Sam Ballard was tragically left to face dire consequences after a sick dare went terribly wrong. In 2010, the teen consumed a slug during a friend’s party – an impulsive act that led to devastating repercussions and ultimately caused his death at the tender age of just 28.
The then 19 year old rapidly fell ill after swallowing the gastropod and was diagnosed with eosinophilic meningoencephalitis, a severe parasitic infection of the central nervous system (CNS). Sam, a promising rugby enthusiast from Sydney, ended up spending a staggering 420 days in a coma when he was rushed to a healthcare facility.
Upon regaining consciousness, he confronted the grim reality that he had become a quadriplegic, paralysed from the neck down, immobilising all four limbs. Years on, a mate who was present during that fateful gathering shared Sam’s last few words before consuming the slug, coupled with a poignant cautionary message for others.
Jimmy Galvin told The Project: “We were sitting, having a bit of a red wine appreciation night, trying to act as grown-ups, and a slug came crawling across. The conversation came up, ‘Should I eat it? ‘ Off Sam went. Bang. That’s how it happened.”
Echoing a stark warning, Jimmy declared: “Just take care of your mates. Before you jump off a roof into pool or dare your mate to eat something stupid. It can have the worst consequences – not only on your mate and the rest of your friends, the rest of your life, just take care of each other,” reports The Mirror.
Sam was rushed to hospital where doctors diagnosed him with rat lungworm. This disease is typically found in rodents, but can also infect snails and slugs who consume the rats’ faeces. The excrement carries a rare parasite known as Angiostrongylus cantonensis which can cause brain infections, as it did in Sam’s case. After developing eosinophilic meningoencephalitis, Sam slipped into a coma for 420 days.
When he woke up, he discovered he was quadriplegic. His friend Jimmy expressed his regret for not stopping Sam from accepting the dare, at which point Sam “started bawling his eyes out”. Another friend, Michael Sheasby, recalled his shock upon seeing Sam in the hospital: “When I walked in, he was very, very gaunt, and there were cables everywhere – it was a big shock.”
Sam’s mother, Kate, remained hopeful that her son would one day walk and talk again, but admitted the incident had greatly impacted their lives. Speaking to the Daily Telegraph in Australia, she said: “It’s devastated, changed his life forever, changed my life forever. It’s huge. The impact is huge.”
She revealed that Sam now requires assistance for basic tasks like eating and using the bathroom. Despite this, she doesn’t blame the boys for their dare or Sam for accepting it, emphasising they were just “being mates” on the night of the party.
Three years after falling ill, Sam was finally discharged from hospital, returning home in a motorised wheelchair. His friends rallied around to raise money for the round-the-clock care he required, but despite their efforts, the family still found themselves in debt.
In April 2018, it was reported that Sam was battling the government after his disability allowance was slashed. When Sam became eligible for a substantial disability allowance in 2016, Kate applied to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).
However, in September 2017, Kate was informed that a review of his plan had drastically reduced his allowance from $492,000 to a mere $135,000, leaving them owing nurses $42,000. At the time, the NDIS told the Daily Telegraph it was “working closely” with the family to find a solution.
Tragically, in December 2018, Sam passed away at the tender age of just 28. Lisa Wilkinson, one of the hosts of The Project, revealed that Sam had been “surrounded by his family and loyal, loving mates” during his final hours and that his last words to his mum were “I love you”.