Mum to Race at Mooloolaba Triathlon in Memory of Mabel

When Carly Goya enters the water at the start of the Mooloolaba Triathlon on Sunday 13 March 2022, it will be just over a year since the birth of her second daughter Mabel, who tragically passed away as a result of pneumococcal meningitis at just six and a half months old.  

Carly needed something to help her deal with the pain of losing Mabel and so, finding exercise a tool to help escape her grief, decided to take up triathlon. Needing a bigger goal to motivate her, Carly looked into triathlon events and found that the Mooloolaba Triathlon was close to a year from the day Mabel was born. 

As well as giving her something else to focus on, Carly is using the challenge of the Mooloolaba Triathlon to raise further awareness of pneumococcal disease among hospital staff, GPs, and the public, as well as raising money for Meningitis Australia and Precious Wings. 

Carly’s daughter Mabel was born on 1 March 2021, but six and a half months later – despite being happy, healthy, and fully vaccinated – she passed away.  

During the evening of 13 September 2021, Mabel started vomiting and became visibly unwell, but managed a couple of hours of sleep. However, waking early the next day still vomiting, Carly decided to take her straight to the emergency department, where she was told by doctors that Mabel was likely suffering with gastroenteritis or a UTI and it was hoped that fluids would solve the problem.  

Mabel was fitted with a nasal-gastric tube and moved to the short stays area of the emergency department. 

Carly’s husband John came into hospital the next morning to relieve Carly, so she could go home and shower. John sent Carly a photo of Mabel asleep on his chest, and they both felt happy as it seemed their baby was finally getting some rest.  

But on her way back to hospital, Carly received a call from John to say another doctor had attended to Mabel and realised something was seriously wrong. 

“After I'd left, she had fallen asleep on John's chest which we thought was good because we wanted her to sleep, because that's what you want when your kid is sick, but essentially when she fell asleep that day, on him, she never opened her eyes again,” said Carly. 

Mabel underwent a lumbar puncture which detected bacterial infection in the spinal fluid and was started on antibiotics. Eventually she was given an MRI and pneumococcal bacteria was identified in Mabel’s spinal fluid, as well as damage to her brain. 

Three days later after both antibiotics and penicillin, another MRI showed that things were worse. The pneumococcal bacteria had reacted well to penicillin, but the earlier damage done was too extensive and there were secondary complications caused by vasculitis (inflammation of the blood vessels).  

After another few days in hospital, the decision was made to remove all tubes from Mabel and on the 22 September 2021, she stopped breathing after 15 hours in her parents’ arms.  

Carly said the heartbreaking thing is that had the meningitis been identified earlier, Mabel may still be alive today.  

“The first 24 hours of this disease is absolutely crucial,” she said. 

Carly is determined to keep Mabel’s memory alive and hopes that her taking part in the Mooloolaba Triathlon will help to further educate parents and hospital staff on the variety of meningitis strains and ultimately, lead to early detection that could prevent something like this happening again. 

“I just cannot have her be forgotten, her not matter. Even though this makes absolutely no sense and there's no understanding it, I need to do something because she is important and she needs to continue to be important,” said Carly.  

“I think I'm just trying to create a world in which she would've survived, because it's all I can do. Continue to be her mum.” 

On Sunday 13 March, Carly will take part in her first ever triathlon. She says she hopes it will be a positive experience and a celebration of Mabel. 

“I just want to make both my daughter's proud,” she said. “I think it will be positive emotions, yes it will be difficult, but initially I think I'll just feel happy and glad to have completed it. I think I'll be pretty emotional. I've been training every day essentially. 

“I feel the same as another mum I know, who lost her son a couple of years ago to pneumococcal meningitis, who said, ‘my child is my superpower, if I can get through that, then I can get through anything.’” 

To find out more about Mabel’s story and to donate to Meningitis Australia and Precious Wings visithttps://mabeloliveairi.org/