Paul St. Onge - Recovery Fund (Amputation)
Donation protected
48 Hour Nightmare
In about 48 hours I went from I am fine, to I am fighting for my life. I was diagnosed with Necrotizing Fasciitis (flesh eating bacteria) and it was moving super-fast.
This is where my nightmare began:
March 3, 2021
While walking across my living room on my way to bed, I stepped slightly sideways on my right foot. It felt like I pinched a few tendons. Half of my foot began to swell immediately and it began to turn red. I was a little surprised by how fast my foot was changing color, so I snapped a picture and went to sleep.
The next morning I felt horrible, my small toe had turned black and blue, and the coloring on my foot began to change to reddish-brown. I felt a stinging pain up my leg and developed severe flu like symptoms. My wife suggested we go to the walk-in clinic and we were one the first in line the next morning. The doctor was genuinely concerned and said that I needed a blood work-up and likely IV antibiotics.
He said to go straight to the Emergency Room at the local hospital.
After about four hours of blood work, the ER doctor came in with a serious face and said they were admitting me. They told me I had a very serious infection and it was in my entire bloodstream. The coloring in my foot was darker and my leg began to swell.
Hours later when I was wheeled into my room, I could barely think or register what was going on. Clearly the infection was affecting everything. I had severe body pain, fever, fatigue, nausea, and trouble breathing. They immediately started me on a series of antibiotics, fluids and oxygen, I kept fading in and out of consciousness.
March 4, 2021
All my symptoms were worse. The coloring on my foot looked different. My small toe was swelling and changing color. More tests, imaging, and blood-work continued. As the day wore on, my whole body began to swell. My ability to breathe became more challenging.
March 5, 2021
I felt like I was dying. The doctors came through and said they were going to continue the course of IV antibiotics, and that I would be heading home in about a week. It seemed impossible based upon how I felt, but I assumed the doctors knew best. I called my wife to give her the good news. Minutes later, my breathing was worse. I notified the nurses, who seemed perplexed and in disbelief on how my breathing could be worse. I told them to get the doctor and tell him.
Minutes later the doctor returned and ask the nurse to dress my foot with loose bandages. As she began to dress the wound, the skin just slid off the top corner of my foot. He told the nurse to swab the wound, so he could get a culture of it. He said he was deeply concerned, and snapped a picture of my foot and sent it to the surgeon. Once the surgeon saw the picture of my foot, everything changed. The wound was wrapped, I managed to use the restroom and as I was climbing back into bed, I was told to change for surgery.
I said, "That's impossible! Both doctors were just here and said that we were staying the course with antibiotics." I requested that my original nurse come back and confirm what I was being told. Keep in mind it had only been a few minutes.
"Yes, you are going into surgery. Please change into a gown and be ready at a moments notice," my nurse confirmed. As I change into my gown, I could barely sit-up, move, or do anything. I was having trouble breathing. My lungs felt full of fluid. Every other breath was skipping, and missing those breaths felt terrifying. I keep fading in and out of consciousness, and deep down I knew I was in deep trouble. The hospital allowed me to see my wife briefly before going into surgery. Covid-19 restrictions are in place, so only in cases of emergency can a family member visit.
At approx. 9:00 PM, I was wheeled down to the surgery center. They are not cleaning the wound, and I am told I only have two options.
They could try to save half of the foot, but this would likely require multiple surgeries, skin grafts and potentially several weeks of hospitalization. In the event this did not work, I'd be facing other challenges, like other limbs, organs, etc.
The second option - my leg cut off below the knee and hopefully stop the infection in it's tracks.
"Which would you prefer?" the doctor asked, like I am choosing a Netflix movie.
Without a moments hesitation I told him, "Below the knee."
I said a little prayer, "God, if this is it - I am ready to go. If not, I have a lot of things to figure out."
A couple of hours later I woke up in the recovery room, stunned that somehow I was still alive and now an amputee.
My first words to God: "Really? Really? This is what I need to deal with now? Ok!" The whole experience was surreal. It felt like a nightmare, and that shortly I would wake up. It's hard thing to accept, but when you have no other option, acceptance is the only way to move forward.
Now have a whole new set of challenges that I never thought I would face. There's an emotional, mental, and physical toll that I can not even put into words.
There is a financial burden of being in a foreign country (Canada) and having this happen. The costs go way beyond the hospital. There's wound care, follow-up visits, rehab, medications, medical supplies, equipment and of course a prosthesis; none of which is covered by insurance.
Absent the funding, I am largely wheelchair bound. I love walking more than almost anything, and I just got back into biking last summer. Right now, those two items that most people take for granted are now dreams of mine. To make things more challenging travel restrictions, quarantine periods, border closures and in general Covid-19 protocols add to the burden and complexity of getting medical care.
This rare infection can happen to anyone, even the healthiest of individuals. If you have a cut, bruise, scratch or bite and it turns red and swells up quickly, and you develop flu like symptoms, you might have flesh eating bacteria. Do not waste a minute in seeking medical attention because every minute counts.
If you can make a donation of any amount, it would be greatly appreciated. I will provide a link for you to see your donation in action.
I really want to lift the burden of all of this from my wife, who has been so incredible through this experience.
I know I should be thinking of myself in this equation, but I always think of her, and the stress this situation places on her.
I want to thank everyone who has been praying for me. I am still here, so clearly those prayers worked. Please share my story with as many friends as possible. At a bare minimum, it might save someone else’s life!
