- Steph Campbell was trying to get relief from a painful period using a tried and trusted home method
- She reveals her shock at discovering her hot water bottle was leaking
- The extent of her injuries caused by hot water bottle burns required skin grafts
- Here, Steph, 27, from Morwell, Vic, tells her story
Clutching my stomach, I groaned.
I’m not feeling too good,” I told my fiancé, Matthew, 35.
“I’ll get you a hot water bottle,” he offered, kissing my head before heading into the kitchen to boil the kettle.
“You’re the best,” I shouted after him.
It was May this year, and whenever I had a sore tummy or period pains, my hot water bottle was my go-to feel-good remedy.
When Matthew came back, I gratefully grabbed it, pressed it against me and got comfy in bed.
“That’s better,” I smiled.
For the next 10 minutes, we were relaxing in bed when I suddenly felt a searing pain down my back.
I was in so much pain, I couldn’t even scream out.
The material at the bottom of the hot water bottle had split, and boiling water had spilt onto my back.
Instantly, I threw off the bottle and jumped out of bed.
The pain was too intense to even tell Matthew what
was going on.
But he quickly figured out a leaking hot water bottle had scalded me.
“Oh my God,” he shouted. “Get in the shower.”
I could barely stand as the cold water from the shower washed over the burns; it didn’t stop the searing feeling that now covered the right side of my back and bottom.
Matthew called my mum, Debbie, who drove me to the hospital while Matt came separately.
To avoid touching the car seat, I had to perch on the very edge of it.
At the hospital, I had an agonising 30-minute wait before the triage nurse came to inspect my injury.
“Take a seat,” she said.
“I can’t,” I explained and showed her the extent of my burn caused by my leaking hot water bottle.
The skin had already started to bubble and blister.
A grave look came over the nurse’s face and she explained the burns were likely to be first and second degree.
My first treatment involved getting back into a cold shower for 20 minutes.
I was also given antibiotics and fluids while a nurse took photos of my injuries to show the doctor.
Blisters had formed on my back and bottom.
After three hours, I was discharged and sent home with some painkillers.
But they barely touched the sides of my pain and that night I hardly slept a wink.
For the next three days, the blisters over my body didn’t stop weeping. It wasn’t long before fresh clothes were wet with fluid from the wounds.
I went back into hospital and was transferred to The Victorian Adult Burns Service at The Alfred hospital the following day.
There, a machine examined the extent of my burns which revealed I’d require surgery to have skin grafts.
“The burnt skin will be incredibly tight and dark if we don’t do this,” the surgeon explained.
I couldn’t believe a small moment of comfort had led to all this.
During the surgery, skin was taken from my lower back and placed on two spots on the side of my back and one on the top of my bottom.
Ten days later, I was discharged again.
Looking in the mirror for the first time, I burst into tears.
I knew that my burns were bad, but I didn’t realise how bad my back was.
“I’m going to be scarred for life,” I cried to Matt.
The recovery process afterwards was very long. I had to learn how to clean my wounds and ensure that the skin grafts took hold.
“It may take up to 12 months for the skin to heal,” the surgeon told me.
I thought of the low-back dress that I’d bought for my wedding day in February 2024 and felt a pang of sadness.
Would I ever be able to wear it with burns like this?
We intended to tie the knot at a local winery in front of close friends and family. But knowing it was over a year in the future, I focussed on getting through each day.
For weeks, my skin felt so tight I thought it would rip.
“I’m throwing my hot water bottle out,” many friends said after visiting me and hearing my story.
While I’m so grateful to Matthew and the doctors who cared for me, looking back, I’ll never use a hot water bottle again.
I’d never heard of one splitting, and I’m sharing my experience to encourage other people to educate themselves on the dangers. They should never be filled with boiling water or laid on. Every year, they should be replaced.
For the next 12 months, I need to be incredibly careful with my skin and I’ll have to take extra care in the sun for the rest of my life.
While hot water bottles are cheap and easily accessible, they can be incredibly dangerous.
If I save just one person from going through what I have, sharing my story will be worth it.
How to treat hot water bottle burns?
First aid for burns from a hot water bottle or any type of burn:
- Remove the person from danger and further injury. Hold the burn under cold running water for 20 minutes. If necessary, prevent heat loss by covering unburnt areas.
- Burnt clothing should only be removed if it does not stick to the burn. Do not remove clothing that is stuck to the burn.
- Chemicals, such as acids and alkalis, must be washed off with running water for at least 20 minutes, but take care not to splash the chemicals onto unaffected skin or other people. A cool shower is ideal.
- Superficial burns require pain relief, dressings, and regular review to make sure they have not become infected.
- Do not apply anything other than water to second or third-degree burns until they are fully cooled and medically assessed.
- A major burn is defined as a burn of any depth that involves more than 20 per cent of the total body surface area for an adult and more than 10 per cent of the total body surface area for a child.
- Major burns are a medical emergency and require urgent treatment. Immediately apply cold water to all affected areas and then call triple zero (000) for an ambulance. A cool or lukewarm shower is ideal.
Source: Better Health Channel
