Jessica Guardino

I was diagnosed with sepsis June of 2011. I was working in a call center at the time. I was stuck on a call and did not feel well. I started to shake, sweat, and my teeth started chattering. I have a Spinal Cord Injury and am paralyzed from the waist down. I thought it was just a sign that my bladder was full. I finally got off the call and headed to the bathroom. I almost fell out of my wheelchair while transferring to the toilet. I also started to vomit. (Sepsis and Paralysis)

I left work and decided to go home. At that point, I still didn’t feel well and thought that I could have bronchitis. I had a cold the week before, and thought that it might have taken a turn for the worst. I went under the hair dryer (for warmth) and went to bed. The next day, I decided to go to the emergency room.

They admitted me and gave me high dosages of antibiotics. They told me that my blood culture did not come back good and that I had sepsis. It took me two days to stop sweating and shaking. I was freezing and was not allowed to use any blankets. The nurse told me that if I did not go to the ER, I would have passed away.

When I was released from the hospital, I was not allowed to go to work for a week after. I was also prescribed oral antibiotics to make sure that the sepsis was gone.

I went back to work a week later and explained that I had a blood infection. They still wrote me up because I was in the hospital, even though I had a doctor’s note.

So many people do not know what sepsis is and the harm that it causes. Sadly, sepsis is not rare and occurs in many individuals. A lot of those people pass away from it, which can be prevented by awareness.