Two newlyweds from Echuca have endured a month of hardship on their overseas honeymoon following several bouts of serious illness.

Layton and Whitney McCann, who married at Goolwa River Retreat in Torrumbarry in April, jetted off to North America for their wedding trip during the recent school holidays.

On the second-last day of their trip, Layton woke with intense stomach pain and was treated by a hotel doctor in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.

The doctor gave him medication and planned to return in an hour for a check-up, but within 10 minutes, Layton’s skin had turned grey.

Whitney’s sister Silenah Vincent was told he began sweating and vomiting, and was in excruciating pain.

“They rushed him to the hospital, and that was when they discovered he had pancreatitis,” she said.

“His pancreas was only working at 50 per cent at that point.”

After a few days in hospital, Layton was taken to the ICU due to complications with his digestion caused by pancreatitis.

While in the ICU, he had a bad reaction to medication he was given, which made his face and neck swell, cutting off his airway.

“They had to sedate him and intubate him for a couple of days because he couldn’t breathe,” Ms Vincent said.

“That was very scary because it happened very quickly.”

Layton recovered from the swelling after being in hospital for around two weeks, and the medical staff decided last week to release him to his hotel to be with family.

The couple’s mums had flown to Mexico to support their children after Layton was admitted to the ICU.

Layton’s mental wellbeing had also taken a turn while in hospital.

Ms Vincent said the staff hoped an improvement in his mood would promote faster healing, as he was in an isolated and foreign setting.

“His mental health had started to really suffer,” she said.

“In the hospital, there’s no windows, there’s no-one that speaks English ... and when they’re in the ICU, you can only visit for one hour, twice per day,” she said.

Unfortunately, Layton was unable to keep food down while in the hotel, and became severely dehydrated.

Whitney took him back to the hospital’s emergency department, where he had a seizure, and doctors found his kidneys were beginning to fail.

After another trip to the ICU that stabilised his condition, Layton developed sepsis, and later came down with hospital-acquired pneumonia.

Ms Vincent said that thankfully, following almost a month in hospital in total, Layton’s sepsis was now under control and his pneumonia was improving.

“From here, it’s just a waiting game to get him healthy enough to withstand a 20-hour flight back to Australia,” she said.

“Because they have to fly over the ocean, they don’t have a point-of-call to make an emergency stop if anything went wrong.”

Despite the adversity, Ms Vincent said she was blown away by how well her family members were coping, and praised their positive attitudes.

An outpouring of support from the Echuca-Moama community has touched the family, and noticeably helped Layton during his recovery.

“I think that’s what’s been getting him through,” Ms Vincent said.

“He even said to Whitney, ‘these messages of love and these videos are making me feel stronger’. That means more than anything.”

Ms Vincent said many well-wishers had asked after the couple at Trac Iorannis, which her and Whitney’s mum, Tracey Vincent, works at and co-owns.

The hospital staff had also been “phenomenal”, and Ms Vincent applauded the team at Echuca Travel Centre for helping the couple’s mums organise everything for their visit.

While travel insurance is covering Layton’s medical bills, both he and Whitney, who have a mortgage in Geelong, are missing out on work back home.

It’s likely Layton will need to undergo rehab upon returning, and Whitney works for herself as a hairdresser and does not accrue sick or annual leave.

A fundraiser was launched a few weeks ago by Whitney’s sister, Bronte Holland, to assist the couple, and has raised over $36,000.

Ms Vincent said her family was extremely grateful for the support, which will go towards the unseen costs travel insurance doesn’t cover.

“It means the world to them to know that they’ve got the community around them,” she said.

“It’s one thing to raise the money — and that’s fantastic — but it means so much more when people simply say they’re thinking of you.”

The fundraiser has a target of $40,000 and can be supported by visiting tinyurl.com/448srr4k

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Wednesday, 28th June 2023

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