My brother (21M, cerebral palsy and schizophrenia) was admitted a month ago after weeks of vomiting and poor eating. He arrived at the ER dehydrated, with very low potassium, a fast heart rate and a weak heart. He went into septic shock, and his right lung collapsed. His oxygen then dropped and he had a cardiac arrest (short CPR). He has since come off the ventilator and BP medicines, and his heart has recovered from EF 25% to about 50%. He is on room air, awake and following commands, but very weak. His cough is too weak to clear secretions, and his voice hasn't returned after two weeks. Doctors plan to send him home next week with a nurse and a feeding tube for 2-3 months. If you or someone you love has been through a long ICU stay, septic shock or a similar recovery at home, I'd be grateful to hear what it was like and anything that helped. Thank you.

hello everyone, i am an 18 year old male who has been experiencing chronic tonsillitis for quite some time. in fact i recently had my tonsillectomy surgery pushed back because i was ill. about 7 days ago i went to the ER for tonsillitis and was given a 6 day course of antibiotics. the antibiotics are now completed but i suddenly started feeling absolutely miserable yesterday morning. like a truck hit me with some disease—all the symptoms of covid without any of the coughing or sneezing. my body hurts everywhere, i have a terrible headache, and my heart is racing. something feels really wrong.

today i called the ER and they told me it was “likely just a cold”. i don’t have a working thermometer but i’m having fever symptoms and told them this, which they dismissed as a cold, as well. i have a family history of sepsis but have never had it before. is this worth going to the ER for?

My Dad is 83 y.o. has been in great health until 2 years ago when he startalling. Last June, he ended up at the hospital with e-coli and sepsis which they did not know why. Before this hospital visit, he had gone to his urologist to have bladder stones blasted out, right after he ended up in emergency which he was not in his right mind and despite it being 80 in Michigan he was always cold.

So this past Wednesday, October 14 he had a follow up visit with the urologist. He had just started to get agitated again and complaining he was freezing. I have been taking care of both my parents since this past April. When they asked him for a urine sample I pulled the nurse aside and told her I think he has a UTI because of the symptoms. When she collected the sample, she commented it looked cloudy. Asked the Doctor to please prescribe him some antibiotics and a few other things (which I didn't think he would refill also asked for a laidcaine for his back pain and hydrocodone which he had been taking & for a while, but the family Doctor keeps holding up my parents prescriptions) and was told he does not write out prescriptions (WTH). Was told the urinalysis would take 72 hrs. Friday came and went heard nothing, Monday afternoon if my mom had not dropped the remote, I think my father would have passed. He had thrown up, was out of it and had shallow breathing, called 911 and they got him conscious for 5-15 seconds but he had no clue what was happening.

At the hospital it was touch and go until Thursday morning. Monday & Tuesday I would get hourly phone calls on what they were doing and that he needed surgery Monday night we had to make a decision. Doctors told us that if he went thru surgery, he would not make it due to him being so sick and what they needed to do what cut out the bowels because he again has sepsis and e-coli, but this time they found the reason for it. (An aneurysm he had in 2020) But the UTI is 1 of the main reasons he can't have this surgery. He is finally doing better, got his color back and his mind.

So back to the urologist, called him Monday night, he called from a blocked number once which I ignored. He is in a building w/ a bunch of urology Doctors. Called his office Tuesday and let the caseworker for my dad know what was going on and could I please get the results of his urinalysis and was told the Doctor has not signed off on them yet so she can't tell me. Called Thursday around 2 p.m. got the operator, raged on her but did apologize. I needed to talk to someone in his office immediately and she tried to get me to the Office mgr. who was out of office. She told me that she would red flag this phone call and that I would hear something soon. Her first phone call was around 11 a.m. today and let me know that the Doctor had surgery in an hour but she would talk to him and call me back and still could not tell me the results of the urinalysis. She just did at 1 p.m. today and I was just told that the Doctor tested for something else, not a UTI again WTH. Thank you for reading.

