Sepsis awareness

Has anyone else actually made it through this? 🤷

Of course they do. Honestly, most people pull through sepsis just fine. But you really shouldn't confuse regular sepsis with septic shock, though—that’s a whole different beast, and if you hit that stage, things start looking pretty grim for you...

That’s just how it goes... but man, you've been living with this reality for three days now. Yesterday, he actually recognized me and asked for some water. In my honest opinion, he seems to be turning a corner because we haven't even been able to communicate until now. The doctor mentioned they were even able to spoon-feed him last night... 🤔

I survived it. I dealt with it 32 days ago.

I’m starting to believe in miracles... you guys are truly wonderful... 😘

It was just pure shock... Baja isn't exactly the face of a commercial, but he's on the mend...

Has anyone here actually dealt with sepsis before? Like, what kind of hell did you have to go through and how did it even start in the first place? I'm desperate for some advice, so please help me out!

Yeah, my dad actually dealt with sepsis caused by a nasty kidney infection... he barely made it out alive, I guess.

mellowjackal23 said:Has anyone here actually dealt with sepsis before? Like, what kind of hell did you have to go through and how did it even start in the first place? I'm desperate for some advice, so please help me out!

There isn't much to say—sepsis is basically blood poisoning and it's incredibly dangerous to deal with;
did you actually have it yourself??? how did it happen to you???

Sepsis is a subject that could be discussed at length; it is a systemic disorder primarily triggered by an infection. There are various stages within this progression, one of which is sepsis itself, though the entire process is commonly referred to simply as sepsis.

So, the whole story is kind of a long one. Basically, my grandma (she's 62) started feeling this stomach pain at the beginning of August—she thought it was just her stomach, so after a few days, my mom took her to see a doctor, etc. She ended up being sent to a hospital in Topeka where they kept her for a few days, and it turns out she had gallstones. They operated and found 32 stones—some were actually pretty big, like the size of a pinky fingernail. Two days after the surgery, when the doctor came to check on her, she was so dehydrated that the doctors and nurses were basically losing their minds; they were really snapping at her about why she wasn't drinking, but she honestly couldn't drink anything because she felt so weak. While I was there, they even moved her to intensive care. Later, they called the hospital and told us her kidneys had failed. :? After everything, she stayed in ICU for 22 days, and during those 22 days, there wasn't any real improvement in her recovery, though her kidneys seemingly started working again—if they ever actually shut down. But then we hit another snag: she had nonstop diarrhea. When they finally moved her to a regular ward, she spent about four days there under absolutely terrible conditions—I mean, I had to call the nurses three times just to get them to empty her catheter because it was full to the brim and she was in so much pain. Eventually, they let her come home, but she’d been in the hospital for about 35 or 36 days total. We figured once she got home, she might actually find some will to recover, since she barely ate anything at the hospital besides the tiny little things we brought her. She was home for three days, but we realized there was really no sense in letting her leave—her blood pressure was bottoming out, she had a fever, and the diarrhea wouldn't stop. So, we rushed her to the ER, and she was sent to Akron because they suspected an infectious issue. There, they found some abscesses left over from the gallbladder surgery. They cleaned them out, closed her back up, and gave us the "wonderful" news that she had been released from the Topeka hospital with sepsis. Like, she could die at home. In Akron, they kept telling us everything would be fine, but she started drifting—one moment she knows everything, and the next, she's totally lost. She started asking these weird, random questions about family stuff that had already happened, just repeating herself over and over every time we visited. I guess that’s probably the stress from the sepsis?! She stayed in Akron for 15 days before they let her go, but she's completely wiped out—she can't even lift her arm. The diarrhea is still happening, she has a high fever, so we went back to the ER, but this time to Washington, D.C. She’s been there for about two weeks now, and they discovered some intestinal bacteria called "Clostridia." They're treating her for it now, but our whole family is just lost—we don't know what to think or what to do anymore. Our biggest worry right now is the sepsis; is there even a chance to fully recover from that? We're hoping the people at the hospital can fix the diarrhea, but mentally, she just isn't herself. I don't even know what else I've written or haven't, so if anyone has any advice or just a kind word, I'd really appreciate it. Thanks.

Hey 🙂
Is your grandma in the Mayo Clinic in Washington, D.C. now? If she is, then she’s definitely in good hands!

As for those indifferent "doctors" and "nurses" over in Topeka, you should really report them to the inspectors 😉 (I hope you have all the paperwork ready—make sure you made copies, hopefully nothing "accidentally" went missing)

Keeping my fingers crossed for your grandma, grandmas are the best! (And yours is still pretty young, too)...

I won't say anything about the diagnosis itself since I don't know enough about it, but hopefully someone will give you some real answers soon!!

Did any of the doctors actually mention sepsis to you? From where I’m sitting, this doesn't look like sepsis at all. It looks more like a localized intestinal infection—specifically, pseudomembranous enterocolitis caused by Clostridium (difficile?). That kind of thing isn't even a rare complication for patients staying in a hospital, especially when dealing with older folks. On the bright side, these types of infections can usually be treated and cleared up effectively, even if we are seeing more resistant strains popping up lately. So, my take is this: if it's just this specific infection and the medical staff hasn't brought up sepsis, septicemia, or anything along those lines, then there really isn't much reason to panic. I'm hoping for a positive outcome here. Best of luck.

