‘Hopefully she will forget’ – Mother of girl, three, who lost fingers and toes to sepsis continues to ‘deal with trauma’

The mother of a three-year-old who lost her fingers and toes to sepsis hopes her child will forget her life-threatening experience with illness while she continues to “deal with the trauma”.

Gemma Loach, 33, who is based in Yorkshire with her husband of three years Tom, 28, and their two children, Olive, three, and Jack, one, said her daughter’s breathing became “really heavy” in March 2024.

The family knew something was seriously wrong, however, when Olive started “projectile” vomiting and having “really bad” diarrhoea, and after rushing to A&E, Olive, who was aged one at the time, was sent to the intensive care unit (ICU) in a critical condition.

There Olive was diagnosed with rotavirus, strep A, MRSA in her lungs and sepsis, the latter of which caused her fingers and toes to become “necrotic” and later “self-amputate” – and the family were told to “prepare” for the worst.

While initially distraught, Gemma, an assistant delivery manager for National Highways, was 20 weeks pregnant with her son at the time and she strived to “stay strong” to “protect” her unborn child.

Thankfully, doctors were able to stabilise Olive and after spending 35 days in hospital, she could return home – but several challenges remain as she adapts to life without her digits.

Gemma is sharing her story to mark The Lullaby Trust’s Infection Prevention Week in October, where the charity, which aims to prevent unexpected deaths in infancy and promote infant health, wants to encourage parents to speak up if they have concerns about their baby.

“We were absolutely distraught at first, we could not even come to our senses – it was an emotion that I’ve never experienced in my life,” Gemma told PA Real Life.

“I’m still processing what happened, and I don’t know why but I go back through texts I sent to my family around that time to relive it and deal with the trauma.

“Hopefully, Olive will forget what happened, but it’s the parents who have to live with what happened.

“We’re so paranoid now, any cold or sickness bug will send us into pure panic mode.”

Olive started to exhibit “really heavy breathing” on March 2 2024.

After taking Olive to A&E, Gemma said it was thought she had croup, a common infection that, according to the NHS, mainly affects the airways of babies and young children.

The family were sent home but Olive began “throwing up in her cot” a few nights later.

“We had towels round her, bowls, but it was just projectile vomiting,” Gemma said.

“She slept with us and then it was really bad diarrhoea as well, she was throwing up all throughout the night.”

Gemma and Tom took their daughter to A&E again, and Olive was admitted for further tests and observations.

On March 9 2024, Gemma said she noticed mottling on her daughter’s leg, where the skin appears blotchy, pale or blue in areas – a sign something could be seriously wrong.

“Olive then ended up coughing up a little bit of blood – and I just went into pure panic mode,” Gemma said.

Olive was moved into an enhanced care room, but doctors struggled to find a vein to be able to give her fluids and medication through a drip.

Gemma said this caused her daughter to become “so distraught”.

“She just kept screaming ‘no more, no more’ – I feel really guilty about it, but I had to step out the room,” Gemma said.

Other relatives then arrived at the hospital to help Gemma and Tom.

“I can just remember me and my husband standing in the hallway, just absolutely sobbing,” Gemma said.

“We didn’t know what to do, there was nothing we could do.”

Gemma said doctors were able to stabilise Olive after around six hours, but she and Tom were told to “prepare” for the worst.

As Gemma was 20 weeks pregnant at the time with her son Jack, she said she had to “stay strong” and “protect” her unborn child from the distress she was feeling.

“I didn’t actually cry for the rest of the whole thing because I was determined to remain strong and calm,” Gemma said.

“It’s weird looking back at it, I think it was pure fight or flight numbness.”

Olive was then transferred to another hospital by ambulance and admitted into the ICU on March 10 2024, where she was hooked up to a machine to help her breathe.

While in the ICU, it was discovered Olive had rotavirus, an infection that causes diarrhoea and vomiting, strep A, causing flu-like symptoms, and MRSA in her lungs.

Gemma said the latter was “really rare” as the bacteria usually lives harmlessly on the skin, according to the NHS.

Olive also had sepsis, a life-threatening reaction to an infection.

According to the NHS, symptoms of sepsis in a baby or young child can include blue, grey, pale or blotchy skin, difficulty breathing or being sleepier than normal.

“I think it started with strep A, then the rotavirus kicked in but we have no idea with all the others,” Gemma said, adding Olive was “fully vaccinated”.

“It could have just been pure bad luck.”

Around this time, Gemma said her daughter’s fingers and toes were “getting darker”, and the family were informed it was likely Olive would lose some of her digits to sepsis.

According to the NHS, sepsis occurs when your immune system overreacts to an infection, and it can damage the body’s tissues and impair blood flow.

Olive was treated with a combination of antibiotics and medications, and “fought all the odds” to get better.

“For her to open her eyes that first time and being able to hug her, it was just amazing,” Gemma said.

Olive spent nine days in the ICU and 35 days in hospital in total, before returning home on April 12 2024 – where Gemma said it was “like having a newborn again”.

“We had to teach her how to eat, drink and walk again,” she said.

Two days after Olive took her first steps on her own, Gemma gave birth to Jack on May 15 2024.

Gemma said Olive’s fingers and toes became “necrotic” while she was in hospital, and over time, they “self-amputated”.

“It sounds really weird saying it out loud but I’d be there with my newborn, and my daughter would come up to me with a finger or toe in her hand because it’s fallen off,” Gemma said.

“Sometimes she would knock herself and it would fall off, and that was really painful for her and it would leave open wounds.”

Olive underwent an operation on June 26 2024 to remove the rest of her fingers and toes – apart from her thumbs which were not affected.

Now, Olive has “slowly progressed” but some challenges remain.

“She’s walking and running, but her balance isn’t great so she falls a lot,” Gemma said.

“She also loves reading but turning the page is a really big challenge for her.

“I’ve got loads of gloves which I need to sew so they fit her and getting shoes that fit can be hard, as she’s a different size on each foot.

“On holiday, she can’t wear flip flops and in future, she won’t be able to paint her nails – it’s little things like this that crop up.”

She added: “Overall, Olive is amazing and I’m really, really proud of her progression.”

Gemma is supporting The Lullaby Trust’s Infection Prevention Week, which runs from October 19 to 25, to raise awareness on how to keep babies safe from infection.

The theme for this year’s campaign is ‘never a nuisance’ as the charity wants to encourage parents and carers to speak up if they have any concerns about their baby.

Gemma said: “Be persistent if you know something is wrong, keep advocating for your children and trust your gut – you know your child more than anyone.”

For more information, visit the website for The Lullaby Trust here: lullabytrust.org.uk