A woman has been awarded a £1.5 million pay out from the NHS after medics failed to diagnosis a condition which has left unable to orgasm.
Ginny Atchison, 45, says her life was shattered after she was diagnosed with cauda equina syndrome - a rare and painful condition, where the nerves at the base of the spine are squeezed.
The mum-of-one says it took doctors years to diagnose the condition, which has meant she's been left with irreversible nerve damage.
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She was given the hefty compensation after the NHS missed several opportunities to properly diagnose and treat the problem.
Ginny said that as her condition began to worsen, she splashed out on sex toys to try and feel sexual pleasure again but nothing worked.
Sadly, no matter what I tried, I couldn't feel a thing," she said. "I was always a very sexual person.
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"I enjoyed being intimate, having sex at least a few times a week when I was in a relationship. I'd being having sex regularly since I was 16.
"But I didn't realise how important that was to me until it was gone."
Ginny's first inkling that something might be wrong was when she began to experience pain in her lower back in 2008, but she dismissed it as a pulled muscle and carried on as normal.
Two years later, the pain became more severe and was paired with an 'electric-shock-type sensation' in her legs, so she took herself off to A&E at Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital.
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Once there, medics suspected she had slipped a disc in her back and didn't sent her for an MRI.
What followed was months of back and forth between her GP, hospital visits and referrals to see a physiotherapist, where no one was able to tell her what the problem was. She claims that the turning point didn't come until August 2011.
She said: "I was sitting watching TV in the lounge and I thought I would go to the bathroom. I realised that I hadn't needed been in ages and sat on the toilet, but there was absolutely no feeling. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't urinate.
"I was on my own and I didn't know what to do. I decided to go straight to the doctor first thing the next morning. She did sensation tests and I couldn't feel anything.
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"She gave me a note to take to the hospital and I was sent to the orthopeadic ward. The note said she couldn't rule out cauda equina syndrome. It was the first time I'd ever heard of it."
She was sent for an MRI and it was here the nerve damage at the base of her spine was spotted.
Ginny said: "Doctors warned me I might not be able to walk again. I woke up from the surgery and the first thing they said was to wiggle my toes. I could still do that, so that was amazing, as I knew I could still walk, but, unfortunately, there was lots of damage.
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"I still can't feel the saddle area and it's just got worse since then. I have tried everything to help it - I've looked at the psychology of it, physical treatment, anything I can - but I have come to terms with the fact that my sexual feeling isn't going to come back."
She has since been forced to give up her job and can no longer walk long distances. She has to wear a permanent catheter, because the condition also affects bladder and bowel function.
Ginny says she is angry it took a year for docs to diagnose the problem, meaning the damage is no irreversible and says that the being left with no sexual feeling is the cruelest part.
"You never think you will stop having sex in your 40s," she said. "It was always important to me and, although I am now single, I really miss that intimacy.
"I was with somebody at the time and we are still really close friends, but I haven't been able to be intimate since this happened, and I probably never will again.
"I struggled a lot, because loss of orgasm is a terrible thing.
"My relationship with my partner at the time, who I don't want to name, came to an end. We are still best friends, but after the injury we couldn't be intimate and the romantic part of our relationship was over."
Despite being referred to a women's physiotherapist, Ginny said nothing helped.
She added: "I was told to go to a sex shop and try and buy vibrators to improve things, but no matter what I tried, I couldn't feel a thing.
"My nerves are damaged and that's not going to come back.
"It was such an awful time and I just had to accept that my sexual feeling had gone."
Dr Venu Harilal, Medical Director at Norfolk Community Health and Care NHS Trust, said: "We deeply regret that the standard of care was inadequate and the distress caused to Ms Atchison.
"Patient safety is our first priority and we have developed and implemented a new protocol with our healthcare partners improving our response to suspected cauda equina syndrome.
"We have also shared the results of an investigation into the case with staff, to minimise the likelihood of a similar incident happening again."
Featured Image Credit: PA Real Life