McKenzie T.

My name is McKenzie. In 2018 I survived septic shock of an unknown cause.
In March 2018 my husband and I made a military move from Alabama all the way to Hawaii. In April we were still sleeping on our blow up mattress on the floor and waiting for our things to arrive from overseas. I noticed a weird pain in my side for a couple days and then one night I started having chills. I was 24 and never had any health problems. I reluctantly went to the Emergency Room assuming that I had appendicitis. Doctors couldn’t decide if my appendix was slightly enlarged or not, so they admitted me to the hospital for observation. After they treated my fever I felt fine and wanted to go home.

Over the next few days I quickly got extremely sick and eventually I was taken to the Intensive Care Unit. I was incoherent, vomiting repeatedly, had fevers up to almost 105 degrees, and my blood pressure, heart rate, and respiratory rate were out of control. I was taken for emergency surgery to remove my appendix and attempt to find any other source of my illness. After surgery, I continued to get worse, and went into septic shock. I was put on life support, and my parents flew to Hawaii from South Carolina to be with me. Doctors told my family that they didn’t know if I would live or die.

I was tested, scanned, and examined from head to toe. During surgery every organ possible was checked and everything looked normal. I was evaluated by more doctors than I could count including those from the ER, general surgery, family medicine, infectious disease, rheumatology, dermatology, gynecology, gastroenterology, cardiology, and neurology. No one was able to find the cause of my sickness. After I received all possible antibiotics and there was no improvement, doctors decided to try steroids to see if I would improve, even though they would slow healing from my surgery and risk internal bleeding.

When the steroids were administered I slowly began getting better. I remember finally having all of the miserable tubes removed, eating for the first time in seven days, and learning how to walk again. After I went home, I couldn’t believe all that happened so fast. Out of the eleven days I spent in the hospital, my memories only made up about two or three days. I felt like I was hit by a train, my body was weak, I had stitches, surgical incisions, my hair fell out, and I had to wean off of steroids for six weeks. I spent about two months in bed, exhausted from all my body had been through.

My doctors describe me as a medical mystery. I’m blessed to be healthy again and have no long term consequences from my illness, other than my scars. Some people tell me that never knowing what caused the deadly sickness would really bother them. If it weren’t for the trials I faced in life prior to my illness and my strong faith, I know I wouldn’t have gotten through this traumatic experience as easily. Now I experience life with more joy from the simple things and more appreciation for time I have with the people I love. I know how short life is and how quickly it can change, so I strive to make the most of every day.