18-year-old Viktor lost his arms and legs in after sepsis

In January 2022, Viktor Sanell Alriksson suffered from sepsis, aged 16.
When he woke up in hospital 11 weeks later, doctors had amputated both legs and arms. Now he talks about the struggle and how he moves on with his new life.

– I learned to live with it quite early on, he says.

It started like any other day for Viktor Sanell Alriksson, that January day in 2022. He went to school as usual, and afterwards he went to the gym to work out with his friends.

However, it would be a short training session. Already after 10 minutes, Viktor felt that he couldn’t take it anymore, so he went home and went to bed. After that, the memories are diffuse.

– The last thing I remember is getting into bed and falling asleep, says Viktor Sanell Alriksson in Nyhetsmorgon.

“Bruise mark on the foot”

One who remembers, however, is Viktor’s mother Ulrika Sanell Alriksson.

– At night, Viktor starts vomiting, and the antipyretic tablets I try to give him do not help. He also gets a bruise on his foot, she says in Nyhetsmorgon, and continues:

– In the morning, the ambulance rushed to the hospital. He looked normal when we left, but in the 12 minutes it takes to get to the hospital he has turned blue on the face, lips and has spots on his body.

What follows is a roughly 11-week hospital stay where Viktor alternates between being conscious and sedated, heavily medicated. When he is awakened and regains consciousness, he has lost both arms and legs.

Sepsis means that an infection affects the whole body and causes important organs to not function as they should, and roughly 50,000 Swedes are affected every year. Viktor was affected by meningococci, which somehow got into the body, exactly how it is not known. It has also been shown that he lacks an enzyme in his body, which has likely made him more susceptible to the bacteria.

Looking ahead

Despite the adversities, Viktor sees the future brightly.

– I got over it quite early, that I was an amputee, I had to learn to live with it. The friends have been the biggest support, he says.

The goal is to get rid of the wheelchair and manage completely with the help of prostheses. At the moment, he has a prosthetic arm that allows him to grasp things and cook. He recently got his driver’s license.

– I was nervous when driving up, but I’m glad I didn’t have to pocket park, he says.