I couldn’t take my baby home for three months
When the weather presenter went into labour early on the set of Good Morning Britain, she had no idea what lay ahead
AS Laura Tobin looked down at her daughter, her tiny body covered in tubes and wires, she was filled with pride. “She was so small, so vulnerable,” says Laura. “But I was amazed by how tough and strong she was. That made me strong too.”
Baby Charlotte weighed just 2lb 8oz when she was born three months premature – only slightly more than a bag of sugar.
Laura, 36, who lives in Berkshire with her husband Dean, can still remember the fear she felt when she went into labour at just six months pregnant.
“She gave me quite a fright when she arrived very early. We didn’t know what to expect,” she says.
Best known for presenting the weather on ITV’s Good Morning Britain (GMB), Laura says she always dreamt of being a mum.
“I have a twin brother and have always loved family Christmases and birthdays. I knew I wanted a family of my own.”
In May last year, viewers were delighted when Laura announced her pregnancy live on air.
“I didn’t know if it was a boy or a girl. It had been kept secret from absolutely everybody, except for a couple of close family members.”
Well-wishers sent in presents for the baby, who was due at the end of October.
But Charlotte had other plans. On July 25 last year, Laura had just arrived at work at the GMB studios on London’s South Bank when she started to feel unwell.
“I felt hot and thought I had tummy ache. But it was actually contractions.
“My co-presenter Charlotte Hawkins thought it was Braxton Hicks (practice contractions that happen when the body prepares for labour). But Piers Morgan was adamant the baby was coming.” And Piers was right. As the pain worsened, Laura was rushed to St Thomas’ Hospital in central London where doctors told her she was about to give birth.
Despite how worried she was, Laura says she remained calm.
“Perhaps my maternal instincts kicked in but I was really calm,” she says. “The doctors were so calm, which really put me at ease.”
Later that day Laura gave birth to Charlotte, named after Charlottenburg, the place in Germany where her husband Dean proposed.
Despite being born so early, Charlotte did well in the neonatal unit. “We were really lucky she didn’t have any major complications,” Laura says. “A lot of premature babies are born too soon because something is wrong but she just decided she wanted to come early.”
Charlotte was given oxygen to help her breathe because her lungs had not fully developed.
“She was on loads of monitors, there was a lot of beeping and wires. There were people everywhere – doctors, consultants, a million people helping.”
After an anxious couple of days in St Thomas’, Charlotte was transferred to the Buscot Special Care Baby Unit at the Royal Berkshire Hospital, which was closer to the family’s home. Thankfully with every passing week Charlotte grew stronger.
“She went through massive milestones in hospital, such as going from an incubator to a cot or when they put clothes on her for the first time,” says Laura. “The bigger she got, the stronger she became and then she came off oxygen, which was amazing.” In October, around what was meant to be her due date, Charlotte was finally allowed to go home. But it was then, Laura says, that the real work began.
“Being a mummy is amazing but nobody tells you how hard it’s going to be.
“When we got home, we were alone for the first time with Charlotte and being alone with her was scarier than being in the hospital.
“There were no machines, I couldn’t turn around and ask for help. I think coming home with a premature baby is harder than coming home with a full-term baby.”
On leaving the hospital, doctors warned Laura and Dean Charlotte would be more susceptible to respiratory illnesses because her lungs were not strong enough. “We had to avoid busy places such as supermarkets, places where she could catch something.”
Two weeks after they brought her home, Laura and Dean had to rush Charlotte back to hospital. “She got bronchiolitis, a virus that affects the lungs. We’d been prepared but it was still very frightening,” says Laura.
After a week Charlotte had made a full recovery and was soon back home with her parents.
NOW, as she approaches her first birthday, she is a happy and healthy baby and her mum couldn’t be more delighted. “Because she was so little, we thought she’d always be a skinny baby, so it’s lovely to see her getting bigger. She’s crawling and rolling over and developing as normal. She’s put on so much weight, she’s really big and fat now. We love her so much.
“We love going out for walks with her, having picnics, sitting in the park on a blanket and playing with toys.”
In April, Laura went back on GMB. And while chatting to colleagues she realised none of them had known how to react when they heard she had given birth prematurely and her baby was on oxygen in hospital.
“People just don’t know what to do or say. They want to congratulate you but it isn’t really a celebration as premature babies are often really poorly.
“We didn’t get any cards for quite a while. But actually if I’d been sent a card with a baby or a nursery on it, I would have been reminded of what I didn’t have every night when I came home from the hospital. I had an empty house and no baby.” And so, in conjunction with GMB, Hallmark and baby charity Bliss, today on the show Laura is launching a collection of cards designed for parents of premature babies, which will be on sale next week.
Laura says she is keen to help other parents who are going through a similar experience.
“To be sent a nice message is so reassuring,” she says. “If I’d had a card like that every day, it would have really given me a lift. And it’s often a really long day.”
After a tough first few months, Laura says having Charlotte at home was a dream come true.
“I loved watching her smile for the first time, then crawl, then laugh… those moments are all the more precious.”
Next week Laura is planning a family barbecue to celebrate Charlotte turning one. And she is so excited to see what the future holds for her family.
“I look forward to her walking, chatting and seeing what her voice sounds like. But I love living in the moment with her and appreciate every single day I have with her. We’re really lucky.”
Good Morning Britain is on ITV each weekday from 6am to 8.30am.
Good Morning Britain, Hallmark and Bliss have teamed up to launch a range of charity cards especially for babies born premature or sick. 20p from the sale of each card will be donated to Bliss. Stockists: Tesco, Morrisons, amazon.co.uk