California model Lauren Wasser is sharing her story after she lost her leg and nearly died from bacterial infections allegedly caused by using a tampon.
Yes, you read that correctly.
Wasser went from going to sleep feeling slightly under the weather to being rushed to the hospital "10 minutes from death" with a 107-degree fever.
The 5’11" model and athlete was eventually diagnosed with TSS, a compilation of bacterial infections associated with the use of tampons.
Her TSS ledt to multiple health complications including gangrene, severe damage to her left foot and a below-the-knee amputation of her right leg.
"All of a sudden I don’t have a leg," Wasser said, recalling her despair and admitting point blank, "I wanted to kill myself when I got home."
"I’m in a wheelchair, I have half a foot, I can’t even walk to the bathroom. I’m in a bed, I can’t move, and I felt like those four walls were my prison."
The 27-year-old Wasser, who said she changed her Kotex Natural Balance tampon three times that day, is now suing the manufacturer of the brand.
She is fighting for a change in materials used to make the feminine products, and hopes to educate other women about the potential risks therein.
"Had I known all the info about TSS, then I would never have used tampons," she reflects. "You live your whole life and think, ‘I’m an athlete.’"
"Or, ‘I’m a pretty girl,’ but this was something physical I had no control over. It took me a while to figure out if I was still worthy, if I was still pretty."
A spokesperson for the tampon manufacturer, Kimberly-Clark, would say only that the company "does not comment regarding ongoing litigation."
