Nikki Contreras

I lost my 21-year-old daughter, Fasha “Nikki” to toxic shock syndrome on July 20, 2010. (Sepsis and Toxic Shock Syndrome) The death certificate lists the cause of death as septic shock. Nikki was a college student in her final year of Dental Hygiene classes.

Nikki was healthy and without any problems until about six months before her death. She was experiencing back pain, but since it runs in our family we just assumed she had overexerted herself or something. We took her to the doctor where she received some antibiotics for what they thought was a bladder infection. She continued going to the doctor on and off as needed over the next few months. Her back pain did not seem to be going away, so in May 2010 she began chiropractic treatment to try to alleviate the pain. They had taken x-rays and everything seemed fine. Every once in a while, she seemed in pain but said her back just hurt.

On Thursday, July 15th, I went to visit her. Nikki had gone to see a doctor at an Urgent Care Clinic on Tuesday, July 13th. They took blood and gave her a prescription for an antibiotic. Thursday evening, she complained about still being sick, so she decided to come home with us. Nikki seemed to be having flu-like symptoms. I just gave her some Nyquil and Dayquil over the next couple of days. On Saturday, she just seemed to be really worse. She was throwing up and becoming weaker. A rash showed up on her face so we assumed she was allergic to the antibiotic prescription. I asked Nikki if I could take her to the doctor and she said no. She just decided to stop taking the prescription. My husband and I had a wedding to attend and I didn’t want to leave her but she insisted that we go. When we got back she said she felt better.

On Sunday, she got up and said she was going back to her apartment an hour away. She drove back, but a few hours later she called and said that something was wrong. She said she couldn’t walk and was really dizzy. Her older sister went to pick her up and they went to the Urgent Care Clinic that she had gone to earlier in the week. They took her blood work and told them to go to the emergency room immediately.

My husband and I rushed to the hospital. When we got there, she was talking but her blood pressure was sky high. They gave her medication to lower it. Scans revealed that she had a “foreign object” inside her. The doctor tried to retrieve it and her blood pressure immediately started to drop. We were forced out of the room while they tried to stabilize her. Once stabilized, they immediately took her to surgery to try to remove the object. After surgery, the doctor told us it was an accumulation of tampon fibers. He told us his part went well, but that she was very sick. They immediately took her to ICU.

As we were talking to another doctor, she coded. They performed CPR and brought her back. The doctor told us there was no hope. The next day, Monday, was extremely hard with our only hope being prayer. They took her off of sedation so my husband and I could talk to her and explain what was happening. I cannot explain nor will I ever forget the look of fear that was in her eyes. She was on a ventilator and hooked up to everything. She started dialysis but had to start another dialysis treatment because it didn’t work.

By early Tuesday morning, Nikki had made a significant turnaround, but that afternoon things were not going well. Honestly, I thought that she would be okay. We had what seemed like the entire world praying for her. The waiting room was completely full of family and friends. I went to her room and just held her hand, prayed, and begged her to fight. As the hours passed, she continued to get worse. As evening approached, she was getting far worse. I knew what was coming. I knew she was going to code, but I thought they would get her back and we’d start another good day on Wednesday. Her blood pressure continued to drop and she coded. I knew it was taking longer this time. We watched while they worked on her.

I will never forget the nurse at the end of her bed looking over to us and shaking her head. My life was over. My baby was gone. She had suffered terribly due to the production of a man-made product, the desire for profit instead of safety. She was not a regular user of tampons, only when she went swimming.

I live each day wishing that I had known the warning signs of TSS and septic shock. I live each day wishing that the doctors who first saw her the few days before had not tried to shuffle her through but taken the time to look at her blood work and helped her. I live each day wishing I had taken her to the emergency room myself. I live each day wishing I could see that beautiful smile and hear that beautiful laugh. I live each day with the regrets that as her mother I should have done more.

I hope through these stories we become educated about the warning sign of sepsis or septic shock. I have met numerous mothers throughout the country who have gone through the same struggle as I have, even a few whose daughters were saved by information shared following our diagnosis of septic shock and toxic shock syndrome.

Source: by Margaret Contreras (Nikki's mother)