A restaurant failed my niece by giving her peanuts. Now she can’t walk, talk or see

Julie Martin shares the devastating effects of her niece, Amy May Shead, then 26, suffering a life-threatening allergic reaction, after a restaurant in Budapest served her peanuts. This is despite the waiter having been told in writing in Hungarian and in person multiple times that she had a severe allergy to them.

If you'd met my niece, Amy, you’d never forget her. Before that fateful night in Budapest, she was the kind of person everyone loved to meet. She had a larger-than-life personality and was endlessly kind. She was the sort of person that made friends anywhere and everywhere she went.

She was only 26 when tragedy struck and yet she had lived more fully than many do in a lifetime. She completed two university degrees, was a journalist at ITV and had just bought her first flat in London. Her life was one of promise and potential. But during a girls' trip to Budapest in April 2014, everything changed in an instant.

Amy was born with a severe nut allergy and she took it very seriously. She was never complacent, always double- and triple-checking her food to make sure it was safe.

A devastating reaction

In Budapest, she followed her usual routine of showing the waiter her allergy card – printed in the local language – and asked him to confirm her meal with the chef. Confident they understood, Amy took one bite of her dish and immediately felt something was wrong.

It all happened so fast. Amy administered her EpiPen (an adrenalin injection) and tried to calm herself, but the reaction was too severe. She used a second EpiPen, but it still wasn’t enough. Realising she was going into anaphylaxis and feeling her airways close, she ran outside for air and collapsed near the restaurant as her friends frantically called for an ambulance.

Despite emergency services arriving quickly after, Amy had already gone into cardiac arrest on the pavement outside the restaurant. Paramedics rushed her into the ambulance where they performed such forceful CPR that her friends could see the vehicle bouncing up and down from the pressure of her chest compressions.

Starved of oxygen

But Amy’s condition was critical. The severity of her reaction left her brain starved of oxygen for six long minutes. For those six minutes, Amy was clinically dead, and this is when the catastrophic brain damage occurred.

She was transferred to Péterfy Hospital in Budapest, where she spent three weeks in intensive care. Doctors placed her in three progressively deeper, induced comas to try to limit the brain damage. A probe was also inserted to relieve the pressure and reduce swelling in her skull, but the damage was irreversible and her life was being maintained by a life support machine.

After three gruelling weeks, she was airlifted to St. Thomas Hospital in London, where she spent nearly another 11 months in ICU and was cared for by incredible nursing staff.

Changed forever

Amy survived, but her life – and the lives of her closest family and friends – was forever changed. Today, at 37, Amy lives in Essex with her parents and requires round-the-clock care. She is blind, unable to speak and completely immobile. She cannot feed herself and is reliant on a feeding tube.

Each of these disabilities on their own would be devastating enough, but together, they’ve left Amy in a state where her existence is profoundly limited. While she does understand some things, her inability to communicate is heartbreaking. We don’t know how much she comprehends and it’s a constant mystery that weighs heavily on all of us.

Therapy has been a lifeline – initially for recovery – and now to maintain some quality of life. She undergoes regular physiotherapy to prevent her body from stiffening further and hydrotherapy, which she loves.

No responsibility

Music therapy has also been a source of comfort, helping stimulate her mind in ways words can’t. All of this is funded by the Amy May Trust, which my son Tom and I founded to ensure Amy has access to the care and resources she needs.

The restaurant where this tragedy occurred has never taken responsibility. Despite Amy providing clear instructions about her allergies, they failed to follow them. In Hungary at the time, businesses weren’t required to have public liability insurance, so even though their negligence caused this catastrophe, there was no legal recourse.

Travel insurance covered Amy’s initial medical bills and her repatriation to the UK, but beyond that, there was no support to cover the ongoing costs of her care. Compensation isn’t about replacing what was lost, it’s about funding the immense expenses that come with caring for Amy. We’ve had to fight for everything and the lack of accountability from the restaurant still hurts.

Saving others

My son Tom and I set up the Amy May Trust to support Amy’s care and raise awareness about the seriousness of allergies. Over the years, we’ve organised fundraising events and educational campaigns to highlight the potentially fatal consequences of allergic reactions, especially during busy periods like Christmas.

With restaurant staff under extra pressure, it becomes far easier for crucial messages to kitchens to be missed or miscommunicated. But allergies are not just an inconvenience – they are life-threatening.

Our hope is that by sharing Amy’s story, we can prevent another family from experiencing this kind of heartbreak. Amy’s parents (my sister and brother-in-law) are dedicated to caring for Amy and the day-to-day realities of their lives are already overwhelming. That’s why it’s so important for us to keep the trust running and ensure Amy gets the support she needs, while also driving awareness.

Unimaginable pain

Amy was a bright, vibrant woman who had so much to give. Now, she lives a life of silent strength, unable to share her thoughts or feelings, but Amy is still here and she still matters. Her spirit, though trapped, continues to inspire us. She may not be the effervescent young woman she once was, but she is still Amy – and she is loved and cherished.

Our family has endured unimaginable pain and Amy’s story is a stark reminder of the importance of vigilance when it comes to allergies. A single mistake can have catastrophic consequences.

We hope that by sharing Amy’s journey, we can create a world where tragedies like this are prevented and allergies are taken seriously.

If you would like further support or advice in regards to allergies, you can contact Allergy UK on their helpline on 01322 619898.

Read more about food allergies:

• Air pollution could be causing kids to develop peanut allergies, new study reveals (The Independent, 3-min read)

• Plane nut ban announcements are unlikely to be effective, study says (PA Media, 5-min read)

• Food allergies and flying – what you need to know (The Independent, 8-min read)