A man who was left paralyzed after being dared to eat a slug by friends shared one last heartbreaking message before his tragic death.

The heart-shattering incident took place in 2010 when an Australian man named Sam Ballard engaged in what seemed like a harmless prank.

The then-19-year-old boy, who was a promising rugby player from Sydney, was enjoying a weekend get-together with friends when the group noticed a live slug in the garden and urged the teenager to eat it.

The decision had life-altering consequences for Ballard and ultimately led to his death.

One of his closest friends, Jimmy Galvin, recalled the moment Ballard consumed the insect during an interview with Australian outlet, The Project.

"We were sitting over here having a bit of a red wine appreciation night, trying to act as grown-up and a slug came crawling across here," Galvin explained. "The conversation came up, you know. ‘Should I eat it?’ And off Sam went. Bang. That’s how it happened."

At first, everything seemed fine, and the friends carried on as usual. But in the days following that fateful evening, the young man began to complain that he was experiencing intense pain in his legs.

He voiced his concerns to his mother, Katie, even suggesting that the pain might be linked to the slug he had eaten. However, she dismissed the idea, and said: "No one gets sick from that."

After a visit to the hospital, it was determined that Ballard had been infected by the parasite Angiostrongylus cantonensis - a worm commonly found in rats but is also present in snails or slugs after they eat rodent droppings. 

The infection led to Sam contracting eosinophilic meningoencephalitis and lapsing into a coma for 420 days, suffering a severe infection of his brain. While this form of the disease is treatable, it left him paralyzed. He needed help eating and using the bathroom, and could only control his breathing and eyelids.

Ballard tragically passed away in 2018, eight years after the incident. According to The Washington Post, he uttered his final heartbreaking words to his mother which were: "I love you".

Ballard's mom once revealed that she has never blamed her son's friends for what happened.

"[Online trolls would say] the boys should be the ones paying for Sam to be looked after," she told NZ Herald. "How stupid that a kid does something like that and expects everybody to pay for it.

"It's tough to fathom that there are people that can't understand there is a very sick kid who has lost everything health-wise. His family have lost him, you know. And all the great times they should have had with him," she continued, adding that they were "just being mates".

Featured image credit: Sandra Standbridge / Getty

Sam Ballard, a 28-year-old man from Australia, passed away last week after eight years of medical complications that started when he swallowed a garden slug.

The initial incident happened back in 2010, when Ballard was just 19 years old. He had been drinking wine with friends in his garden, when some of them noticed the slug and goaded the then-teenager into eating it.

"We were sitting over here having a bit of a red wine appreciation night, trying to act as grown up and a slug came crawling across here," said Jimmy Galvin, one of Ballard's closest friends. "The conversation came up, you know. ‘Should I eat it?’ And off Sam went. Bang. That’s how it happened."

Very shortly after, though, Ballard realised he had made a grave mistake.

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In the days following that fateful evening, Ballard - who was a keen rugby player - started experiencing serious pain in his legs. He told his mother about what he was experiencing, and even expressed concern that the pain might have been caused by eating the slug, but she told him that "no one gets sick from that".

After a visit to the doctor, the young man was worried that he might be developing MS (as his father suffers from the condition), but that was quickly ruled out.

Eventually, it was determined that Ballard had been infected by the parasite Angiostrongylus cantonensis - a worm that is most commonly found in rodents, but can be present in slugs or snails if they eat rat faeces. This led to him contracting a strand of meningitis called eosinophilic meningoencephalitis, which many people usually recover from.

Tragically, though, Ballard's condition only deteriorated further.

Instead of recovering from his illness, Ballard fell into a coma for 420 days, during which time he developed brain damage. When he awoke, he had lost a great deal of his faculties, and needed help eating and using the bathroom for the remainder of his life. Even so, his mother, Katie, maintains that he still understood "everything", and his friends were still able to see the Sam they once knew in the man.

Galvin recalled that he once apologised to Ballard for not stopping him on the night he ate the slug, at which point Ballard broke down in tears.

In a special news report earlier this year, Lisa Wilkinson spoke about the former rugby player's experience.

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Now, in the wake of his death, the reporter gave a short but heartfelt statement about Ballard's passing.

"We have some sad news for you now. Earlier this year we brought you the story of Sam Ballard who, on a dare from his mates, ate a slug. He contracted rat lung disease with devastating effects," she said.

"His friends have stuck by him ever since. On Friday, Sam passed away, surrounded by his family and loyal, loving mates.

"His last words to his mum: ‘I love you’."

Our thoughts go out to all those close to Ballard at this difficult time, and we hope that others might learn to be more careful when participating in dares or activities that could potentially be life-threatening.

An alarming simulation has shown the impact that swallowing a live slug had on a teenage boy.

The dare between friends in 2010 turned into a devastating tragedy for 19-year-old Sam Ballard, who was urged by his friends to eat a live slug.

The incident, which initially seemed like harmless fun, had life-altering consequences for the young man and ultimately led to his tragic death.

Sam, a promising rugby player from Sydney, was enjoying a casual evening with friends, drinking wine in his garden when the fatal challenge occurred.

One of his closest friends, Jimmy Galvin, recalled the fateful moment during an interview with The Project.

"We were sitting over here having a bit of a red wine appreciation night, trying to act as grown up and a slug came crawling across here," Galvin explained.

"The conversation came up, you know. ‘Should I eat it?’ And off Sam went. Bang. That’s how it happened."

Initially, it appeared to be a foolish, if harmless, prank. But soon after, Sam realized that things were about to go wrong.

In the days following the dare, he began experiencing severe pain in his legs.

He voiced his concerns to his mother, Katie, even suggesting that the pain might be linked to the slug he had eaten.

His mother, however, dismissed the idea, telling him: "No one gets sick from that."

Despite her reassurance, Sam’s condition worsened. Initially fearing that he might have inherited multiple sclerosis from his father, a doctor’s visit ruled that out.

Instead, medical tests revealed that Sam had contracted the parasite Angiostrongylus cantonensis, commonly known as rat lungworm.

This parasite, typically found in rodents, can infect slugs and snails that come into contact with rat feces.

The infection led to Sam developing eosinophilic meningoencephalitis, a form of meningitis.

While many people recover from this illness, Sam's case took a tragic turn. He fell into a 420-day coma, during which time he suffered significant brain damage.

Now, thanks to a simulation created by Zack D. Films, we can see just how the dare changed Sam's life.

The simulation details how the parasite spread through his system, explaining that while the human body can often fight off such infections, in this case, the parasite’s larvae made their way to Ballard’s brain, triggering the extended coma and resulting in catastrophic brain damage.

The video aims to raise awareness, particularly among teenagers, about the dangers of risky dares involving wildlife, especially those known to carry parasites.

When Sam eventually woke from the coma, his life had drastically changed.

The once-active athlete was now paralyzed, unable to move, eat, or use the bathroom without assistance.

Despite his severe disabilities, Sam’s mother maintained that he remained cognitively aware.

"He understood everything," she said, noting that his friends could still recognize the Sam they had known.

In 2018, Sam tragically passed away at the age of 28, surrounded by his family and loyal friends. His final words to his mother were: "I love you."

Featured image credit: DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams)/Getty