In about 48 hours I went from I am fine, to I am fighting for my life. I was diagnosed with Necrotizing Fasciitis (flesh eating bacteria) and it was moving super-fast.
This is where my nightmare began:
March 3, 2021
While walking across my living room on my way to bed, I stepped slightly sideways on my right foot. It felt like I pinched a few tendons. Half of my foot began to swell immediately and it began to turn red. I was a little surprised by how fast my foot was changing color, so I snapped a picture and went to sleep.
The next morning I felt horrible, my small toe had turned black and blue, and the coloring on my foot began to change to reddish-brown. I felt a stinging pain up my leg and developed severe flu like symptoms. My wife suggested we go to the walk-in clinic and we were one the first in line the next morning. The doctor was genuinely concerned and said that I needed a blood work-up and likely IV antibiotics.
He said to go straight to the Emergency Room at the local hospital.
After about four hours of blood work, the ER doctor came in with a serious face and said they were admitting me. They told me I had a very serious infection and it was in my entire bloodstream. The coloring in my foot was darker and my leg began to swell.
Hours later when I was wheeled into my room, I could barely think or register what was going on. Clearly the infection was affecting everything. I had severe body pain, fever, fatigue, nausea, and trouble breathing. They immediately started me on a series of antibiotics, fluids and oxygen, I kept fading in and out of consciousness.
March 4, 2021
All my symptoms were worse. The coloring on my foot looked different. My small toe was swelling and changing color. More tests, imaging, and blood-work continued. As the day wore on, my whole body began to swell. My ability to breathe became more challenging.
March 5, 2021
I felt like I was dying. The doctors came through and said they were going to continue the course of IV antibiotics, and that I would be heading home in about a week. It seemed impossible based upon how I felt, but I assumed the doctors knew best. I called my wife to give her the good news. Minutes later, my breathing was worse. I notified the nurses, who seemed perplexed and in disbelief on how my breathing could be worse. I told them to get the doctor and tell him.
Minutes later the doctor returned and ask the nurse to dress my foot with loose bandages. As she began to dress the wound, the skin just slid off the top corner of my foot. He told the nurse to swab the wound, so he could get a culture of it. He said he was deeply concerned, and snapped a picture of my foot and sent it to the surgeon. Once the surgeon saw the picture of my foot, everything changed. The wound was wrapped, I managed to use the restroom and as I was climbing back into bed, I was told to change for surgery.
I said, "That's impossible! Both doctors were just here and said that we were staying the course with antibiotics." I requested that my original nurse come back and confirm what I was being told. Keep in mind it had only been a few minutes.
"Yes, you are going into surgery. Please change into a gown and be ready at a moments notice," my nurse confirmed. As I change into my gown, I could barely sit-up, move, or do anything. I was having trouble breathing. My lungs felt full of fluid. Every other breath was skipping, and missing those breaths felt terrifying. I keep fading in and out of consciousness, and deep down I knew I was in deep trouble. The hospital allowed me to see my wife briefly before going into surgery. Covid-19 restrictions are in place, so only in cases of emergency can a family member visit.
At approx. 9:00 PM, I was wheeled down to the surgery center. They are not cleaning the wound, and I am told I only have two options.
They could try to save half of the foot, but this would likely require multiple surgeries, skin grafts and potentially several weeks of hospitalization. In the event this did not work, I'd be facing other challenges, like other limbs, organs, etc.
The second option - my leg cut off below the knee and hopefully stop the infection in it's tracks.
"Which would you prefer?" the doctor asked, like I am choosing a Netflix movie.
Without a moments hesitation I told him, "Below the knee."
I said a little prayer, "God, if this is it - I am ready to go. If not, I have a lot of things to figure out."
A couple of hours later I woke up in the recovery room, stunned that somehow I was still alive and now an amputee.
My first words to God: "Really? Really? This is what I need to deal with now? Ok!" The whole experience was surreal. It felt like a nightmare, and that shortly I would wake up. It's hard thing to accept, but when you have no other option, acceptance is the only way to move forward.
Now have a whole new set of challenges that I never thought I would face. There's an emotional, mental, and physical toll that I can not even put into words.
There is a financial burden of being in a foreign country (Canada) and having this happen. The costs go way beyond the hospital. There's wound care, follow-up visits, rehab, medications, medical supplies, equipment and of course a prosthesis; none of which is covered by insurance.
Absent the funding, I am largely wheelchair bound. I love walking more than almost anything, and I just got back into biking last summer. Right now, those two items that most people take for granted are now dreams of mine. To make things more challenging travel restrictions, quarantine periods, border closures and in general Covid-19 protocols add to the burden and complexity of getting medical care.
This rare infection can happen to anyone, even the healthiest of individuals. If you have a cut, bruise, scratch or bite and it turns red and swells up quickly, and you develop flu like symptoms, you might have flesh eating bacteria. Do not waste a minute in seeking medical attention because every minute counts.
If you can make a donation of any amount, it would be greatly appreciated. I will provide a link for you to see your donation in action.
I really want to lift the burden of all of this from my wife, who has been so incredible through this experience.
I know I should be thinking of myself in this equation, but I always think of her, and the stress this situation places on her.
I want to thank everyone who has been praying for me. I am still here, so clearly those prayers worked. Please share my story with as many friends as possible. At a bare minimum, it might save someone else’s life!
Organizer
Paul St. Onge
Organizer
Henderson, NV