Louise Clarke, who has recovered from meningitis and will be running in this year's London marathon to raise funds for the Meningitis Trust. Picture by LARA BALL DA5084P5THERE were times when Louise Clarke's family thought she would never pull through.

At just 22, the bubbly student from Berwick St Leonard was enjoying life at the University of Aberystwyth, when she was tragically struck down with bacterial meningitis B and septicaemia.

In a remarkable tale of courage and determination, Louise miraculously battled through her illness, despite slipping into a coma and doctors telling her family to prepare for the worst.

Amazingly, Louise has decided to run in this year's London Marathon, on April 18, to raise money for the Meningitis Trust - just five months after her own illness was diagnosed.

Louise, who lives with boyfriend Iestyn Whitehead at Berwick House, was in her fourth year, studying law and German, when she suddenly developed a fever, a stiff neck, a headache and a rash on her ankles during a weekend in Cardiff last October.

She said: "When I got back from Cardiff, Iestyn picked me up and I couldn't walk and couldn't really see.

"I went straight to the hospital. They didn't know what I had when I got there, and I was in an unbelievable amount of pain.

"Then I had a fit and that was the last thing I remember.

"I was in intensive care for two days - it was touch-and-go - and Iestyn said I was critical for about 30 hours."

Louise was in Aberystwyth's Bronglais Hospital for two-and-a-half weeks and was left with serious nerve damage as a result of the meningitis, which affected her left leg.

Despite facing the gruelling task of learning to walk again, she was determined to lead a normal life.