At 28 weeks pregnant I woke up from a disruptive sleep, it was 3 a.m and my stomach was hurting, I went to the toilet with an upset stomach and came out feeling better so went back to sleep putting the cramps around my stomach down to not being well. I woke up at 9 o clock and couldn’t get up by myself, so I messaged my partner to come and give me a hand, I told him something wasn’t right but I was unsure what was happening, I was a first time Mum.

As the day progressed the pains did too and I hadn’t felt baby move for a while, I was in bed and rang up the maternity unit who told me to drink cold water lie on my side for an hour and ring back to let them know how many times she had moved, she only moved twice so I rang back to tell them to which they said I needed to be checked over. The drive to the hospital was agony, every speed bump hurt.

I was left on a machine to monitor any contractions and the doctors couldn’t find anything wrong. Eventually they decided to do an internal examination and found out I was 3cm dilated. I was then told I would have to be moved to another hospital more suitable caring for my babies needs if she were to arrive, so I went in an ambulance to the new hospital. I was terrified, I was only 19, I’m supposed to be fit and healthy things like this surely couldn’t happen to me but they did. I was given steroid injections to help mature her lungs & a course of tablets that helped to slow down the labour and put off my contractions but they kept returning and sure enough the day arrived where they couldn’t give me any more tablets, nature would have to take its course.

So on day 4 of my hospital stay I gave birth to a 3lbs 2ozs little girl, she was a lot healthier than expected and weighed a good amount for her gestation. We stayed in the hospital for a little under 6 weeks, it was the scariest experience of my life some days she would do so well and then the next day we would take 5 steps backwards. She pulled through and I took her home when she weighed 4lbs 4ozs, today she is 4 and you would never be able to tell the start of her life was the fight of her life. She amazes me and I’m so blessed and lucky to have such a wonderful little girl.

What they can do for premature babies is amazing, what they could do with a lot more funding and research would be mind boggling, forever grateful to the staff at both the hospitals who took such good care of us.

Laura Riding laurariding95@icloud.com Yes Yes