– Marguerite Henderson
Agrandmother who lost her hands and feet to sepsis has revealed how she had to battle the deadly condition for a second time.
Marguerite Henderson was left fighting for her life a year ago after a tiny paper cut developed into blood poisoning.
Almost a year later, she was looking forward to celebrating moving into a new home when she was horrified to see a red line develop on her arm, which she recognised as a sign of sepsis.
Marguerite said: “I was told to get to hospital immediately – when I got there the doctors said they had already alerted the intensive care unit and high dependency ward.
“I was thinking, here we go again.
“I was more frightened for my children as it would bring back so many memories for them that they didn’t think they would ever have to feel again.
“But this time because we caught it early they were able to do something about it.
“It just shows how important it is to be aware of the symptoms of sepsis and catch it early on.”
Marguerite, 56, from Crosshill, Fife, recovered after spending five days on intravenous antibiotics.
But the scare in January was a setback in a year of battling to recover following her first devastating sepsis infection.
Marguerite, a former family support worker, was rushed into hospital on February 25 last year after
Afeeling unwell for three days. She later found out she had been just hours from death, but doctors could not save her limbs from the damage caused by the overwhelming infection.
Her hands were amputated on April 3, and the operation to remove her legs took place on April 12.
She said: “The problem originally was it wasn’t caught quickly enough.
“I was lying in my bed with it, not realising I had it, so by the time I got to the hospital I was in a serious condition.
“Although I put a brave face on it, there are times when I think why did you let me survive to live like this?
“I know why – I am here for my kids and they need me. But for me I am still trying to find what’s the point.”
Marguerite is writing a book about her experience, to help raise awareness of sepsis and help other people who are going through traumatic situations.
Looking back, she said one of the most vivid memories she has of her first weeks in hospital was when she asked for a shower, before her legs were amputated.
She said: “At the time I don’t think I recognised how horrific it was – my legs were dying and looked like they had been in a fire.
“I remember sitting in the shower and the nurse hosing my legs and asking if it was okay and if it was sore. I was thinking to myself why is it not sore, as the legs looked so raw that if water touched them it should be painful.
“It wasn’t until later on I realised it was because they were dead. There were no nerves in them.
“At the time I was numb. I just sat and looked at them. It wasn’t really happening to me.”
Marguerite spent six months recovering at Victoria Hospital, Kirkcaldy. When she left on August
Z