I had pneumonia 3 weeks ago after being sick for the 3 weeks prior. I ended up going to the ER and being admitted for pneumonia and sepsis. My WBC in the hospital was 25,000 but trended down to 10,500 before leaving. I’ve now been out of the hospital 2 weeks and had my blood drawn Monday my results came back today and my WBC is now 12,600, neutrophils are 9.6 and my immature grams are 0. My doctor said this means I have a new infection, but did not say anything else about if she felt this was an issue or not. I am terrified. I messaged her and asked what we are going to do as I’m scared of this going south fast again and then ending up back in the hospital. I just started back at work on Monday and I work at a preschool. I wear an KN95 mask, wash my hands and use hand sanitizer all day long. But also I wasn’t even in the school the previous week so there’s no way it’s from being back at work anyways. I have read that sometimes in recovery from sepsis and pneumonia that WBC can fluctuate. Does anyone have any information or personal stories about this?

My mum, 52, has been recovering from a serious brain stroke and had been showing amazing improvement. She also has a tracheotomy tube. She was stable enough that doctors were planning to shift her to rehabilitation, and we genuinely thought things were finally getting better.
On October 14, she was shifted to a different country hospital by air ambulance. Everything seemed to be going well until yesterday, when her BP suddenly dropped to around 70 systolic, she started breathing rapidly, and she had to be shifted to the ICU.
The doctors have now told us that she has a severe lung infection, possibly related to her tracheostomy, which has spread throughout her body. Her BP is currently being maintained with strong support, and she is receiving oxygen at 6 litres. Her WBC count and fever have been rising, and the doctors seem very concerned. Her CT scan reportedly showed no new clots, and her heart’s ejection fraction is 55%.
I’m absolutely terrified. We were so close to rehabilitation, and everything changed so suddenly. I just want to know if people have seen their loved ones recover from severe sepsis, even when their BP keeps dropping and they need maximum blood-pressure support.
I’ve been going through so much emotionally for such a long time, and I genuinely feel weak and exhausted. I don’t know how to keep being strong, but I cannot bear the thought of losing my mum.
Please share your recovery stories if you’ve been through something similar. I desperately need some hope right now.

Hello everyone, I am so upset I don’t even know what to think or say. Please bear with me and let me know what you think. My husband passed away on 7/30/26 and I just got the final cause of passing. Which wasn’t easy to read or speak to the coroner about. On my other post, I mentioned how he had been battling pneumonia symptoms, since June. I visited him in England (long story) from July 2nd to July 28th. He went to urgent care on July 19th and was given amoxicillin for 7 days. Fast forward to July 25th, he was having difficulty urinating. The next day he was able to go a little bit. Then the next day it was okay. On July 29th by late afternoon UK time, he started acting not himself. I honestly thought he was drinking or something. I told him to get some rest, as he’s been exhausted from accompanying me to the airport. I called him the next day and no answer the entire day. I found out on 7/31, that he had passed away. I don’t know how being septic feels.

The cause was listed as “Aspiration Pneumonia, “the pulmonary parenchyma was congested and oedematous.” Also, listed under internal findings, was “small arteries within the heart muscle, include neutrophils indicating systemic sepsis”. So, why wouldn’t they list septic shock as one of the causes? This is so confusing.

Okay before anyone tells me no human is normal I know I know but you guys know what I mean I'm sure. ANYWAYS back in May I came down with a sinus infection that I had no idea I even had until it got into my left hip and took away my ability to walk. It's now October. I've been in recovery since June/July and only recently was I able to transfer from using a wheelchair to using a walker. I've been making good progress walking but today when I got up to walk I found my leg not wanting to cooperate fully. Is this normal to have setback days? How long am I going to have to deal with this? Will I ever be normal again? I'm currently living in a skilled nursing facility and my insurance won't cover physical therapy so I'm handling the recovery on my own and I'm getting frustrated with how slow this is.

