Pregnant mother, 32, gets horror second degree burns after speaking to her neighbour in the sun

A young nurse was taken to hospital with second degree burns on Christmas Eve after sitting in the sun for just 30 minutes to speak to her neighbour.

Kara, 32, is 30 weeks pregnant with her first child and decided to sit out the front of her apartment with her friend on a balmy 27C day in Melbourne. 

After a short time in the sun, the pair moved to under a tree for some shade and  continued talking for ‘a couple more hours’ on December 21 before they parted ways and began preparing for the Christmas period.

But despite not feeling hot or ‘sun kissed’,  Kara started noticing a pink hue appearing on her neck, knees, lower arms and ankles at about 5pm.

‘I started applying after sun care to my skin that evening as a precaution,’ the psychiatric nurse said.

That night she woke up to a general feeling of warmth on the affected areas, but was otherwise shivering.   

By morning she was feeling sore and tender and continued to apply aloe vera to relieve the pain. 

‘That evening I continued to get increased pain and swelling of the affected areas. In particular oedema, or fluid retention, in my right ankle and both knees,’ Kara said.

‘This was most concerning because I’m pregnant and didn’t know if there would be any complications. My oedema began “pitting” which meant I could leave behind a full handprint indentation in my leg, ankle and knees.

‘I began icing myself on the areas.’  

On December 24 Kara asked a family member to take her to the hospital for a check up, where she learned that the risk of oedema was especially high in pregnant women – and she could largely blame her bump for how her skin had reacted to the sun.   

‘The doctor said that skin and hormones levels in pregnancy are super sensitive which is why sunburn happens quicker and more severe than what might normally be the skin’s threshold,’ she said.

‘Unfortunately being pregnant meant I was limited to the types of creams or medicine I could take to help with the oedema because I couldn’t have any anti-inflammatory medications.’ 

Explaining that she didn’t feel hot or ‘sun kissed’, Kara was surprised when she started noticing a pink hue appearing on her neck, knees, lower arms and ankles by 5pm that day

That night she recalls waking up to a general feeling of warmth on the affected areas, but was otherwise shivering

Kara left the hospital only to struggle through what she described as ‘serious pain’ from December 24 until the 28th. 

‘It felt like my ankle would explode when I stood up. The skin on my knees was so sore and tight that getting up to go to the bathroom meant fighting back tears each time and a three minute trip turned into 15 minute one,’ she said.

Blisters on her knees would appear, swell and then burst all by themselves before forming again – a painful and ‘messy’ experience.

Kara experienced nausea, was unable to regulate her temperature and felt constantly dehydrated. 

‘That evening I continued to get increased pain and swelling of the affected areas. In particular oedema, or fluid retention, in my right ankle and both knees,’ Kara said

‘I’ve reached the stage now where my skin has gone hard and I’m assuming will continue to peel which is important to be left alone due to risk of infection,’ she said.

‘I feel completely stupid for getting this sunburn at 32 years old.

‘Never in my life have I ever come remotely close to burning like this – so this is a lesson I will never forget – though had I known the increased risk associated with pregnancy I would have had the right information to be a step ahead.’

Kara left the hospital only to struggle through what she described as ‘serious pain’ from December 24 until the 28th