A mother-of-one lost both of her legs to meningitis, after mistakenly thinking her vomiting and cold flushes were caused by a spiked drink.
Sarah Hayward, of Wigmore, near Gillingham in Kent, was forced to go home early from a night out with friends in November 2017 after feeling 'delusional'.
The 51-year-old was found semi-conscious dangling out of bed the following day by her daughter and rushed to hospital, where she had a heart attack and her organs started to fail.
Two weeks later, the mother regained consciousness from a coma - but doctors were forced to amputate both of her legs below the knee.
The aggressive 'W' strain of meningitis had stopped blood and oxygen getting to her legs, causing the skin and underlying tissue to die.
Sarah Hayward, 51, had both of her legs amputated after mistakenly thinking meningitis symptoms were caused by a spiked drink
The mother-of-one now has prosthetic legs and needs crutches to walk around after the contracting the aggressive infection last year
Pictured: Ms Hayward's leg and foot during her time in hospital
Recalling her ordeal, Ms Hayward said: 'I only had one drink at the pub, a vodka and Diet Coke. It is the only drink I like.
'I know what it’s like when you've had a few too many, but I had only had one. That’s why I thought that particular drink had been spiked.
'I remember being in the bathroom and feeling completely out of it. I have very little memory of it; it’s just what friends have told me since.
'It was clear something was up so a friend dropped me home. I thought my drink had been spiked, so I thought I’ll just go to bed and I’ll be absolutely fine in the morning.'
She added: 'It was a completely different feeling in the morning. I still didn’t feel very well, but was no longer delusional.
'I said "goodbye" to my daughter, who was leaving for college, and that’s the last thing I can remember.
'My daughter, who was only 16, started to get concerned that she couldn't get in touch with me.
'We are very close and she knew something was wrong so she got her course tutor to drive her home.'
The college student found her mother semi-conscious hanging out of bed and called for an ambulance.
Ms Hayward, from Kent, was forced to go home early from a night out with friends in January 2018 after feeling 'strange' and 'chilly'. She was rushed to hospital the next day where she had a heart attack and her organs failed
Her daughter had found her dangling from the bed, semi-conscious, and phoned an ambulance
Ms Hayward added: 'She saved my life. If Ciara hadn't realised something was up, the outcome could have been much worse.
'I was ignorant to meningitis before this happened to me. If I had been better informed I may have known to look for the discoloration in my legs instead of going straight to bed.
'Before contracting meningitis, I assumed the rash was the telltale sign.
'But there are so many other symptoms that I didn't appreciate - like cold hands and