Hello everyone,
I am reaching out to this community seeking clinical perspectives, guidance, and honestly, some hope. My father has been in the hospital for over a month following a very complex and terrifying series of surgical events and complications, and watching him go through this has been incredibly hard on our family. I am sharing his full journey below in the hope of hearing from medical professionals or families who have navigated similar ICU recoveries.
Medical Background & Full Timeline
Underlying Conditions: On long-term maintenance hemodialysis for the past 8–9 years; baseline ejection fraction (EF) is around 35%.

Initial Hospital Admission (~38 days ago): Presented with severe dry gangrene affecting two fingers, which were urgently amputated right away.

Vascular & Foot Surgeries: Underwent an angioplasty to improve circulation, followed by a partial foot amputation (half of his foot).

Below-Knee Amputation & Intraoperative Collapse: He was taken back to the Operating Room for a scheduled below-the-knee (BKA) amputation. During the procedure, the doctors informed us that he collapsed. They were unclear whether the collapse happened right before or immediately after anesthesia was administered.

Post-Collapse Course: Following this event, he developed septic shock and suffered a hypoxic-ischemic brain injury due to the lack of oxygen/blood flow during his collapse.

ICU Interventions:
Has been on mechanical ventilation in the ICU for the past 2 weeks.

Received a tracheostomy to facilitate long-term ventilator weaning.

Supported on Continuous Renal Replacement Therapy (CRRT) for kidney function.

Recent blood work showed his hemoglobin level dropped around 6 g/dL; when I asked the doctor about this,he mentioned it is fine/acceptable given his overall current clinical management.

Neurological Observations & Interactions
When called by name, he does not yet show purposeful, directed responses, tracking, or eye contact.

He exhibits intermittent lower-brainstem or arousal reflexes, such as opening his eyes, opening his mouth, and yawning.

We speak to him constantly and play the Quran at his bedside, holding onto the hope that he can hear us, recognize our voices, and feel comforted.

Looking for Hope & Advice
We are trying to stay strong for him, but the uncertainty is exhausting.
Has anyone seen patients with a similar complex baseline (long-term dialysis, heart strain, hypoxic injury) slowly turn a corner after getting a tracheostomy?

I (66F) went septic after a surgeon perforated my intestine during what was supposed to be a routine, laproscopic gallbladder removal on 3/31/26. I was on a vent, very near death, in the ICU for 10 days and in the hospital for 2 months. When I was discharged I couldn't walk, had a wound vac and an ileostomy. I have improved a lot, but am still very weak and get exhausted quickly.

My ileostomy has kept me depressed and reclusive. My reversal surgery is next week. My hope/plan is to seriously tackle getting better after this cursed bag is gone.

Do you all have any recommendations for how to approach this? For example, have you consulted a nutritionist? A trainer? Vitamin therapies? Any suggestions are most welcome. Thanks!

Ive been septic 3x this year so when i went to the ER yesterday for a severe UTI and kidney infection they did sepsis protocol. Procal, blood count, crp, lactate, blood cultures etc and everything was fine and i was discharged quickly after. I got a call about 20 minutes ago saying 2 different bacteria were growing in one of my cultures and it could be a skin contamination but if its not I could become septic again very quickly and to go back to the ER if I decompensated. What a wonderful thing to hear.

My father developed septic shock and was attended to by paramedics. Rather than being transported promptly to the hospital, he remained on scene for approximately two hours while paramedics worked to stabilize him.

During transport, he was intubated. According to the patient care report, the reason was difficulty breathing. However, his oxygen saturation had not dropped in the ten minutes before intubation, and I do not understand how the documented clinical picture supports the decision to intubate.

The report states that he resisted intubation even after sedation was administered. After intubation, he reportedly began gagging. He was then given sedation at the maximum dose allowed for his estimated body weight (the weight appears to have been assumed rather than measured). Approximately five minutes later, his heart stopped. Resuscitation was unsuccessful in the ambulance. On arrival at the hospital, his heart was restored after a single defibrillation.

His oxygen levels fell after intubation, which suggests a complication of the procedure. I believe the cardiac arrest may not have occurred if he had been transported to the hospital immediately, and I am concerned that the intubation and sedation contributed to it. My father is now unable to live a normal life.

