“I was afraid of dying” – Corriere.it

From paralysis to rebirth. Proof that everything is possible in life. the story of Daouda PeetersBelgian midfielder now on loan to Sudtirol in Serie B, who in 2021 was hit by neuropathy: From one day to the next everything changed, I no longer felt anything. But now that I’m on the pitch I feel good, she said in a documentary produced by
Juventus, the club that holds his card. Peeters lived the nightmare of a disease that threatened to change his life forever, Guillain-Barr syndrome (the same disease as former Uruguay coach Oscar Washington Tabarez).

We are talking about a rare disease that affects the peripheral nervous system. Peeters met her in October two years ago, when she was 22, without warning. And she told it like this: One day in training my legs stopped working. I fell and I could no longer walk, I no longer felt a thing. The worst moment of my life started out of nowhere, I was losing balance and strength in running and shooting. Words that make us understand the fragile and tortuous moments that can unexpectedly arise in life. When I got to the hospital they did some tests, then the next day I wanted to go to the bathroom and I fell. I called the doctor, told him I no longer felt anything and could find no explanation. Really difficult moments. He undergoes electromyography, which highlights the problem and in some infrequent cases it can even be fatal, sometimes you never walk again.

His career as a footballer takes a back seat and it cannot be otherwise: I was afraid of dying. All my life I have been healthy, then overnight everything changed. And again: Suddenly one morning I felt that I could move my feet, the connections were being re-established. From here the rehabilitation: It hurt a lot, my muscles were no longer used to walking every day. Initially Peeters moves to a wheelchair, then gradually acquires all motor functions. Until Christmas day, when he walks into the living room on his own legs. And for his family the best gift. So much so that her mother almost faints for her happiness. Juventus joins the family, makes doctors, facilities and trainers available to its player to accompany him on his recovery journey. Last February he goes back to training with the team and in March he has the confirmation that he has passed this dark period. Restart from Serie B, in Sudtirol (first official match: against Spezia). To go back to dreaming.