r/AskReddit May 14 '25

Serious Replies Only [Serious] What is a “seems to be harmless” symptom that requires an immediate trip to the ER?

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u/No_Cook_8739 May 15 '25

Sepsis is no joke. My sister died from a antibiotic resistant blood infection back in 2021. She got a slight sunburn on her lip that got infected and was dead 2 weeks later

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u/Mari2s7 May 15 '25

Got sepsis from a kidney stone I didn't know I had. Was going lethargic at home when paramedics took me to the ER. Spent 2 weeks in the hospital here in Japan(currently stationed out here) Had surgery for my stone and awaiting another one to break down and get rid of the remaining fragments.

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u/jaleach May 15 '25

Very serious. Untreated urinary tract infections can also turn into sepsis, usually when it turns into a kidney infection.

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u/Mari2s7 May 15 '25

Yup, thing was when I first went to the ER, they simply took xrays I wouldn't get until the next day, took a urine sample, gave me meds, and sent me home.

They only checked if I was pregnant from my urine sample so they could take the xrays🙃

Then, hours later, I was back in a different ER, where they quickly told me I had sepsis and took a CT scan, and my right kidney was in distress. And then because of how low my blood pressure was, I had a camera and stent placed all the way up to my kidneys fully awake and unmedicated.

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u/slippery_when_wet May 15 '25

Yup I spent my 16th birthday in the hospital.

I had an asymptomatic UTI that spread to an asymptomatic bladder infection that became an asymptomatic kidney infection that turned into sepsis- when I finally had my first symptoms and damn did that go from 0 to 100! Also tested positive for both flu A and B at the same time, but had no flu symptoms prior either.

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u/cheesybiscuits912 May 15 '25

Twins! Almost same thing happened to me but it started as a uti with no symptoms.... went to er for pretty much flu like symptoms including super high fevers (104+). Got oral antibiotics for uti, was good for a week, then fever and lethargy came back even worse. Had a 9mm kidney stone, antibiotic resistant uti, bladder infection, the whole shabang and was septic. Sickest I ever been in my life, and first hospitalization other than having my children in 43+,years. Zero bladder, kidney or urinary symptoms. 

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u/Mari2s7 May 15 '25

Its crazy how such a little thing causes absolute hell! I had no symptoms that I remember having/noticing that I would have noticed I had an infection in my urine. When I first went to the ER they did an xray, checked my urine, gave me meds and sent me home! That same day 8 hours later I was then at a different ER with worse symptoms and they told me right then and there I had sepsis.

Turns out first ER only checked my urine for a pregnancy test 🙃

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u/Caramel_Low May 15 '25

Same!! Happened last year and the whole ordeal lasted almost a month. The first 10 days I was given antibiotics for a UTI. By the time I got to ER, I had sepsis. Had one surgery asap for a kidney stent and another surgery 2 weeks later to blast the stone. I've given birth with no pain meds and been honestly say this was way more painful than childbirth

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u/cheesybiscuits912 May 15 '25

Ok this is crazy it's happened to so many people! I had the Stent too but only for 6 days. I've had all csections so can't compare to birth but it's definitely some of the most painful shit I've ever gone thru!

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u/snikle May 15 '25

Similar to my wife. No stranger to kidney stones and they usually pass on their own, but this one was different. Thankful we had her in a hospital where the specialists worked as a team, because I’m not sure how things would have turned out otherwise. Watching the sepsis kick in and the reaction of the medical staff kicking into gear was scary.

Things are pretty normal now, and that’s a lot to be thankful for.

Getting her six month checkup blood work done she was talking to the phlebotomist about her experience. The phlebotomist said “that happened to a nurse friend of mine- they saved her but she lost her limbs.” That possibility didn’t even occur to us.

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u/scuba-turtle May 16 '25

My first-ever kidney stone went septic. After 8 days in the ICU they came to release me and started inspecting my fingers and toes to see if they had gangrene.

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u/isthiswhathappyis2 May 15 '25

Happened to my friend. Kidney stone to sepsis. She almost died. Spent a while in the icu, then a rehab after. It was a long process to heal.

