'Life hasn't been the same': Brit mum, 35, reveals her hair started falling out due to stress after being struck down with gastric illness at Greek resort the day after her partner proposed - as group of UK tourists take legal action

  • Did YOU have a gastric illness while staying at the Mitsis Family Village Beach resort in Kos? Email [email protected]

A British mother has revealed that her hair started falling out due to stress after she was struck down with a gastric illness at a Greek resort the day after her partner proposed – as a group of UK tourists have taken legal action.

Jessica Brecknock, 35, from Nottingham, and her partner Sam travelled to the four-star Mitsis Family Village Beach hotel in Kos for a week-long holiday – their first without their children – in May last year.

Sam asked Jessica to marry him – but their celebrations were cut short when she fell ill with severe sickness and diarrhoea the next day, confining her to the hotel room for the rest of the holiday.

Upon returning to the UK, the mother-of-four attended A&E after she also started feeling tired and breathless. There she was diagnosed with salmonella and put in isolation for nine days.

‘Even after being discharged life hasn’t been the same. I’m far from recovered and I still can’t eat properly and started with hair loss,’ she said.

'life hasn't been the same': brit mum, 35, reveals her hair started falling out due to stress after being struck down with gastric illness at greek resort the day after her partner proposed - as group of uk tourists take legal action

Jessica Brecknock (pictured), 35, from Nottingham, and her partner Sam travelled to the four-star Mitsis Family Village Beach hotel in Kos for a week-long holiday – their first without their children – in May last year. Sam asked Jessica to marry him

'life hasn't been the same': brit mum, 35, reveals her hair started falling out due to stress after being struck down with gastric illness at greek resort the day after her partner proposed - as group of uk tourists take legal action

Their celebrations were cut short when she fell ill with severe sickness and diarrhoea. Back in the UK she was admitted to hospital (pictured above during her hospital stay) and diagnosed with salmonella

'life hasn't been the same': brit mum, 35, reveals her hair started falling out due to stress after being struck down with gastric illness at greek resort the day after her partner proposed - as group of uk tourists take legal action

The couple stayed at the Mitsis Family Village Beach Hotel (pictured above) from May 10 to Mary 17

The 35-year-old added: ‘This was meant be a really special occasion to celebrate our engagement but the holiday quickly turned into anyone’s worst nightmare.’

She said when she first fell ill on holiday, she thought she had a heatstroke – until her symptoms got worse.

Jessica said: ‘I decided to hold out until I got home and expected things to improve. I was wrong.

‘When I got home I spent all day in bed and the next day, I was so ill, I knew I needed a hospital. I never thought I would need to be admitted and kept in isolation.

‘It was a scary time and all sorts of thoughts were running through my mind at that point. They said it was salmonella but I never realised you could be so ill as a result and they had to monitor my kidney function.’

After she was discharged from hospital, Jessica still felt sick, so she had to take six weeks off work to get better. Even today, she said she still has trouble eating and suffers from hair loss.

Jessica added: ‘I’ve been to Kos several times in the past and loved it, but I’ll never go back now,’ following the holiday at the Mitsis hotel from May 10 to May 17.

'life hasn't been the same': brit mum, 35, reveals her hair started falling out due to stress after being struck down with gastric illness at greek resort the day after her partner proposed - as group of uk tourists take legal action

Jessica (her arm pictured while she was in hospital) said: ‘I never thought I would need to be admitted and kept in isolation. It was a scary time […]. They said it was salmonella but I never realised you could be so ill as a result and they had to monitor my kidney function’

'life hasn't been the same': brit mum, 35, reveals her hair started falling out due to stress after being struck down with gastric illness at greek resort the day after her partner proposed - as group of uk tourists take legal action

Jessica is among a growing group of Briton who have contacted specialist international serious injury lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate after they were all struck down with gastric illness while staying at the Mitsis resort (pictured) in Kos

‘As a first holiday without the children, Sam decided to pick this moment to propose. It was all meant to be so wonderful and romantic and was completely ruined.

‘I’m now scared to book a honeymoon because of the experience. Luckily I’m pretty fit and well but I dread to think what could happen if someone older or vulnerable fell as ill as I did.

‘We need answers to find out what went wrong so this doesn’t happen to anyone else.’

READ MORE: British father, 41, is ‘unable to work after contracting salmonella from food at five-star Turkish hotel that left him throwing up for a WEEK’ 

Jessica is among a growing group of Briton who have contacted specialist international serious injury lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate after they were all struck down with gastric illness while staying at the Mitsis resort in Kos.

Lewis and Charlotte Maskew, from Burntwood, Staffordshire, were holidaying at the hotel in the same month as Jessica and Sam. The Maskew family stayed at the resort from May 10 to May 24.

