David Gray

47, fit and healthy, and working way from my Edinburgh home, in Southampton. I stayed in digs, worked Mon to Friday, typically 9-5pm. I would go running round the park a couple of times a week, just to keep active. I had just signed up to join a badminton club, with the first session, 7-9pm on Thursday 26th Sept 2013. I didn’t really get unwell.

During that afternoon, at work, I started to feel low in energy and a bit hot and cold. I didn’t think much of this. But as the afternoon progressed, I felt more and more lethargic, with occasional dizziness. Having pestered my colleagues for weeks about joining a badminton club, I now, as the clock drew nearer to 5pm, realised I wouldn’t be up to going to my first badminton class and told them it was off. I wasn’t 100% and was just going to take it easy.

I left work, went home, not feeling great but not concerned about anything.
My landlady appeared and, first, having not felt hungry at all, an hour or so later I did feel hungry and suggested I get some take-away pizza. I felt ok for a while – almost a mini revival, but then felt not so great and went to my bed early. I remember waking up in my bed, during the night, with sweat literally dripping off me. The bed was soaking. I had some temperature. I felt rubbish but just put it down to some sort of a virus.

In the morning, I didn’t feel great about going to work but, after having had a shower, thought I’d give it a go. I’m so glad I did. Because, within an hour of being at work, I’d passed out at my desk. Colleagues then took over.
Great colleagues. First to the sick room but quickly realised I needed medical attention and took me to a ‘walk in centre’. By this stage, I was only semi -conscious. It turned out that the sight of me wasn’t welcomed and fast thinking by someone, had me in an ambulance and on my way to Southampton Royal Infirmary.

I recall hearing the siren. A reception committee awaited and, no sooner did the ambulance arrive, all sorts of activity was going on around me. I vaguely tuned in and out of conversations about my blood pressure and my
heart rate. Later, I was told all my internal organs were on the verge of closing down.

Various medications/antibiotics were administered but were making little difference. Only when adrenaline was pumped into my jugular did I come round and things gradually started to improve. I spent 3 days in the ICU and a week in total at the hospital. My sepsis stemmed from a UTI but what caused that was unknown. (Sepsis and Urinary Tract Infections)

I have been so fortunate to have made a full recovery with no side effects. Never does a day pass when I don’t think how lucky I was to have such fast thinking colleagues, the people at the walk in centre and the brilliant ambulance staff and the team of medics at Southampton R.I. And never does
a 27th September pass without me properly pausing for reflection.

I’d never heard of sepsis before. Maybe the term septic shock, but I didn’t know what that was. What I did know was that I was a healthy guy, quite sporty and who didn’t get ill. And who didn’t pay attention to any of the warning signs his body was telling him. And, but for so many fast thinking
individuals, expert medical care and huge fortune, wouldn’t be here now.

I’d be more than happy to get involved in helping promote awareness of sepsis.