THE first month that tragic teenager Kayleigh Ann Mart-ell used tampons was also her last. She died of toxic shock syndrome (TSS), a rare victim of an even rarer condition.

Caught between being a girl and growing into a woman, she was delighted at the freedom the tampons gave her - she was able to swim, play volleyball and all the other activities in which she excelled.

She was in many ways a normal 13-year-old. She was not one for lots of make-up and fancy clothes, she was comfiest in her jogging bottoms and sports tops, but had all the worries that every teenage girl has.

These included boys, friends, her future - but certainly not mortality or the dangers of using tampons.

Her mother, Carol, of Acklam, Middlesbrough, said: "She was mature, but not trying to grow up too fast. She would love to get dressed up if we were on holiday and going out at night, but not at home.

"When she died and I went through her belongings, it was then I noticed she was not trying to be a woman before she was ready.

"She only had about six pairs of earrings, a couple of necklaces and one lipstick - no make-up bag or anything like that."

At school she excelled, she was musical and artistic, a capable and talented writer - but she was lots of fun as well.

Her headteacher, John Lees, of Acklam Grange School, spoke at her funeral and likened his job to being a football manager. He described Kayleigh as a "first pick player, Premier League".

He said: "Kayleigh was special. She was good at everything. When I say that, I mean those things you might expect a headteacher to comment on.

"She was academically very bright, she wrote with confidence and ease, she questioned insightfully, she spoke with a considered opinion and thought.

"But Kayleigh had more than the model pupil image, she was far more fun. She was popular and appreciated by everyone who knew her."

A healthy and happy teenager, her parents were not unduly worried when she became ill on her first day back at school after the summer break, with sickness and diarrhoea, and was sent home.

Her mother nursed her through the night and said: "We thought it was just a sickness bug that was going round and put her to bed."

But the next day her condition was unchanged, and by the afternoon she had begun rambling through fever and was delirious.

The family called in their GP, who was unable to take her blood pressure because it was so low, and immediately called an ambulance.

She was taken to the intensive care unit (ICU) at South Cleveland Hospital - now known as the James Cook University Hospital - and was put on a ventilator. The medical team at first thought she could be suffering from meningitis.

Carol said: "We now almost wish it had been meningitis because at least then she would have had half a chance."

In ICU a doctor, who had previously worked with a TSS patient, asked if Kayleigh was just finishing a period.

Throughout Saturday Kayleigh was comfortable, but her parents knew she was in for a hard fight.

"We had been told that there would be no quick cure for this, and we were in for a long haul. But we still didn't think this could be fatal, not to our Kayleigh.

"She had a peaceful night on Saturday and I was not worried. We still thought she would pull through."

On Sunday, staff and family were hopeful of her stabilising, and Carol went home, but only 30 minutes later she was called back to the hospital. Kayleigh's temperature was creeping dangerously high and her lungs were not functioning properly.

By 9.30pm her heart was failing and the teenager died at 11.30pm, with her parents by her bedside.

Carol said: "The doctors fought so hard and so long for Kayleigh. They tried everything they could to save her life. When we left, all of the nurses were in tears. They were heartbroken too."

The couple went home to break the news to Kayleigh's two brothers, James and Steven, and sister Louise.

Little things about their ordeal are important to the family. Kayleigh remained clothed in little pyjamas throughout her time in hospital, something her mother is particularly pleased about.

She said: "She was in between being a little girl and growing up, but at least that way she retained her dignity."

Carol plans to launch a campaign in the North-East to raise awareness of TSS and its associations with tampon use.

She said: "I don't want to campaign to stop girls and women using tampons. I just want them to be aware of the risks and the added risks of young girls using them.

"The immune systems of youngsters are insufficiently developed to fight off TSS if it hits them, and people should know about what could happen. I know it is rare, but people should know the signs. I would like to see awareness of toxic shock in the school curriculum, and it is going to be added at Kayleigh's school.

"I don't want to frighten anybody. But they should know of the ways they should use them, and other alternatives that are available."

In their back garden, the family have a sanctuary where they speak to Kayleigh and remember her.

The teenager was cremated and her urn and ashes stand in a corner of the garden. That way, Carol said, she can always be with the family, wherever they go.

She said: "None of us will ever forget Kayleigh, and this way she can remain with us.

"I know she is dead, and will not be back. But we can go out into the garden, and sometimes we light candles, and it is very peaceful. We all miss her every day."