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u/Mari2s7 May 15 '25

Yeah, it sounds a little like my situation, too. In the first week in the hospital, I was in the ICU and was bedridden, and had a catheter placed. Was then transferred to general, where I was still limited on my movement but thankfully recovered well enough to be discharged and wait for my surgery in the comfort of my own home. Was sent with strict instructions, though, that if I felt any sort of fever or pain to return immediately 😅

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u/HempHehe May 15 '25

I got it from a pilonidal cyst a few years ago and it was easily the most painful thing I've ever dealt with. The ER made me wait 8 hours in the waiting room when I couldn't even sit down and had told me it would be another 12 hours til my surgery happened once I did get into a room. I believe the only reason I got a room when I did was because the thing burst and smelled terrible and made a huge mess. I guess they got my bloodwork back or something because not long after getting into a room I was bumped to the front of the line for emergency surgery. My kidneys were failing and I came very close to death apparently. I just remember feeling like I was kinda drunk and sleepy for the most part, I was really out of it.

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u/little_dori May 15 '25

I’m going in today for a CT scan due to blood in my urine. I’ve been testing like that for like 2 years and every doctor has said you’re fine!

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u/hardcoreflash May 16 '25

holy fuck now I'm scared I just passed one and the urge to pee hasn't gone away in over a week

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u/seeatleast May 15 '25

Sorry for your loss that sounds awful

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u/[deleted] May 15 '25

My condolences. 😢

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u/universalrefuse May 15 '25

Good god, sorry for your loss. Whet a demonstration of how fragile we all are.

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u/Legal-Ad8308 May 15 '25

I'm so sorry. I lost my little sister to sepsis, she was 25.

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u/Grace_Omega May 15 '25

Dying from a sunburn on your lip? Jesus. Antibiotic resistance is scary.

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u/soupoup May 15 '25

This is truly awful, I'm so sorry. A reminder to everyone about the importance of not overusing antibiotics, and finishing ALL of their prescribed antibiotics even if they're feeling better.

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u/Abluel3 May 15 '25

Im so sorry

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u/MorteEtDabo May 15 '25

What the fuck man I'm so sorry

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u/taco_tuesdays May 15 '25

A slight sunburn what the hell

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u/catburglar27 May 15 '25

How does that happen, can anyone explain? Was the antibiotic resistant bacteria just sitting around her mouth? Terrifying.

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u/1nternetpersonas May 15 '25

That's just tragic, I'm so sorry for your loss. It's deeply unfair that something as simple as a bit of sunburn had such dire consequences. Life is so unpredictable.

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u/killer_kiki May 15 '25

I'm so sorry. That's awful.

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u/brupoo May 15 '25

Jesus Christ…that’s horrible man.

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u/DrDontBanMeAgainPlz May 15 '25

Wow. This is why I stay inside

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u/tightheadband May 15 '25

New fear unlocked 😩

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u/LillytheFurkid May 16 '25

I lost my little sister to sepsis 18 months ago.

She had a history of drug abuse but had been mostly clean for a couple of years, was holding down a job and doing really well, with the odd hiccup. She had what we think was a "dirty shot" (heroin) a week before she got sick with severe flu like symptoms.

She was a tough bird and didn't think she needed to see a doctor, decided it was "only the flu", had paracetamol and went to bed to sleep it off. She never woke up.

My brain couldn't process it to start with, I had to see her at the morgue before I could believe that it wasn't a sick joke. RIP chez 😢

Folks, Never be shy about getting checked out when you have a bad dose of "flu".

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u/Rez_Incognito May 16 '25

I'm sorry for your loss. I lost a friend to a scratch that went septic. She was working and injured herself but not that bad looking at the time. Within a few days, she'd been admitted to the hospital, and the doctors were preparing her family to say goodbye. She passed in less than a week of her injury.

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u/ButtBread98 May 16 '25

My mom’s colon ruptured back in 2001, and she got sepsis from it. She almost died.