Doctors have no idea why she keeps sneezing

Oct 6, 2015 18:26 GMT  ·  By

About a month ago, Katelyn Thornley started sneezing oddly often. She went to see several doctors, but they all failed to figure out what was causing her sneezing fits. 

Her condition took a turn for the worse. Now, the 12-year-old girl of Angleton, Texas, says she sneezes about 20 times a minute. This adds up to around 12,000 sneezes a day.

She feels so bad she can't even go to school

Most people feel relieved when they let out a whole-hearted sneeze. 12-year-old Katelyn Thornley, however, says the sneezing fits she's been experiencing these past few weeks have left her weak and in pain. The teenager feels so bad she had to stop going to school.

“I just started in little spurts, sneezing. I'm constantly in pain with my abdomen, my legs are weak. I can barely eat,” the young girl told the press in an interview, as cited by Fox 8.

The 12-year-old says that, just before going to bed, she takes some Benadryl, an antihistamine used to treat allergy and common cold symptoms such as sneezing, a runny nose, itches and watery eyes. This way, she can sleep through the night without waking up every 10 seconds or so.

However, the moment she does wake up, she finds herself sneezing uncontrollably once more. Since they don't even know what is causing her symptoms, there is nothing her parents can do to help her.

Doctors think the incessant sneezing could be caused by stress

As mentioned, 12-year-old Katelyn Thornley has been to see several medical experts, who ruled out viruses and allergies as the underlying cause of her constant sneezing.

Since the teenager seems to be in perfect health, doctors are now thinking that perhaps her sneezing is caused by stress. Still, they haven't yet confirmed this diagnosis.

The girl and her family say they cannot wait for specialists to determine what is triggering her sneezing and cure her so that they can return to their usual routine.