Hi, everyone! I am writing a story set in 1880s England. The heroine develops severe anemia later in her pregnancy; has a difficult labor, because she is weak as a result of anemia; then post-partum hemorrhage; then childbed fever because treatment for pph is pretty invasive and sterilization standards in 1880s are not all they should be. Right now I am at the childbed fever stage, and this is where I am stuck. First of all, I am not sure how to describe it. The online sources give the symptoms, but I am not sure if symptoms alone would be enough. The only other source of information I can think of is the corresponding scene in "Anna Karenina", and I don't find it a very clear description of what exactly happened. And my second problem is that, according to what I see online, surviving childbed fever was highly unlikely at the time (in Anna Karenina the doctor actually says the likelihood of survival is 1%), but I certainly cannot have my heroine die because she is the main character, and I am nowhere close to the end of the story.
So what I need is
1. Help with description of childbed fever - what actually happens
2. Advice on how my heroine can realistically survive it.
Thanks!
So what I need is
1. Help with description of childbed fever - what actually happens
2. Advice on how my heroine can realistically survive it.
Thanks!