Nicky Archer

I am a paediatric nurse in the UK. I look after children with sepsis all the time and never imagined that I would be in their situation. I have always been a relatively healthy 25-year-old woman. I had been up to central London on the Saturday, but spent all day Sunday vomiting, assuming it was just food poisoning or a tummy bug I stayed at home where I live on site.

By mid afternoon I had vomited non-stop and could no longer stand. Despite living on-site at the hospital I work in, I had to call for an ambulance.

Despite my call being given red category (aim to arrive within 8 minutes), it took 37 minutes for the paramedic to arrive. He took my observation signs and told me everything was normal. Because of my history of depression, he made the assumption my vomiting was because of an overdose…which it clearly wasn’t as I had a temperature of 40 degrees C. He advised me to stay at home!

I insisted on going to hospital, so a full paramedic crew was called. They re-checked my obs and my blood pressure was 43/21. Needless to say I, was then rushed to resuscitation, where they started fluid resuscitation.

After 12 hours in resuscitation, I was transferred to ITU where I was intubated. My parents were advised not to leave the hospital because they thought I wouldn’t survive the next 24hours.

I remained on the ventilator for 6 days, required dialysis as my kidneys failed, needed medication to maintain a stable BP, went into DIC (a clotting abnormality) for which I required platelet transfusions, had IVIGs, blood transfusions, and had various antibiotics, antivirals and antifungals as they could not find any source of infection. (Sepsis and DIC)

I remained in ITU for a total of 2 weeks before being transferred to a general ward. I’ve been in hospital a further 4 times since, most recently with encephalitis. It’s like my whole life has turned upside down.