Midwife to brave half marathon after sepsis survival

Heather McHugh will take on the Simplyhealth Great Manchester Run to mark one year since she contracted life-threatening sepsis.

The Kingswinford mother is now hoping to raise cash for the Sepsis Trust, which is fighting to stop preventable deaths and support patients affected.

Ms McHugh, who works at Russells Hall Hospital, said: “Luckily for me I was in the right place at the right time when I started to show signs of being unwell.

“I remember the majority of things that happened and I think being a midwife helped with that, but I was also very confused at points and was unable to put a sentence together.

“I suffered with a bad memory for quite a while afterwards, where I would completely forget things and if someone was talking to me I couldn’t remember what they had said to me.

“I wanted to turn the experience into a positive by raising money to help people and to support the charity that saved my life.

"The astounding bit for me will be when I cross the finish line to prove to myself that I could do this despite my struggles over the last 12 months.”

The 27-year-old started feeling "fatigued" just a day after giving birth to her third child Effie last May but brushed it off as hormonal changes.

But she injured her pelvis after standing up from a sofa and was taken to hospital, where medics discovered she had an abnormally high temperature and pulse.

She was discharged from hospital a week later but was forced to return after developing a rash, which was believed to be a post-sepsis reaction.

Ms McHugh, who will run the half-marathon with sister Chloe on May 19, said: “I think there is still a perception that sepsis mainly affects the elderly and the young and while that group of people are more vulnerable, I am young, fit and healthy and because of this it never crossed my mind that I could be so severely unwell.

“As a midwife and someone who has had sepsis, I still feel there is so much more awareness we can raise to help prevent sepsis from happening and to recognise the signs before it’s too late for the people and families we look after.

“I feel this is particularly relevant to many of us who are often leading busy lives and put ourselves last. I know this is certainly the case for me as a busy working mum."

Sepsis, which is a complication of an infection, kills five people every hour in the UK.