My baby boy

My baby boy

“Hello Samuel Jacob” those were the first words I said to you when you were born after just fifteen minutes of labour you arrived weighing in at 7lb 4oz. Slightly jaundiced you remained in hospital for five days. We went home to start family life me, you and your brothers. Family life was normal then endless nappy changes feeds every two hours you would drink a large amount every fours hours just a small amount every two.

You were nine days old when the midwife called to see you before discharging you to the health visiting team you was not feeding properly and had lost 9ozs of your birth weight also you fell limp in her arms I had to take you to the paediatric admissions unit of our local hospital there they took lumbar puncures and various other tests to rule out meningitis. You had a throat infection after a week in hospital you came back home.

Nicky and DJ your to older brothers worshipping you even though DJ got special needs he idolised you being around. Everyone loved you Sam our little ray of sunshine.

When you were nine weeks old on DJ’s forth birthday you were meant to go to physiotherapy for talipies you had since birth but at nine o’clock that morning just as your brothers left for school you started screaming and bringing your legs up to your waist at first I thought you had colic but after around fifteen minutes mothering intuition told me something was very wrong. I rushed you down to the doctors surgery where the receptionists heard your whimpering cry you were rushed into the G.P although no obvious signs of illness the G.P asked me to rush you down to paediatric admissions unit. On arriving at the unit the ward manager placed you into a cubical she asked me had you always had the spots that were appearing on your face no you hadn’t baby boy the rash was appearing before my eyes purple blotches slowly covering your skin. It was code red as you were moved into the resuscitation room doctors, nurses and even medical students were rushing around everywhere trying to stop you slipping away. You were moved to the High Dependcy Unit where I was allowed to hold you for around ten minutes this was around half one.

Then the doctors made the decision to take you into theatre to be sedated and incubated whilst waiting for a specialist team to arrive and take you to the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit 60 miles away. At four o’clock that afternoon I gave you a quick kiss as you were going into the intensive care ambulance . I was told not to follow behind the ambulance just to meet you at the hospital you were going to I came home to get a few things first. Then bampa drove me to the hospital on arriving at the hospital around qtr past seven you still hadn’t arrived the wait was agonising wondering where you was shortly afterwards you arrived I was allowed to see you until qtr to nine as they were making you comfortable and putting you onto full life support see Sam you were on the highest level of life support they could put you on. I was allowed into see nothing could of prepared me for how much of your body had taken over already.

The purple rash covering you, your body swollen like a balloon and nothing could prepared me for all the machines keeping you alive. Mammy had to leave you at three o’clock the following morning the nurses told me I must rest as you needed me strong I was put in a emergency accommodation room just around the corner from where you were. I just sat down and cried uncontrollably not wanting to cry by your side to remain strong for you. The door to my room knocked at five past four that morning I opened it a doctor and nurse stood there they came into the room my stomach lurched. Your kidneys had starting failing and you were put on dialysis with ten minutes to live it didn’t sink in at first so the doctor told me bluntly I thought I was having a heart attack I couldn’t breath. I ran from the hospital just outside to phone bampa he was there though he kept saying whilst hugging me “Please god no Angie what’s wrong” I replied “Sam ten minutes to live” too traumatised with emotion to say anymore bampa said for me to go back with you so you wasn’t alone. Nana arrived to see you later that morning not speaking to you I told nana then that you could hear her all of a sudden nana spoke into your ear “Samuel this is your nana talking to you fight baby boy fight” I stayed by your side for twenty-four hours to scared to move.

The next forty-eight hours after that passed in a daze the doctor arrived and confirmed what we knew already you had meningococcal septicaemia with a strain of the meningitis bug on top. After being there around five-days you started being fed through a tube and being weaned off the life support slowly you were fighting with all your strength your brothers wanted to see you I wouldn’t let them baby boy they would have been to traumatised by what they saw then seven days after you arrived there you were well enough to travel back to our local hospital the doctor who incubated you in theatre arrived to see you

“Baby Sam I never expected to see you back” was his words you defied them Sam you fought with all your might and survived baby. Doctors thought you were blind as your eyes were unable to focus you defied that to when you started to follow a bright toy Uncle Andrew bought you a teddy that played twinkle twinkle you defied them that you were deaf to when you started following the sound . You were having fits within a month you starting fighting them to and was taken off your medication slowly. Overall you had only been in hospital two weeks.

Hospital appointments to this day are still part of our routine yes you do have some sight problems, global development delay and low tone muscles but you light up anyone’s day you just started taking a few steps and saying a few words astonishing everyone your first birthday was a huge celebration of your life.

Your turning two soon getting more wicked by the day to hiding things down you top laughing as you crawl really fast to stop me catching you I am laughing just as much chasing you. You have such a hearty laugh I love you all you all make me so proud you with what you went through defying all odds and being here today, DJ for developing through his special needs and Nicky your oldest brother because even though you and DJ have special needs at the age of seven he copes remarkably well to be a high achiever in school. Everyone who cared for you were outstanding Sam the G.P phoning to speak to your nana every night to see how you was to the specialist teams who kept you with us.