"Pregnancy & delivery of my son"

At 32 wks pregnant drs realised my baby boy wasn’t growing properly and there were a few issues. They got me to 36wks whilst having me checked a number of times in between those 4wks of finding out that there was a problem. I took a pain below my chest/ top of stomach as if someone was punching me continuously along with sickness and diarrhoea on the Saturday morning and knew something wasn’t right so I was rushed to the royal maternity unit in Belfast where they kept me in for a number of hours before being discharged and sent home with some drugs for blood pressure. On the Monday I had a check up and the dr was reluctant to let me leave but told me if I didn’t feel anything or if I’d any issues that I’d to go straight back up to hospital. 12 hours later, I had to get my mum to ring 999 as I couldn’t breathe and knew things where extremely serious at this point.

Once in the ambulance I had a drip put into the back of my hand and was given paracetamol. At the maternity unit the drs / nurses where waiting for me and knew the extent of my pregnancy....! I had took eclampsia in which all mine and my unborn babys organs started to shut down. My unborn baby boys heart rate had dropped extremely low and they decided to swoop and change me from side to side as I lay on the bed before the lead doctor said that’s it “plan action b”, my reply was what’s that as I drifted in and out of consciousness. They said you're going straight to theatre as the baby needs to come now or we were at serious risk. Within minutes I was rushed off in the bed to the delivery suite where they prepped me for theatre for an emergency c-section and that morning my precious baby boy arrived in at 5lb 9.5oz.

I sadly couldn't have skin to skin contact with my newborn due to us both being ill and him being took away in an incubator with my mum whilst I was being fixed and stapled up 16 times and given a blood transfusion. I really can’t thank all the drs/ nurses from that night/day enough for what they done for my son and I. They truly were angels that day and I definitely owe my life to them. I write this with emotion and tears in my eyes as my parents could've been burying both me & my son and as if it wasn’t bad enough already in the middle of lockdown. I probably should’ve been having a c-section a lot sooner but they had wanted me to get to 36wks.

From the min I arrived at the maternity unit to the time I left on the Friday they gave me 100% of their attention. I definitely couldn't ask for any better staff.