Nevada Focus: Sixteen-year-old battles relentless meningitis

In this internal haven, the pain ceased. There were no bandages around her amputated legs. No throbbing pain in her back.

But a few seconds of escape were enough. She opened her eyes, curious about the preparations being made to lift her into a wheelchair.

"I want to sit up and do something," she said. "I can't do anything."

Jelena's spirits are always better when she's sitting up, said Sherilyn Ostrander, a physical therapist who has worked with Jelena, 16, since she was admitted to the hospital in April near death with bacterial meningitis.

For the past week, Jelena has been in the same intensive care room at Washoe Medical Center where she opened her eyes three months ago and saw angels.

The angels came back to her when she awoke last week after emergency surgery to stop a spinal infection.

"I hate being in ICU rooms, but this room I can stay in," she said.

Jelena's mother and stepfather had thought she would be well enough to attend this Saturday's benefit Aireus performance at the Reno Hilton. At least she'd be home in August and could attend a Stevie Nicks concert on Aug. 5. The Reno Hilton donated backstage passes. Nicks is Jelena's favorite singer.

"Whatever I need to do before that time to be able to go, I'm going to work my hardest to do," Jelena said.

But doctors don't know when Jelena can go home, her mother said. They told Denise and Marty Rehm two week ago she had developed another type of meningitis infection. Without surgery on her spine, she would die. With it, she could be paralyzed.

How much more could Jelena endure, they wondered. In June, Jelena's left leg was amputated.

She was still recovering from losing the tips of her fingers and thumb on her left hand and all the digits above the first and second knuckles on her right hand.

The meningitis Jelena was exposed to, Neisseria meningitidis, is brutal. Meningitis is caused by a bacterium or a virus that inflames the lining of the brain and spinal cord or infects the blood. Jelena doesn't know how she got it, but it's spread through coughing, sneezing and the sharing of food or utensils.

Jelena thought she had a bad case of the flu. By the time she was rushed to the hospital on April 23, she was unconscious and in shock. Toxins made her body shut down. Her blood pressure plummeted.

To save her, Jelena's doctors helped get blood to her brain, heart and kidneys. The lack of blood to her hands, feet and legs starved them of oxygen. Her fingers blackened as if they had been burned. The muscle and skin on her legs died, leaving bone exposed.

"It's just been a roller coaster," Denise Rehm said.

Jelena has accepted the loss of her legs, but it hasn't been easy. The amputation of her left leg was hard, Denise Rehm said. She had held out hope that it could be saved.

"She gets strength from somewhere, but I don't know from where," she said.

Jelena's curiosity and willfulness are her greatest resources, said Mark Combs, 52, of Reno. Combs lost both his legs below the knee three years ago after getting meningitis. He also lost part of his fingers.

When he visited Jelena in the hospital, she bombarded him with questions.

"She started shooting questions at me, just rapid fire," he said. "She's very curious.

She asked, 'Would you mind taking off your leg and showing me how it goes on?"

Combs is an inspiration to her, Jelena said. But there are days when she doesn't want to see anyone.

The lowest she's been in the past three months was before an ex-boyfriend visited. She was afraid he wouldn't want to touch her. But he hugged and kissed her.

"He didn't treat me any different - and I know the rest of the world probably will," she said looking at nurse Lori Dixon who reached to hug her.

The Rehms posted a schedule on the wall that Jelena can look at to know who will be with her every day of the week.

But it's mom she wanted most. Telling Jelena she has to go, Denise Rehm looked away from the tears Jelena can't control.

"It's this way every time I leave," she said.

With her mother gone, Jelena leaned over toward a visitor.

"Would you hold my hand?" she asked, while she closed her eyes for a few seconds to go to that place where pain doesn't exist.

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