ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (WKBW) — Twelve-year-old Ella Thomas has spent most of the last year in bed, exhausted, in pain and fighting symptoms her family never imagined would take over her childhood.

Her mother, Jessica Thomas, told me it all began back in 2018 when Ella started showing concerning symptoms.

"It's been a long process. She started showing symptoms of something wrong in 2018. Her joints hurt, mainly her ankles, her knees, her hips and she was getting unexplained rashes, which kind of go along with autoimmune," Thomas said.

Autoimmune issues run in Thomas' family, and in 2023, Ella was diagnosed with juvenile inflammatory arthritis. Though, even after years of antibiotics and appointments, the symptoms never stopped.

Her fatigue became so severe that by late 2023, she had missed

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