13/02/2022
'Jude was also battling sepsis – a life threatening complication of the GBS infection. Sepsis is the body’s response to infection and can cause tissue damage, organ failure and death...'
I felt myself drifting into memories of only twenty four hours prior. Memories of us sitting in our lounge room together and watching Jude sleep peacefully in his bassinet, doting over every little noise he would make, nursing him when he cried and feeding him when he was hungry – completely oblivious and unaware of the imminent trauma that lay ahead.
Suddenly those memories vanished as I opened my eyes to the sound of Jude’s alarms, abruptly jolting me back to reality. I was no longer present in those precious memories; I was sitting at Jude’s bedside in PICU, watching him sleep (under sedation) in a crib surrounded by wires, monitors and an abundance of medical equipment. He didn’t cry or move, he laid there motionless, the only sign of movement was when he was seizing, and the subtle rise and fall of his chest as the ventilator facilitated every breath for him.
A Doctor spoke with us about Jude’s blood results, and explained that he had a bacterial infection called Group B Strep (GBS). I was shocked to hear these words come from the Doctor’s mouth, I felt sick to the stomach. I knew I had tested positive for GBS prior to birthing Jude, and I was given the appropriate antibiotics during labour to prevent any infection being passed on to him, ‘How was this even possible?’ I asked the Doctor in disbelief. The Doctor explained that because Jude was 24 days old when he presented with the infection, that he had in fact contracted ‘late onset GBS’ which meant he acquired the infection post labour, from either myself or another source, not labour itself.
GBS is an invasive bacterium and is extremely harmful to infants, it can be fatal if left untreated for too long. Jude was also battling sepsis – a life threatening complication of the GBS infection. Sepsis is the body’s response to infection and can cause tissue damage, organ failure and death.
Let’s just let that sink in for a moment…
Over the next few days, Jude was given various anti-seizure medications in attempt to control his seizures. It was evident that the seizures were not ceasing as quickly as the Doctors would have liked, they had expected them to have stopped before now or at least have eased considerably. I just knew in my gut that something wasn't right.
Then came our next big blow...
The Doctors now had concerns that Jude was showing signs of bacterial meningitis – secondary to the GBS sepsis. Bacterial meningitis occurs when bacteria travels through the bloodstream and causes infection in the membranes (meninges). Once the membranes become infected, they swell and press on the spinal cord or brain. With quick treatment many people with bacterial meningitis don’t experience any permanent changes. However, in some circumstances despite prompt medical treatment, some may experience seizures, brain injury, hearing loss and lifelong disabilities.
It took every inch of will-power to stop myself from consulting 'Doctor Google', but I knew nothing good would come from scouring the internet for answers - all we could do now was anxiously wait for Jude's body to respond to the antibiotics and fight the deadly infections which had invaded his tiny little body.
To be continued...