The married couple, both aged 31, travelled with their four-year-old daughter, Imogen, and one-year-old twin girls, Ada and Esme.

Four days after they arrived, the family ate in the beach bar restaurant, where the parents and oldest Imogen all had pork wraps.

All started to feel ill the next day, with diarrhoea, vomiting, high temperatures and fever. They struggled to keep fluids down and contacted the hotel for a doctor on May 16 – but it took the doctor three days to come and examine the family.

The family were required to pay the doctor 100 euros (£85), who said they just had a stomach bug that should pass in 24 hours and provided rehydration tablets.

But Lewis, Charlotte and Imogen continued to be unwell for the five remaining days of the holiday.

After returning to the UK on May 24, Lewis began to suffer from severe haemorrhoids and Imogen’s bowel movements were not the same for a month after their return.

'life hasn't been the same': brit mum, 35, reveals her hair started falling out due to stress after being struck down with gastric illness at greek resort the day after her partner proposed - as group of uk tourists take legal action

Lewis and Charlotte Maskew, from Burntwood, Staffordshire, were holidaying at the hotel in the same month as Jessica and Sam. The Maskew family (pictured) stayed at the resort from May 10 to May 24

'life hasn't been the same': brit mum, 35, reveals her hair started falling out due to stress after being struck down with gastric illness at greek resort the day after her partner proposed - as group of uk tourists take legal action

Lewis said: ‘We even pushed the boat out this time and went four star all-inclusive. Our first impressions of the hotel weren’t great’ (view from the hotel’s rooms with pool access pictured)

Lewis, a maintenance technician, said: ‘We’d not been able to go abroad for a while following the birth of the twins, so this holiday was a treat for the family and for a belated celebration for our 30th birthdays.

‘We even pushed the boat out this time and went four star all-inclusive. Our first impressions of the hotel weren’t great. The room wasn’t ready when we arrived and it was impossible to ignore the flies that surrounded the main restaurant dining area.

‘After eating on May 14, Charlotte, Imogen and myself began to fall ill one after the other.

READ MORE: Hundreds of tourists hit with food poisoning at Turkish resorts as the health watchdog issues a warning for holidaymakers amid wave of salmonella cases 

‘I have never felt so ill and it was hard to do anything to support your children when you’re sick yourself. Despite requesting a doctor, it was days before we were seen and medication had little effect.

‘The holiday was ruined and the only consolation is that the twins were thankfully unaffected. The three of us were still ill afterwards.

‘I’m still far from well and Charlotte’s hair started to fall out, we think, due to the stress of it all. Imogen still wasn’t right after a month.

‘This holiday was supposed to be the highlight of our year that turned into an absolute nightmare.

‘We know other guests were ill as we were and feel the least we deserve are answers and an explanation. You don’t expect to pay for a four-star hotel and have this happen to you.’

James Blower, the specialist international serious injury lawyer at Irwin Mitchell representing the group, said he was now investigating how his clients like Jessica Brecknock and the Maskew family fell ill to ‘secure them the answers they deserve’.

He said: ‘All our clients were very much looking forward to their holidays. However, they were ruined when they were struck down by serious gastric illness, including Salmonella.

‘The effects of such serious illnesses should never be downplayed as they can have serious long-term health implication for those affected.’

'life hasn't been the same': brit mum, 35, reveals her hair started falling out due to stress after being struck down with gastric illness at greek resort the day after her partner proposed - as group of uk tourists take legal action

Mitsis Family Village Beach is a four-star hotel in Kardamena in Kos. Pictured above is one of the rooms with sea view at the resort

'life hasn't been the same': brit mum, 35, reveals her hair started falling out due to stress after being struck down with gastric illness at greek resort the day after her partner proposed - as group of uk tourists take legal action

Another room is pictured above, with a pool and palm trees visible outside the balcony doors

He said if any issues are identified during the investigation, these will be ‘vital lessons […] to ensure other holidaymakers don’t suffer a similar experience’.

‘From conversations with both groups, it appears other hotel guests may also have fallen ill at the same time and we would be keen to hear from anyone else who stayed at the hotel in question as our investigations continue,’ he added.

A further group of six people also reported falling ill at the same resort, with varying levels of gastric illness. They have also asked Irwin Mitchell to investigate.

Mitsis Family Village Beach is a four-star hotel in Kardamena in Kos.

The resort has a main restaurant that offers buffet-style food for breakfast, lunch and dinner, a snack and pizza bar on the beach as well as a creperie and gelateria.

MailOnline has contacted the Mitsis Family Village Beach hotel for comment.

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