Karate students thought she was only in pain after a fierce class – only to discover that it was a fatal condition that would destroy her muscles and turn her pee into “cola.”
41-year-old Gemma Underwood was left at the hospital for five days, placed in IV fluid and was put on a catheter after awakening unable to move her upper body.
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When the mental health word manager noticed that she was passing through very dark urine that “seemed to be cola”, she was rushed to A&E, who revealed on a blood test that she had rhabdomyolysis.
Serious diseases are life-threatening conditions caused by high-intensity exercise, in which muscles break down and release harmful substances that can cause organ deficiencies and death.
Gemma of Keen Gym-Fayer of Ayr said:
“I thought I had done a little bit of karate, but the pain was disproportionate to my training, and I always get a little bit of muscle pain after exercise, but certainly not intense.
“When I noticed that my urine was very dark, I looked online and was warned of a rhabdomyolytic condition.
“It could happen to anyone, and what the doctor said was that I wasn’t fully hydrated while I was working hard. I should have been drinking more water before.
“It really felt scary, it can be life-threatening, which made me panick.
“It motivated me to go to A&E, obviously because I didn’t want to die.”
Gemma is currently resting at home and is drinking plenty of liquids as he may recover for several months depending on the complications.
Despite being out of danger, Gemma said her muscles still hurt, and the experience drained her senses.
She is now warning others to stay hydrated and be aware of rhabdomyolysis symptoms before exercising.
Gemma said:
“I’m currently resting – I’ve never exercised for at least three weeks – and I’m drinking a lot of liquids.
“It’s really important to know what symptoms are muscle pain, weak muscle urine, dark urine, etc.
“Make sure you’re hydrated before your workout. It doesn’t matter how intense it is.”
What is striated muscle dissolution? (Information from the NHS)
Rhabdomyolysis is a potentially life-threatening condition caused by the rapid degradation of damaged muscles, caused by the release of intracellular muscle content, including myoglobin, creatine kinases and various electrolytes, into the bloodstream and extracellular spaces.
