Anna McEvoy opens up about her terrifying battle with sepsis, telling how a simple urinary tract infection turned into a life-threatening condition.
The Love Island Australia star-turned-podcaster has shared shocking details of her recent health crisis, which left her fearing for her life after contracting sepsis.
The 32-year-old described how a series of untreated urinary tract infections (UTIs) led to a serious kidney infection, which eventually escalated to sepsis, a condition that can be fatal if not treated promptly.
“I had chronic UTIs and was on antibiotic after antibiotic. My immune system was destroyed and one of the UTIs turned into a kidney infection,” Anna told Ny Breaking Australia on Tuesday.
‘Unfortunately I was given the wrong antibiotics and instead of getting better I just got worse.’
The situation became so dire that Anna ended up in the hospital, where doctors initially misdiagnosed her as having kidney stones.
“After a CT scan ruled out kidney stones, they congratulated me, but I knew something was seriously wrong,” she recalls.
After Anna was discharged from the hospital, her condition deteriorated rapidly.
Anna McEvoy has opened up about her terrifying battle with sepsis. Pictured
The Love Island Australia star-turned-podcaster shared the shocking details of her recent health crisis, which left her fearing for her life after being diagnosed with sepsis
“Two hours later I woke up with uncontrollable shaking, my teeth were chattering and my face had turned blue. I was in excruciating pain and really thought I was going to die,” she recalled.
Her current husband Michael Staples quickly rushed her back to the hospital, where the reality star was diagnosed with sepsis.
‘It was so bad that they had to take me to another hospital in an emergency ambulance. It was terrifying.’
Looking back on the experience, Anna admitted: ‘I was extremely ignorant about sepsis. I didn’t realise how serious it was until they told me the hospital couldn’t treat me and I had to be transferred. That’s when it hit me: this is life or death.’
Sepsis is a life-threatening condition that occurs when the body responds to an infection and causes widespread inflammation, leading to organ failure.
Her current husband Michael Staples rushed her back to the hospital, where the reality star was diagnosed with sepsis. Both pictured
Anna now hopes to raise awareness about the importance of recognising the early signs of sepsis.
“Sepsis is not just a ‘disease of the elderly’. Anyone who gets an infection can develop it. It is so important to listen to your body and not ignore symptoms,” she urged.
Anna also shared how the ordeal changed her outlook on life.
“Health is wealth,” she said.
Anna has teamed up with Sepsis Australia after struggling with her health, launching a new tongue-twister challenge to raise awareness of the life-threatening condition that claims 8,700 lives in Australia each year.
The tongue twister ‘I am susceptible to sepsis and susceptible to sepsis’ aims to convince people that anyone with an infection can get sepsis.