Leith Mum speaks about her miracle baby on prematurity awareness day
As part of premature birth awareness day, we've been speaking to a Leith Mum who feared her son would only live days - but has just celebrated his 1st Birthday
Last updated 17th Nov 2022
An Edinburgh Mum is telling Forth News about her miracle baby as part of premature awareness day.
Marie Clare Tully and her husband Angus welcomed their son Hector far earlier than planned last year when he was born at just 23 weeks.
Initially the new parents were told to prepare themselves for the worst, and that Hector might only live days.
Marie Clare told us:
"we were given the option to either have some time with him to say goodbye, or he could be resuscitated, but if he was resuscitated, it would only be for a couple of days.
"We were in love with Hector before we knew him, we said, we want to resuscitate him.
"So he was resuscitated. but we were very much under the impression that he would only live for a couple of days."
The next few weeks were of course incredibly hard for the family, who didn't know what to expect or when to expect it.
"He was taken straight to intensive care at the Simpsons neonatal unit, and they're just incredible.
"The care we got from the nurses, doctors, domestics housekeeping, the full team there really looked after him.
"We very much made the decision that if you live for a day, 11 days, 111 days, that would be the best day 111 days, that there could be."
Marie Clare wasn't able to see Hector for the first 40 hours of his life, she didn't hold him until the 28th of November, and Angus didn't hold his new son until new years day.
But as time went on Hector kept fighting, and the team in the neo-natal unit kept helping him to improve.
Whilst the next year was full of challenges, on Saturday (November 12) Hector celebrated his first Birthday.
"Hector was one on Saturday on the 12th of November, which was just amazing. I never thought he would have his first week nevermind his first birthday.
"This time last year on the 17th of November world premature day, I was given a care package from the Simpson special care babies charity, and I remember thinking things were so bleak. and I got given this care package. and it gave me hope - it lifted my spirits and I thought okay, we can do this today, Hector, we can do it."
Marie Clare told us that if she was to give a message to anyone currently going through the premature birth of their child, or if anyone else was to go through it in the future, she'd tell them about the importance of hope.
"It's very easy in the early days to think there's no way forward, but trusting in the medical professionals and who will do all that they can
" We were very fortunate in that we have been able to bring Hector home and acknowledge that's not everybody has that that ending
"There is something about the hope and love."
Because the parents weren't able to hold Hector, they decided to read the same stories and sing the same songs to him - so he would recognise who was there.
"By finding a way in which you can express your love, and for us that was reading and singing, in the hopelessness try and find that something that you can focus on."
You can find out more about world prematurity day here.