Kirsty Griffiths, a mother of five, went to Turkey during a holiday in October. She decided to get a tattoo on her right ankle, choosing a flower design. While getting tattooed, the 34-year-old mother began feeling ill. Back in the UK, doctors told her that she had suffered a cellulitis infection which almost cost her her foot.
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According to the Daily Mail, Griffiths paid $137 (130 euros) to cover a previous rose tattoo she had with a bigger one. While the design was to her liking, things started to go south really fast. "[In the appointment, the tattoo artist] did the outline first. But when he was just about to finish that bit I started feeling dizzy and like I was going to pass out," she said.
Her symptoms began to worsen right then and there. "I couldn't see anything and I threw up," Griffiths said. "He [the tattoo artist] said it was because of my blood sugars and at this point I thought it might be." According to her, the pain she experienced was unlike anything she felt before, and it got increasingly worse.
Nevertheless, the tattoo looked good in her eyes and she even accompanied her children to a Halloween party later that day. On the next morning, however, her leg had swollen up. "It was red raw and looked like there were blisters on my tattoo," she said. "There was fluid behind it which was the infection."
A Serious Infection
Griffiths had to endure an agonizing trip back home to the UK. Her foot had to be elevated and she described it as the "worst four hours" of her life. Immediately after landing, she was rushed to Whiston Hospital in Prescot, Merseyside. Doctors told her that she had a cellulitis infection that had spread to her gallbladder and stomach.
This life-threatening infection that can lead to sepsis had the doctors and Griffiths worried. "Two different surgeons came to visit me, and one said if this doesn't clear up, I might have to have my foot amputated," Griffiths said. Doctors had to treat her infection for four days. "I was crying and screaming every night in pain," she continued. "It was morphine drip after morphine drip, and I could still feel the pain through the painkillers."
Fortunately for Griffiths, the treatment worked, and doctors didn't have to amputate her foot. However, as a result of her infection, she has to take painkillers every single day and, at the moment, walks with a limp. "I can't sleep through the night [at the moment] as I'm in that much pain, and I can't put any weight on it," Griffiths said.
While Kirsty Griffiths believes the tattoo artist was at fault for having put the needle in too deep, the tattoo studio claims that their tools are clean and sterilized. A representative said that Griffiths was wearing socks at the time, which might have caused the infection.
