Madelynn May, a 23 year old model who now earns £1.5 million a year online, was once placed on life support after taking a single puff of a joint laced with marijuana and tobacco.
The smoke triggered a severe fungal infection that caused her lungs to fail and spread mould throughout her body, including her ears and sinuses.
Madelynn, who has over 600,000 Instagram followers, passed out shortly after smoking at a friend’s house and woke up in an ambulance.
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Doctors discovered she had aspergillosis, a rare infection caused by inhaling mould spores.
She spent nearly a year in and out of hospitals, underwent eight bronchoscopies, and relied on an oxygen tank for four years.
At one point, doctors feared she’d need a lung transplant.
The cause wasn’t clear until she remembered the joint during recovery. Doctors confirmed it likely contained fungal spores that sparked the infection.
“I’ll never smoke again,” she said.
During her long recovery, Madelynn turned to social media for comfort and connection. Her content soon gained traction, leading to a full-time, high-earning career.
What began as a health scare transformed into a platform for awareness and a multi-million-pound business.
