Joanne Mandry

On the 12th November I gave birth to my darling son who was born sleeping.  Obviously this was devastating and I began the mourning process. Over Christmas I kept getting pains in my kidneys but just kept putting off going to the doctors!

On the 4th of January I finally returned to work..the next day I could feel myself getting a UTI so I popped to the chemist to get something over the counter. (Sepsis and Urinary Tract Infections)

After a day or two things hadn’t improved and now I was in agony with my kidneys, I went along to the doctors who prescribed antibiotics. Still no improvement, by now I had flu-like symptoms, so back to the doctor I go, but they tell me there’s nothing they can do for flu and that’s probably why my kidneys are aching!

By now I can barely get out of bed and I’m vomiting and shaking uncontrollably. My mum tried to get the doctor to come out to me but they won’t so somehow she gets me to the surgery and I’m laying on the floor throwing up. I can’t even stand so the doctor does my consultation in the waiting room in front of all the other patients! I was prescribed anti sickness tablets!

The next night I tell her to call me an ambulance. When it arrives, they do my vitals and tell me I’m having a panic attack and leave. The next day I start hallucinating and vomiting blood, again my mum calls an ambulance and this time when they try to brush her off. She demands I’m taken to hospital! I was so hot in that ambulance and they refused to open the windows!

At A&E, they took my blood and then it was all systems go! Intravenous drugs, I was stripped off and had fans on me, and morphine. By now it was 18th January.

I spent two weeks in hospital. I was also tested for leukemia as my spleen was so enlarged and my liver had also started to shut down!

I remember waking on my third night and I had no idea who I was or where I was. That was the most terrifying night of my life.

Recovery was long but emotionally it’s taken even longer. Everytime I’m ill now I think it’s back and that I’m going to die!

I never trust what a doctor tells me any more and always get a second opinion even if I have to go to A&E and sit there for hours!

I’m just grateful that I’m still here to tell the tale I know there are many others who are not so lucky!