Sepsis – Know the signs!

A lot of women dread their 6 week check at the doctors following the birth of their babies, but you generally know what to expect. They run through the usual post pregnancy discussions – what contraception do we intend to use going forward, how is our mood, how are we feeding the baby etc etc. However, my 6 week check discussions were a little different, and I left feeling quite shocked and incredibly grateful to be alive. My conversations were largely around the Sepsis diagnosis I had received post surgery, and the 3 weeks in hospital that followed. (For those who aren’t aware of the background see Baby Steps Post Section)

I, for one, had never really heard of sepsis, and if I am honest, I am kind of glad I didn’t realise how serious it was whilst I was in hospital, as I think that may have caused me some extreme anxiety! I now know that I am extremely lucky to be alive, after my GP advised me that for every hour sepsis goes untreated, your chances of survival can reduce by up to 8%! It is extimated to affect more than 100,000 people a year, and around 31,000 people a year lose their lives due to the condition. With sepsis, there doesn’t have to have been any medical negligence as such, just the reality that infections can come from anywhere – whether it be unsanitary hospitals or poor management of my wound at home. I have no idea how or when I contracted sepsis, but it is clear that the implications of it going unnoticed are huge.

So what is sepsis?

From the NHS website – sepsis is defined as follows:

Sepsis, also referred to as blood poisoning or septicaemia, is a potentially life-threatening condition triggered by an infection or injury.

In sepsis, the body’s immune system goes into overdrive as it tries to fight an infection. This can reduce the blood supply to vital organs such as the brain, heart and kidneys. Without quick treatment, sepsis can lead to multiple organ failure and death.

Recognising the symptoms early is crucial. If I am honest, I didn’t realise I had an infection at all, the symptoms I had been getting were, what I believed to be just a result of overdoing it slightly, and therefore were easy to brush over as ‘nothing’.

Thinking back now, my main symptoms were as follows:

• My caesarean wound was quite hot to the touch, and very red. With this being my first section, I wasn’t aware of this being a concern as I had nothing to compare it to. It wasn’t oozing, and I wasn’t losing any fluid, and therefore assumed this was relatively normal.
• I felt extremely tired and a little weak. But then who doesn’t – I had a 6 day old baby!
• I kept going a little chilly. I didn’t think much of this at the time but this was quite a key sign! It was quite a warm day on the day I went in, I remember going upstairs to get some nappies and getting a cold shiver, to the point where I put my dressing gown on! I assumed this was down to tiredness, or the fact I had just moved from the sofa where I had been cosy. I didn’t feel hot in myself, therefore didn’t realise I had a fever (of nearly 39 degrees as it happened!)
• I felt like “something wasn’t right” – I was getting muscle pain (which as it happened was unrelated to the sepsis), but had no appetite as was in a lot of pain. I remember saying to my Dad and other half that my symptoms “Couldn’t be normal” – I guess my gut was telling me something was wrong.

When I got to the walk in centre, my temperature was sky high, and my tummy was very red hot to the touch. My pulse was 135(!) which meant my heart was racing and my breathing was very fast.

Luckily for me, the Doctor acted quickly, and within 2 hours, I had been admitted to hospital, with my 6 day old baby, and was in the high dependency ward on a intravenous drip. I had observations every half hour, and a midwife by my side pretty much the whole time I was there.

After my 6 week check and chatting to my Doctor, I felt quite sick at the prospect of what could have been – as a Mum there is no worse feeling than the thought of not being around to see your babies grow up. As such, feel compelled to write this to say – PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don’t ignore any symptoms post C-section. Infections are scarily common, and sepsis too as I’ve learned, is more of a regular occurrence than you may think. If in doubt, ring 111, speak to an out of hours doctor, or visit your badger clinic, but please don’t ignore the signs.

You can learn more about Sepsis and the symptoms / treatment on the Sepsis Trust website.

*This is a collaborative post*