A man lost the tips of his fingers and almost died after catching a flesh-eating bug during a water fight.
Philip Pike, 59, was playing with his two children in the garden when he fell into a rose bush.
He hadnt thought anything of the minor scratches, but became ill soon afterwards from contracting necrotizing fasciitis, a serious bacterial infection.
His was in a coma for two weeks, had a pacemaker installed and had to learn to walk again before he could leave hospital, having lost parts of his fingers, toes and buttocks.
Months later, Philip, from Cambridgeshire, still requires medication and faces more finger amputations.
According to the NHS, necrotizing fasciitis begins with a bacterial infection affecting tissue beneath the skin and muscles and organs.
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It can start from a relatively minor injury but quickly become life-threatening from blood poisoning and organ failure.
Treatments include surgery to remove infected tissue, amputation and antibiotics. Around one or two in every five cases is fatal.
Philips infection began innocuously in July 2017, but escalated at an alarming rate two days after he went into the rose bush.
I thought nothing of it, he said. Two days later I was in bed and I was violently sick. That went on for hours.
I was panicking because I couldnt breathe.
Eventually Philips wife called for an ambulance, he was put on oxygen and taken to Addenbrookes where he was put in an induced coma.
Over the next few days doctors battled to keep Philip alive, putting him through countless operations and on strong antibiotics.
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Its eating you from the inside out. Its horrible. People lose legs and arms, he said.
Ive been brought back to life. Id died I dont know how many times. It was scary, not for me but for my wife. She had to go through so much.
Philips condition was so grave that his wife regularly expected to have to say goodbye to him.
After waking up in August last year, Philip had to learn to sit up, stand, move into chairs and walk again with the help of a therapist.
He described the fear his condition raised in his children who initially didnt want to see him because they were afraid of the tubes and pipes.
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Slowly Philips wife, with whom he has fostered children for 10 years, explained everything that had happened to him and how it affected her.
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Today Philip and his family are gradually getting used to life after the infection.
You just adapt, Philip said. Ive only taken one walk on my own outside since I came home. To me that was quite big thing.
During the day I occupy myself going on social media. Theres a massive support group in America, yesterday I found one in the UK.
Raised a Catholic, Philip said that during his coma sleep he began praying to God for the first time in years.
When I was in the coma – for years Ive never prayed – but I did. I just knew this was it. Im going, he said.
From that day to this I still do it every day.
Philip has shared his story to raise awareness of his disease ahead of Necrotizing Fasciitis month in May.
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