Horrifying Simulation Reveals What Happened To A Teenager After His Friends Dared Him To Eat A Live Slug

October 20, 2024

The demonstration shows exactly what happened to Sam Ballard’s body after he followed through on a dare to swallow a slug.

A simulation has been created to illustrate exactly what happened to a teenager who took on a dare to eat a live slug.You may have come across his shocking story at some point in your life. Before we dive into the simulation, let me walk you through the details of that night.

Back in 2010, a 19-year-old named Sam Ballard from Sydney, Australia, was hanging out with his friends.They were enjoying some drinks when they noticed a slimy creature crawling in front of them. That’s when the dare came up.

A teen eventually died after he was dared to eat a slug by his friends.Getty Stock Photo

Reflecting on that fateful evening, Ballard’s friend Jimmy Galvin shared with The Project: “We were sitting over here having a bit of a red wine appreciation night, trying to act as grown ups and a slug came crawling across here.”

“The conversation came up, ‘should I eat it?’ [and] off Sam went. Bang. That’s how it happened.”At that moment, no one realized just how dangerous that one garden slug could be for the talented rugby player.

Sam likely thought that eating a seemingly harmless slug would lead to nothing more than an upset stomach – if anything at all.Unfortunately, what Ballard would later learn was that the slug carried a parasite called rat lungworm.

Australian Sam Ballard before the fatal decision.Family Handout

This parasite led to severe weakness and pain in his legs.It ultimately caused him to contract a type of meningitis known as eosinophilic meningoencephalitis.

This is a serious but treatable condition that made his situation even worse.Sam ended up in a coma for 420 days, and the impact of that single dare on his life was beyond repair.

Sam Ballard with his friend Jimmy Galvin after the incidentTheProjectTV

When he finally woke up, he was no longer a teenager. He found out about the horrific effects the parasite had on his body.

Doctors discovered that the infection had spread to Sam’s brain, resulting in serious paralysis.He lost the ability to eat without help, which drastically changed his life.

Now, YouTuber Zack D.Films has put together an educational simulation to explain to viewers what happened to Ballard’s body as the parasite took hold.The simulation goes into detail about how Ballard contracted the parasite from the slug.

While the human body can usually fight off parasites, in Ballard’s case, the parasite managed to spread its larvae into his brain.This is what caused him to fall into that lengthy coma, which ultimately left him with significant brain damage.

The video aims to educate teenagers about the risks of engaging in dangerous dares, like eating slugs or other animals that might carry parasites.Sadly, Ballard needed round-the-clock care from his mother and spent his life in a wheelchair until he passed away in November 2018 at the age of 29.

His family has made it clear that they do not want his friends to feel guilty about Sam eating the slug.During his funeral in 2018, his brother Joshua addressed Sam’s friends directly, saying, “We don’t want you to feel any guilt about what happened that night.”

He went on to add, “Your friendship to Sam was extraordinary.”