So, sepsis and septic shock have been confirmed. Honestly, we haven't been able to figure out if they can actually treat this—not in Akron and apparently not in Washington, D.C., either... I mean, how do you even cure something like this?! And is it even possible to recover? From everything we’ve been hearing lately, it seems like most people don't make it through.

Sandra Kelly3 said:So, sepsis and septic shock have been confirmed. Honestly, we haven't been able to figure out if they can actually treat this—not in Akron and apparently not in Washington, D.C., either... I mean, how do you even cure something like this?! And is it even possible to recover? From everything we’ve been hearing lately, it seems like most people don't make it through.

Look, 😢septic shock is incredibly dangerous, and elderly patients face an uphill battle, but it isn't a guaranteed death sentence. It all comes down to their overall constitution, the state of their vital organs, and how well the bacteria responds to the antibiotics being used.
I’m afraid at this point, all we can really do is hope the treatment takes hold.
Tell me, did they put a drain in her after the gallbladder surgery? My mother went through something similar with an infection, and they had to keep a drain in her for about ten days at the hospital until things finally cleared up.

Uh. Given her age and how far gone she is in shock, the statistics aren't exactly looking great, but medicine isn't an exact science—it’s highly individual, just like > pointed out. In this field, 2 + 2 doesn't always equal 4. You should definitely hope for the best, but you also have to prepare yourself for the possibility of a fatal outcome. Recovery is possible, but the success rate drops off a cliff the longer treatment is delayed. At this stage, every hour—if not every single minute—is critical. To put it in layman's terms, we're looking at systemic inflammation caused by the infection spreading through the bloodstream. Because of that, the primary line of defense is heavy-duty antibiotics. If necessary, doctors will perform drainage on the site of the infection. If her kidneys start to fail, she'll be moved to hemodialysis. If her breathing becomes compromised, she'll be put on a ventilator. And if she can't manage to eat normally, she'll be transitioned to IV nutrition. Good luck.

Is she being discharged from the Mayo Clinic tomorrow? :S :S Does that mean they finally got rid of that gut bacteria?
After the surgery, nothing was coming out through the drain—so they had to open her up in Akron just to clean everything out properly.
Does anyone have any advice on how to deal with all this mental stress and the whole sepsis situation? Maybe the doctors will actually give us some clarity tomorrow... though I guess it’ll either be helpful info or absolutely nothing at all.

Sandra Kelly3 said:Is she being discharged from the Mayo Clinic tomorrow? :S :S Does that mean they finally got rid of that gut bacteria?
After the surgery, nothing was coming out through the drain—so they had to open her up in Akron just to clean everything out properly.
Does anyone have any advice on how to deal with all this mental stress and the whole sepsis situation? Maybe the doctors will actually give us some clarity tomorrow... though I guess it’ll either be helpful info or absolutely nothing at all.

Look, there are some doctors you really have to push just to get an answer... I don't know who's going to head down to the hospital to check on Grandma, but please, find a doctor and ask them, for heaven's sake. You've got a voice😁
and I really hope she doesn't leave without her discharge papers... if she's at the infectious disease ward, she should get them immediately, those folks are usually pretty good about that!
I've been admitted twice myself and my mom once too, and honestly, everyone was so kind and willing to explain things, but you REALLY have to show that you care and stay involved😉

Write down everything you want to ask so you don't freeze up when you're actually there...

Let me know how it goes 😉

The whole thing wasn't even about sepsis in my opinion. I mean, if you're looking at septic shock, they'd just discharge her. You can really only imagine how that works...

My mom spoke with the doctor yesterday to get a general update, and he said there’s really no reason she shouldn't make a full recovery. :S Well, let's hope so.
They just brought her in a few minutes ago—she's looking pretty rough, honestly. It's hard to say... she's weak and has started coughing a bit now. (Great.) We'll see today if it's just a cold or if she needs to clear something out of her lungs. When I head over to see her again, I'll try to snap a few photos of the paperwork so I can show you guys the diagnoses. Just so you can see what's going on. I was there for about 15 minutes, and we talked, but she kept asking me five different times if I was still in college, and then asked Mom if she was working. She knows everyone and everything about our past, but now—she just can't seem to hold onto those details. Though, I guess that isn't even the biggest issue right now.

Sandra Kelly3 said:My mom spoke with the doctor yesterday to get a general update, and he said there’s really no reason she shouldn't make a full recovery. :S Well, let's hope so.
They just brought her in a few minutes ago—she's looking pretty rough, honestly. It's hard to say... she's weak and has started coughing a bit now. (Great.) We'll see today if it's just a cold or if she needs to clear something out of her lungs. When I head over to see her again, I'll try to snap a few photos of the paperwork so I can show you guys the diagnoses. Just so you can see what's going on. I was there for about 15 minutes, and we talked, but she kept asking me five different times if I was still in college, and then asked Mom if she was working. She knows everyone and everything about our past, but now—she just can't seem to hold onto those details. Though, I guess that isn't even the biggest issue right now.

Just make sure you're feeding her healthy food—lots of vitamins—to get her immune system up. 👍