Dana Stinson

My septic shock nightmare began in October 2002. I had a vaginal hysterectomy at the hospital that I was a nurse. (Sepsis and Surgery) Within 2 days, I felt like I was dying. My vital signs showed every sign of sepsis but the doctor refused to run any tests.

Six days post op, my friend called my (then husband) and told him he needed to come and they needed to transfer me to another hospital. The nurse who had cared for me these past 6 days started to cry and said, “if you move her, she will die en route.” She took matters into her own hands, had me moved to ICU and they called a team of specialists is and ordered a CAT scan, which showed a perforated bowel (7cm and two suture lines in my colon) and at 2am, as they were wheeling me into the operating room, they told my friend and husband that I had a 3% chance of survival. (Sepsis and Perforated Bowel)

They removed 15+ inches of my colon and I had to have drains in my gallbladder, a colostomy bag and my abdomen was left open for 6 months. I was in ICU for 2 months and I’ve had six subsequent surgeries to date. I had congestive heart failure, 6 blood transfusions, pneumonia and they drained 2 liters of fluid from one lung and a liter from the other. The doctors said I would never work again and that the scar tissue in my abdomen was the worst case they’d ever seen.

I have had so many hospitalizations to even count and have had to go through therapy for PTSD, depression and anxiety attacks. (Sepsis and PTSD) I’ve lost my thyroid, gallbladder and right kidney function. I get sick all of the time and though I was deemed permanently disabled, I can’t afford to stay on it. I’ve tried going back to work 4 times and every time, I end up back in the hospital. The doctor admitted fault and I won the malpractice lawsuit but in the strategy of California, the max you can get is $250,00 and the doctor doesn’t have it put on her record until she has 6 cases against her!

I’m back to work now as a nurse for a Residential Eating Disorder home but even today, I had to call out sick because I catch everything. I do have a great doctor who knows about PSS (Sepsis and Post-Sepsis Syndrome), so I am very thankful for that. I was discharged from the hospital weighing just 76 lbs and I’ve suffered for the past 17 years. Even so, I’m grateful to have survived. #sepsissurvivor#fightingon