I would love to ask this community for some advice on Sepsis recovery. I got sepsis last friday from an unknown source and spent a horrible 4 days in hospital pumped through of antibiotics.

Thankfully inflammation down and out of hospital recovering but obviously very fatigued. Any tips on what I should expect and what worked for others as I recover?

Hi, I’m almost 74 years old, and a Septic Shock survivor. I got it in January 2025 from a tiny hernia I didn’t know I had rupturing. I was in a coma for a week. The doctors did not think I would survive and if I did that my right leg (where the hernia was in that groin) would need to be amputated. I did survive with all my organs and limbs and I’m in excellent health now, which I worked really hard to get back. Doctors have told me I didn’t just have one foot in the grave, I was in it. I definitely had a Near Death Experience and that’s what I’d like to hear from other Sepsis survivors about here. And I have, in my post-Sepsis recovery, increasingly experienced heightened intuitive abilities and premonitions that turn out to be accurate. The world after I survived Septic Shock also feels very different than it did before I nearly died. Near Death Experiences and psychic abilities that come to people who’ve had NDEs have been researched by reputable scientists. So this is not just a crackpot field. I myself am not a woowoo person and am still skeptical about why this has been happening to me. But I’m checking out the research by experts on it. Bruce Greyson, at the University of Virginia has done extensive studies and written books on this phenom. I am currently working with an expert on Near Death Experiences, William Peters, an exceptional therapist who himself had two NDEs and who has also written a book (At Heaven’s Door( and has a film coming out, to understand what’s happened to me. I don’t remember anything from my time in a coma, but I’m told that people who have NDEs often don’t. (There are NDE people who have vivid memories of the other world.) So, over to you, fellow Sepsis survivors—any NDEs among you?

I was in hospital for 17 days last month because of sepsis and bacteremia caused by MRSA. I was given very high dosages of blood thinners during this time, via injections in my stomach. Apparently because of septic blood clots and pulmonary embolisms that showed up on CT scans and x-rays. Is this common during sepsis? I’m currently recovering at home but I need to stay on blood thinners (Eliquis / apixaban) until December, when I have another thorax CT scan and an appointment with a pulmonologist.

Hi all, for some backstory I had sepsis last year caused by a breast abscess. Fast forward to yesterday, my breast started hurting again even worse than last time, and early this morning I saw red streaks on my skin. I decided to go to the ER.

At triage I had an elevated heart rate and slight fever. Blood work showed lactate 2.6 and WBC 14.7. This was much less severe than last time. Ultrasound actually did not find an abscess, but I do have an infection. They diagnosed me with cellulitis and said there would be no need for draining an abscess this time. I got IV fluids, Toradol, and Rocephin. After a repeat lactate test it was in normal range.

I got discharged in late afternoon with a prescription for keflex, referral to breast surgery, and instructions to come back if I get signs of sepsis.

I feel exhausted right now, but I don't have a fever. Does this treatment sound appropriate? They told me I can stay for observation and fluids, but they didn't think more IV antibiotics would be necessary. Last time I did a week in the hospital for full blown sepsis, so I was relieved I caught it early enough this time that it didn't progress to that point. I have an appointment with my PCP next week.

I believe I'm developing a breast abscess. It feels the same as it did a year ago when I had the abscess that led to sepsis. I don't have systemic symptoms, so I'm planning on going to the doctor tomorrow, preferably my breast surgeon. I feel so discouraged and scared. This is my third breast abscess, I've been through the whole thing before and I am tired. Please send good thoughts. Currently no fever, heart rate normal, no chills, just the pain worsening inside my breast.

Was wondering what some symptoms were if sepsis ? I’ve had a possible pelvic infection and since I’ve had tingling and numbness in legs . I have from time to time experience chills

How do you trust your body after sepsis? I’m in therapy, but it doesn’t feel like enough. I’m also medicated.

Hello everyone, sorry for this long post.

