Janet Phelps

In late March of 2019, I contracted sepsis from an epidural abscess in my thoracic spine. (Sepsis and Bacterial Infections) I went to the emergency room 4 times before I was properly diagnosed. The epidural abscess was extremely painful because it put more and more, pressure on my spinal cord. It eventually became too painful for me to walk.

The first 3 times that I went to the emergency room, the doctors thought I was just trying to get narcotic pain medication, even though I am 60 years old with no history of drug use. The first ER doctor scolded me for crying and wrote in my chart that she suspected that I was acting out for pain medication. After that first visit, every other ER doctor followed her directive and, in turn, each one of the doctors lectured me about abusing pain medication.

It wasn’t until my fourth visit and my husband refused to take me home unless they figured out what was wrong with me, before they finally ordered the diagnostic testing that I needed. They X-rayed my spine, preformed a CT-scan and then finally an MRI showed the abscess and inflammation in my spinal column. At that point, the ER doctor ordered a blood test and discovered that the infection had spread to my blood. They literally almost let me die of sepsis because they didn’t believe what I was telling them. It truly was a nightmare.

After the radiologist spotted the abscess, they called in a neurosurgeon and admitted me to ICU, where I was placed on IV support. When the neurosurgeon read my MRI, he recommended an emergency laminectomy to reduce the pressure on my spinal cord. He explained that I needed surgery ASAP or I could end-up permanently paralyzed. The neurosurgeon also acknowledged that an epidural abscess is an extremely painful condition and my pain was finally treated adequately.

I was in the hospital for more than a month and then discharged with IV antibiotics for another month. I am still in a lot of pain, I can’t stand up straight and my walking remains unsteady. Last week, I looked at myself in a full length mirror for the first time since before I got sick, and I have a pretty severe humpback. I don’t mean to be vain and I understand that I am lucky to be alive; but it looks so ugly. I have cried and cried. I am scheduled to start physical therapy next week and hopefully that will help me stand up straight again.