Toxic Shock Syndrome Symptoms: Woman Given Last Rites Twice After Receiving Treatment

A woman in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, recently opened up about almost dying of toxic shock syndrome (TSS) in May 2017, so that no one has to go through her nightmarish experience.

According to Mayo Clinic, “Toxic shock syndrome is a rare, life-threatening complication of certain types of bacterial infections. Often toxic shock syndrome results from toxins produced by Staphylococcus aureus (staph) bacteria, but the condition may also be caused by toxins produced by group A streptococcus (strep) bacteria.”

Its symptoms include sudden high fever, low blood pressure (hypotension), vomiting or diarrhea, sunburn-like rash popping out on areas like palms and soles, confusion, muscle aches, redness of eyes, mouth and throat, seizures and extreme headaches.

When Aimee Haller Follis, 37, was admitted to the hospital, she had 106.8-degree fever and experienced extreme lethargy, dehydration and affection vision.

“Initially I thought I was just rundown from all of the craziness that happens when you move,” Follis told Fox News. “But the fever got higher and higher and higher.”

Since TSS is tricky to diagnose, doctors could not immediately pinpoint the cause of Follis’ symptoms that suggested she was septic and was in danger of organ failure. After determining she did not have any open wounds nor had any recent surgeries, Follis was asked if she was menstruating or had her periods recently.

Follis said she got her periods four or five days ago — around the same time that the symptoms started. That is when the doctors started suspecting that Follis might have TSS.

“They got the on-call OB-GYN to do a physical examination and that’s when he found the actual infection in my cervix,” she said. “I said ‘what are you talking about?’ I didn’t know how severe it was and I credit that to the doctors in the emergency room.”

Follis was told that among the complications that she could face due to her condition were paralysis and death. As she waited in the intensive care unit following a high-risk surgery, Follis has last rites read to her twice and her family was advised to say farewell while they still could.

Finally, after being administered three different antibiotics and medication to treat her dangerously low blood pressure, the infection dissipated and Follis recovered.

But the road to recovery was no easy task. Follis continued to deal with TSS symptoms including hair loss, vision issues, muscle memory and peeling skin even after being released from the hospital. She even went through a miscarriage at 10 weeks, even though it was not clinically linked to TSS.

In the meantime, the cause behind the infection remained a mystery as the doctors never found a tampon or any material that could have caused TSS.

Due to what she went through, Follis warned others to be wary of what their body was telling them. “Pay attention to your own body,” she said. “I knew I was sick — I was doing all the right things but still getting rapidly worse. It could’ve been too late for me but thank God, it’s not. Always question something if you’re unsure.”

TSS has primarily been linked to the use of superabsorbent tampons, which are no longer sold by manufacturers in the United States.