Patients & Family

Sepsis Alliance provides information and resources to help you better understand your or your loved one’s sepsis diagnosis.

Diagnosed with Sepsis

For anyone recently diagnosed with sepsis, this is the place to start.

Sepsis Basics

Sepsis Survivors

Some sepsis survivors recover completely and resume their lives, while others may struggle to cope with enduring effects of their illness. Here you can find information to help you navigate post-sepsis life.

Survivor Resources

Caregivers

When your loved one becomes ill with sepsis, you may not know what sepsis is or how to help them. Here are resources that may help you navigate this complex and difficult journey.

Caregiver Resources

Lost Loved Ones

Losing a loved one to sepsis can leave you with grief as well as many questions. Here are answers to some of the questions you may have after losing a loved one to sepsis.

Resources for Loved Ones

Sepsis Alliance Connect

Sepsis Alliance Connect is the virtual support community for anyone affected by sepsis.

Sepsis Alliance Connect

Faces of Sepsis

Melissa Shaw-Hill

Survivor

In 2019 I was bitten on my chest by a mosquito. Within an hour, that bite had taken over most of my left breast. By hour 2, I had a climbing fever and felt nauseous. 6 hours later, my husband was told I had flesh eating  disease and was in septic shock. (Sepsis and Necrotizing Fasciitis) I had emergency surgery and was fighting to live before midnight. I spent 7 days in ICU, intubated with a large open wound on my chest. Doctors and nurses were surprised I was alive, But I had 2 young kids and a husband to ... Read Full Story

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Rand Conroe

Survivor, Survivor

In the summer of 2022, I was having stomach issues. I went to Urgent Care, and they ordered a CT scan. The Urgent Care Clinic called me later that day and asked me to please go directly to the emergency room because the CT showed that I had a major bowel obstruction. The ER disagreed and I was sent home. Two weeks later I was still having issues and went to my primary care provider who ordered another CT scan. This time the radiology department did not even let me leave the hospital, instead escorting me back to the ER. ... Read Full Story

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Diana L.

Survivor, Survivor, Survivor

It started with a urinary tract infection I did not even know I had. (Sepsis and Urinary Tract Infections) That weekend, I lost my appetite and was extremely tired. I went to urgent care the next day, where I was given antibiotics for the UTI. The day after, I felt worse, and went to the ER, where I was given a blood transfusion, along with other medications. I was asked if I wanted to admit to the hospital, and I though the medication would work, so I went home. After 2 days, I woke up one morning and was very ... Read Full Story

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Paula Jacobs

Survivor, Survivor, Survivor, Survivor

After working on development of one of the country’s first electronic sepsis alerts, followed by 18 years of leading teams in early detection and treatment of sepsis, I thought I knew everything there was to know about sepsis. But I did not know how it makes you feel. That all changed in 2016 when I developed severe sepsis after just a couple of days of fever from undiagnosed pneumonia. (Sepsis and Pneumonia) There was no preceding upper respiratory illness, no cough, just fever and extreme fatigue. It was about the sickest I had ever felt, with that vague yet horrible ... Read Full Story

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Brandi Baltes

Survivor, Survivor, Survivor, Survivor, Survivor

I went into a doc in the box in late November 2023 for strep throat. (Sepsis and Strep Throat) Within a week, I was being transported from that same doc in the box for extremely low blood pressure. Next thing I remember is waking up from a coma. I had COVID, septic shock, kidney failure, diaphragmatic spasms, and pneumonia. (Sepsis and Covid-19, Sepsis and Pneumonia) I was in the ICU for 35 days1 2 weeks in a coma. The nightmares I had while in my coma still haunt me. I’m terrified of anything that seems “off” with my health. Read Full Story

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