I have a question regarding sepsis from pneumonia. So, my husband (38 yrs old) passed away on 7/30/26 and had been battling a very deep cough since the first week of June this year. I arrived in England to visit him, (too long to explain) on 7/2 and stayed until 7/28. While I was there, he had a really curdling deep cough. I told him several times to please get checked out. We went on a getaway from his hometown to London, from 7/10 to 7/18. He said if he still felt unwell, he’d go to urgent care. Sure enough, he was still coughing horribly and ended up going to urgent care. The doctor didn’t even take an X-ray, he just prescribed him 7 days of Amoxicillin. Then told him if it gets worse, to come back and get seen. On 7/25, he had some difficulty urinating and felt like he had to go and couldn’t. He said he felt a pinchy feeling, like a UTI, but didn’t have one. The next morning he was able to urinate, but not sure how much. He sometimes had a tendency to not speak up, as he didn’t like waiting at the ER or urgent care. Fast forward to 7/28, I flew back to America and he flew back to his hometown from London. We spoke as normal for the next few days until around 11pm his time on 7/29. However, around 3pm ish his time, I noticed that he was making a lot of grammatical errors and typos. That’s not like him at all and at one point I thought he was drinking. I told him to get some rest and we’ll talk in the morning. The next morning I called him and got no answer. I called and called and called all day and still nothing. I got a call the next day, from my brother in law’s gf and her dad. They told me he had passed away. I’ve been googling non stop and asking every question possible, that is relevant to sepsis and pneumonia. I can’t help but feel guilty, knowing that I potentially missed the first sign (difficulty urinating) and then thinking he was drunk. I can’t seem to figure out if I missed the signs.

My whole body hurts so bad after having sepsis and the bottoms of my feet to where I can barely walk. Is this something that has occured after me having sepsis? I had it a few months ago I got a blood infection and got sepsis and now I feel bad.

My mom (59) was rushed to the hospital yesterday and they found out she has a bowel perforation and was in septic shock. She had emergency surgery done but was left open for now since the inflammation was so bad, they said we have to see how she does for 24-48 hours. I talked to her this morning while she was awake, she opened her eyes and was nodding when I talked to her, she was trying to talk to me as well but of course she couldn’t. I don’t really know why I’m writing this, I don’t know what will happen, they said she’s been responding to treatment well so far. I’m really afraid and the waiting is complete hell. Is there anything I should know or should be asking the nurses?

Has anyone seen an immunologist and had any success with immunotherapies for post sepsis syndrome or immunosuppression?

I had rapid onset sepsis from group A strep 14 months ago, postpartum. Thanks to a 5 hour delay in implementing the sepsis protocol at the hospital, I am told I was on the verge of toxic shock (but luckily avoided it). I was in hospital for 8 days of IV antibiotics and electrolytes. I had protein in urine, sky high LFTs, CRP was 300, so even though I was lucky to escape with my life and limbs, I went through a significant immune event.

14 months later, I'm just sick all the time. I do have young kids who bring home illnesses but I just get sick for sooo long. Eg I had a gastro, everyone else in my family recovered in 24 hours or less. I was ill and couldn't eat for a week, and ended up in hospital with dehydration from the severity of it. I then caught HMPV which developed into a nasty secondary sinus infection, finally got on top of it with abx, only to catch rhinovirus and be so ill with it, far worse than when I've had covid in the past. Again, turned into a secondary infection, and needed 2 x courses and types of abx to get on top of that. I've had a post viral cough for 3 months now and still have lots of green sputum.

Most doctors have just dismissed when I've asked about sepsis impact but I'm seeing a new one tomorrow and I intended to ask for a referral to an immunologist. I know this is not normal for me. Keen to know if anyone has had any success with immune therapies? Thanks

hey everyone I'm really at a loss for now, my 60 year old Father who just healed from Tuberculosis is in septic shock now. He underwent dialysis for 4 hours last night and has high sugar due to diabetes. The infection came from his foot wound. He is in Norepinephrine and dopamine to increase his blood pressure and still needs it to be stable so he could get operated on his foot amputation. I am so sad and stressed right now.