Greenock sepsis survivor urges people to 'trust their instincts' and advocate for themselves
Jennifer Gavin was a keen netball player at the time of her health scare
A sepsis survivor from Greenock is raising awareness of the devastating effect the condition can have on fit and healthy people after nearly dying from it last year.
Jennifer Gavin, who now lives in London, played netball around five times a week and coached primary school children before becoming sick with sepsis - often referred to as the 'silent killer' because it can be incredibly hard to detect.
The 31-year-old originally thought she had the flu when she became ill on a birthday weekend trip to Portugal in September, where she spent much of the holiday in bed going from feeling feverish to shivery and experiencing vomiting and soreness throughout her body.
She said: "I think the difference with sepsis compared to other ailments is that it quite often presents itself as flu so you second guess yourself and don't want to make a fuss over things."
Just ten days later Jennifer was in a coma fighting for her life.
How it all unfolded
When Jennifer returned home from Portugal she went to see her GP and was diagnosed with a viral infection. However, feeling she wasn't getting any better, the Change Manager decided to phone NHS 111 and was advised to go to Chelsea and Westminster Hospital's A&E department to double check everything was ok.
Upon admission, Jennifer had a temperature of 42°C and a resting heart rate of 160 beats per minute so was rushed into Resus - the part of a hospital where people are taken if they need urgent life-saving treatment.
Jennifer said this is where the fight really began.
She explained:
"Sepsis is really hard to diagnose and this was very apparent whilst I was in Resus as people were arguing over what was wrong with me."
"One doctor thought it was a perforated bowel, another thought it was hepatitis and another thought it was gall stones. This is due to the hold sepsis had on my body - it was inflaming my organs and therefore presenting as something else."
After being admitted to a medical ward for observation, medics discovered Jennifer had severe pneumonia in both lungs, but the cause of the infection was still unclear. She was treated with powerful generic antibiotics which failed to control the bug and soon began suffering from hallucinations.
Doctors tried various types of oxygen masks, but her breathing was getting worse and her oxygen levels dropping. The decision was made to move Jennifer to ICU and place her in an intubated coma, where she spent six days ventilated.
Upon waking up from the coma, Jennifer was told she had fusobacterium necrophorum; a bacteria usually found in around 20% of sore throats. This had somehow made its way into both her lungs and caused abscesses which is why she had flu-like symptoms. It was through this that sepsis was able to take over her body.
Jennifer told us: "It's really hard to think about because I deteriorated so fast and was told if I hadn't gone to hospital the night I did I would probably have died in my sleep, which is incredibly shocking to hear when you are a fit and healthy person."
Making a change
Jennifer spent three weeks in hospital and has been told she should be fully recovered by around April this year.
Five months on the captain of Balham Ballers Netball club has decided to host a charity netball tournament in south-west London to raise funds for The UK Sepsis Trust and Glasgow-based charity Sepsis Research FEAT.
She said: "The idea for the netball tournament came from a need to raise awareness around the demographic that encompasses netball teams, which is usually young, fit and healthy people."
"I think we often feel like we're invincible until something like this happens and it's a good reminder that sepsis is a devastating condition that can affect anybody of any age from any infection."
The event will take place from 1-6pm on the 23rd March at Chestnut Grove Academy.
The UK Sepsis Trust told us sepsis claims the lives of five people every hour in the UK and events like Jennifer's play a crucial role in the fight against the condition.
A spokesperson for the charity said: "By bringing people together through sport, she is not only raising vital funds to support our life-saving work but also sharing an important message: sepsis can affect anyone, regardless of age or fitness."
"Events like Jennifer’s help to raise public awareness, promote early symptom recognition, and ultimately save lives. Jennifer’s commitment is a powerful example of how personal experience can drive real change."
Sepsis Research FEAT Chief Operating Officer, Colin Graham, explained that stories such as Jennifer's are sadly not unfamiliar to the charity.
He explained:
"Sepsis is a life-threatening, medical emergency and can affect any of us at any time – even someone as young, fit and healthy as Jennifer. The root cause can be a relatively innocuous source infection as it was in her case. Patients can deteriorate extremely quickly."
"We are very grateful indeed to Jennifer for her support for the charity’s awareness work in sharing her powerful story of sepsis."
There is more information on Jennifer's fundraising here.
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