Lauren Menzies: Chorley couple who held teenage daughter’s funeral on Christmas Eve after she died from sepsis are determined to keep her memory alive

A Chorley couple who held their 13-year-old daughter’s funeral on Christmas Eve are keeping her legacy alive three years on by fundraising in her name. Chris and Sarah Menzie whose daughter Lauren died on December 11, 2019, after contracting sepsis, are now undertaking fundraising challenges for the charity Sepsis Research FEAT, to raise more awareness of the silent killer in the hope of helping other families.

They have bravely relived the lead up to the tragic events that cruelly claimed their daughter’s life and how quickly she deteriorated. When she started feeling queasy and breathing fast, Sarah thought her symptoms to be nothing more than a tummy bug – six days later, Lauren was dead.

Described by her parents as a 'cheeky, beautiful and healthy' teenage girl, Sarah told the Post: “She caught the flu, which then turned to sepsis. One minute she was on the settee at home, watching Modern Family and complaining about the flavour of Lucozade she had been bought, less than 12 hours later she was fighting for her life at Alder Hey.

Then she went downhill so quickly. When we got to A&E she walked up to the counter and was talking to the woman there. Then while we were sat there she deteriorated. She got more confused, she was giving people hugs, weird stuff. When she was being triaged, she was asked her date of birth and got confused over the month."

"We knew she wasn’t going to get better”

The triage nurse informed them straight away that it was sepsis and staff at Chorley A&E quickly arranged an ambulance to take Lauren to the paediatric care unit at the Royal Preston Hospital where she was sedated and then her heart stopped, due to the stress of the illness on her body. After being resuscitated, hospital staff arranged for her to be transferred to a paediatric intensive care unit at Alder Hey Hospital in Liverpool.

On the Tuesday, doctors put her on an ECMO machine to take blood out of her body, re-oxygenate it, and then put it back in. Even though machines were breathing for her, the family was told that there was a 99 per cent chance her lungs would recover and specialists were even brought in to show the family how to carry out rehabilitation exercises for when she came round.

Sarah added: “I felt like I was watching someone else’s life. Then the infection, the swelling, got to her brain, and that’s when they knew she wasn’t going to get better.” The family made the heart breaking decision to switch her life support machines off.

The couple are organising various fundraising initiatives this year in her memory. First up is the Adventure Challenge which Chris is busy training for and will involve him undertaking a series of three mixed terrain triathlons - viewed as some of the toughest in the country.

Chris said: “We are raising money for Sepsis Research FEAT in memory of our daughter Lauren, who died from sepsis aged 13. We want to concentrate our fundraising efforts going forward towards research into treatments for sepsis. That is why we have decided to join with Sepsis Research FEAT in their fundraising initiatives: to improve outcomes for those affected by sepsis.”

What is sepsis?

Sepsis, also known as blood poisoning, is caused by the body’s response to an infection. Your immune system protects you from illnesses and infections but sometimes it can overreact, triggering widespread inflammation which can lead to shock, multiple organ failure and death. The biological processes that cause sepsis are not understood, and this is why more research is needed. Around 250,000 people in the UK are diagnosed with sepsis every year, of which around 50,000 die. Sepsis is the primary cause of preventable death in the world.

What are the 5 key symptoms of sepsis?

• Confusion.
• Not passing as much urine as normal.
• Very high or low temperature.
• Uncontrolled shivering.
• Cold or blotchy arms and legs.
• Sepsis Research FEAT is the only UK charity dedicated to supporting research to help identify treatments for sepsis, while also working to raise awareness of this devastating condition. The charity is celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2023 and is launching a new fundraising campaign called Give Us 10! which will last 10 months.

To make a donation to Chris and Sarah’s fundraiser CLICK HERE.

To find out more and get involved in the Give Us 10 campaign CLICK HERE.