had been constantly spraying herself with insect repellent.
Medical experts do encourage you to use bug spray to minimize getting bit and contracting infectious diseases like the West Nile Virus.
Click here to visit the Hardwicks' GoFundMe account.
