A mother who was told on five separate occasions her child would die has shared how her tiny baby defied doctors’ expectations to survive.
Mum Hanna Rose went into labour at 23 weeks and was told her son George had a “one in a million chance of surviving”.
She said: “I was devastated, I was convinced that George would be born dead. I was so worried, my world fell apart.”
1lb 5oz
Born before the legal abortion limit in Britain, George weighed just 1lb 5oz, and needed immediate emergency surgery.
He had a swollen liver and during the surgery to correct this, he lost 40 per cent of his blood.
He developed sepsis and meningitis, and went into a septic shock.
“one in a million chance”
Life support
Doctors told Hanna there was nothing more they could do.
“The doctor said we had only a couple of hours left. It was horrendous”, she said, adding: “we were told it was best to turn off his life support”.
“But we were reading to him and suddenly the numbers on his blood pressure were coming up – it was amazing.”
‘Blessing’
After 26 weeks in hospital, George was allowed to go home. He has chronic lung disease and so has to rely on an oxygen tank.
“But despite that, spending time with him has been amazing as we didn’t think he’d be here. After the doctors said he wouldn’t make it five times, every day is special”, Hanna said.
“He’s proved everyone wrong and gone against everything the professionals know. We believe he is going to carry on doing that and with the right help he will thrive.”
She added: “Each and every day we have with him is a true blessing.”
In Britain it is legal to have an abortion up to 24 weeks, or up to birth if the child has what is deemed to be a severe disability.