The “helpless” mom watched the “amazing” doctor keep her baby alive.

The mother states that Liverpool Hospital staff feel “helpless” when they fight to keep the baby alive.

Claire Stones was only 24 weeks pregnant and gave birth to her very immature daughter, Erin, who weighs 1 pound, 10z (750g). This is less than a bag of sugar.

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Infants born on December 1st last year had a hole in their heart and couldn’t breathe on their own, relying entirely on doctors and nurses to live.

A 39-year-old woman said: “One of the hardest things about becoming a parent in the neonatal intensive care unit is absolute helplessness. All I can do is sit down as these wonderful people saved my daughter and supported her fight. I just watched over. “

Claire, from Banger In Wales, she said she first entered Ysbyty Gwynedd in November 2020 with what she thought was a minor urinary tract infection.

She said: “They looked up at me and said:” Your cervix is ​​open-you will give birth to your baby and you will have a miscarriage, “she remembered.

“At that point I was only 22 weeks old, and if she was born at that stage she would just not have survived. She was just too small.”

However, when Erin did not arrive within the next 48 hours, Claire was transferred by ambulance to the Liverpool Women’s Hospital, which has a high level of neonatal care.

At this point, Claire said she was more likely to survive if Erin stayed in her womb every day.

She continued. “The week was very important in preparing for the following: I was taught what to expect when she came out. The newborn team was great and ready to arrive. I was standing in the room .. “

When Erin was delivered-lighter than a bag of sugar-Claire described it as a “surreal” sensation.

She said: “It feels like it’s not your baby because it’s not what you prepared in your head throughout your life,” she said. “When she was born, they took her back, put a tube in and ventilated, then hugged her and had that moment, and carried her with a whisk to put in all the wires. ..

“But in the hospital, they really involve their parents in caring for their baby, so it’s really recommended to check and wash the diapers, and to keep the diapers because skin-to-skin contact is so important.”

According to Claire, the most difficult part of the first few weeks of hospitalization was not being able to meet her eldest daughter, Nora (now three), who was not allowed to visit across the Welsh border.

She continued. “My husband took her to Liverpool and had nowhere to go because it was closed and couldn’t enter the hospital, so we had to stand outside in the freezing cold. It was very difficult. “

Claire said that all of Erin’s organs, especially her lungs, were “very underdeveloped.” In short, she couldn’t breathe on her own and was life-supporting for the first month of her life. She was also treated for 13 different infections.

“We couldn’t lower her respiratory support, even when we took her out of the ventilator. She also underwent many different screenings for infections and sepsis. Whenever she had a chest infection, they started her again with antibiotics, “she added.

“Erin also had a hole in the heart known as PDA (Patent Ductus Arteriosus). When the baby is in the womb, there is a PDA to allow blood and oxygen to pass through, but usually the baby She closes when she is born. She stayed open because she was so early. They tried to close with Ibuprofen and Parasetamol, but it didn’t work and blood was pumped into her lungs. “

Only nine weeks after birth, Erin underwent surgery to surgically close her PDA at Alderhay Children’s Hospital.

“It was very hard to get emotionally involved. [with Erin] In the first few weeks, I knew she could be taken away at any time, “she admitted.

“When they are so small and premature, they don’t give you much hope. They only take every day at a time. I just wake up every day and whether she lives or dies. I remember wondering. “

According to doctors, Erin’s heart surgery was very successful. This is the moment Claire described it as a “big turning point.”

“They didn’t really know what the difference would be because her breathing wasn’t getting stronger after the surgery, but it made a big difference and within a week we returned to Ysbyty Glan Clwyd. I did. “

According to Claire, Erin was hospitalized in Ysbyty Glan Clwyd for about six weeks, strengthened, cut off breathing support, and then transferred to Ysbyty Gwynedd’s special care baby unit.

After more than three months of fighting, Erin was finally discharged and was able to return home on March 28, six days after the original date.

“It was the biggest thing for me to see my two daughters together for the first time. I remember my husbands Ed and Nora taking us home and Nora holding Erin’s hand in her child seat. It was great, “Claire added.

“Erin didn’t give up, and the people who worked day and night didn’t take care of her and all the other babies in the unit every day during the most critical times.

“These people go far beyond skilled and medical professionals. They are counselors, teachers, and friends when the world is a very scary place.”

While Erin (now about 11 months old) is smiling, she still receives oxygen support during the night, but her mind is perfectly fine.

Claire, who decided to share her story to raise awareness of World Preterm Birth Day on November 17, said: easy going. “

Since taking Erin home, Claire has raised over £ 2,000 for the Liverpool Women’s Hospital and Ysbyty Glan Clywd units, thanked her and returned something.

In September she participated in the Anglesey Sandman Triathlon and is now looking at half marathons and biking from northern to southern Wales.Please go to either to donate here Also here..

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