Going shopping gives us that relaxing feeling that we all need to experience every once in a while, especially in these stressful times. A mother and a daughter from Wales, UK were looking forward to buying some new clothes and shoes for themselves, but unfortunately, the trip to the shopping mall didn’t turn out as expected.
Jodie Thomas wanted to get her sweet 4-year-old daughter Sienna a brand new pair of shoes. The girl was pretty excited and tried out some. The thing was that she was wearing sandals barefoot that day and right after trying the shoes she experienced pain in her foot. It did look like something serious as the pain was severe and she couldn’t stop crying. Jodie rushed her to the hospital and what the doctors told her left her in disbelief.
Sienna contracted deadly infection that at that point spread across her body.
“By the next day it had spread up her leg and her temperature was raging,” the mother of three told The Sun.
“I drove her straight in to hospital, she was shaking and twitching – it was horrible to see my little girl like that.”
“They said it was sepsis and thought they would have to operate.”
“But the doctors have managed to drain all the pus from her leg and say the anti-biotic drip will do the job.”
The diagnosis was sepsis. The girl had to be hospitalized for five days, but is feeling better now. Doctors believe she got it from the shoes she was trying on, as even smallest cut is enough for the bacteria to be caught if the skin gets into touch with it.
“I was really shocked when the doctors said it was from trying on new shoes,” Jodie recalls.
“I’ve been worried sick, they’ve had to drain all the poison from her leg. Normally she would have socks on but it’s summer time so she was wearing sandals. The shoes she liked had been tried on by other little girls and that’s how Sienna picked up the infection.”
“I knew you risk getting things like athlete’s foot from trying on shoes but blood poisoning is far more serious,” mom said.
“You don’t know whose feet have been in the shoes before you. Sienna has been really ill, the infection was moving up her leg and spreading to the rest of her body. I’m so glad I got her to the hospital quickly.”
“With mums and dads doing back-to-school shopping I would advise them to take a spare pair of socks with them.”
People should be more aware of the devastating consequences of sepsis.
“This frightening case shows us that sepsis strikes indiscriminately and can affect anyone at any time,” Dr Ron Daniels told The Sun.
“Whenever there are signs of infection, it’s crucial that members of the public seek medical attention urgently and just ask: “Could it be sepsis?,” he added. “Better awareness could save thousands of lives every year.”
Jodie is now warning others to be more careful when going shopping for new shoes. She says parents should never let their kids try on any barefoot, like Sienna did.
“For all parents please put socks on [your] children while trying new shoes on. I’m guilty not doing it for mine and myself, but this can be the outcome infection spreading throughout the body. You don’t don’t know whos feet has been in them before hand!! Sienna has had one hell of [an] outing and thankfully and touch wood made a full recovery! Who [would’ve] thought trying new shoes on could make someone so ill. So with back to school shopping under way, carry a pair of spare socks!”
