Susan Dromgool’s potting mix coma
‘‘They tried giving me oxygen but it wasn't enough, they had to put me into a coma.’’
It was suppose to be a routine garden chore but ended in a coma of nightmares for Susan Dromgool.
Kidney damage and acute back pain were just the tip of the iceberg during the two weeks the Cambridge woman spent in a coma.
She was recently released from hospital after what she described as a near-death experience with Legionnaires’ Disease, a form of atypical pneumonia.
She contracted it on Thursday, December 15 while potting succulents. She wore gloves, but no face mask.
Now she wants to warn others not to make the same mistake.
‘‘I thought that because I was in a ventilated area I would be alright,’’ she said.
That night, she got chills down her legs but thought it might have been a reaction from some foot pampering she received the same day.
A few days later she had acute back pain but still drove to and from Ohope where she was working at a market.
She had sweats and a fever, so went to the doctor on a Monday who diagnosed her with pneumonia, something she had frequently.
But by Thursday she couldn’t breathe and an ambulance was called.
‘‘They tried giving me oxygen but it wasn’t enough, they had to put me into a coma,’’ Dromgool said.
While she was under, she experienced horrific nightmares.
‘‘Apparently I was responding to people but I don’t remember.
‘‘What I do remember is the nightmares, and when I got out of the coma I couldn’t work out what was real or not real,’’ she said.
‘‘I had a dream that my daughter died in a plane crash, and I was too scared to ask in case it was true.’’
Her life support was nearly cut off, but the diagnosis for Legionnaires was determined. Her antibiotics were changed and her health improved.
But the real improvements came after a tracheotomy - an incision in the windpipe to help her breathe.
Dromgool is back home now, but needs a zimmer frame most days to help her walk.
It will take her several months to fully heal, as organs were also damaged.
It was not Dromgool’s first near-death experience.
When she was younger she didn’t see a wasp on a piece of cake before she bit into it.
It resulted in a swollen tongue, but fortunately a vet was on site to reduce the swelling so she didn’t choke.
Her most recent medical emergency has prompted her to encouraged anyone working with potting mix to be extremely cautious.
‘‘There are warnings on the bags of potting mix, but I really think they should put a free mask in with every packet sold just to be safe,’’ she said.
‘‘I have seen and heard so many tips that if you do this, that and the other thing that you will be safe, but you always need to wear a mask.’’