AND HER INCREDIBLE PACT
problems. She says: “A day after finding out there was another tumour I had the biggest seizure I’ve ever had, which paralysed my left side. I cried and cried.”
She was left unable to walk unaided, and with that vanished any hope of changing nappies, bathing her newborn, even carrying him.
Nicola faced another eight-hour operation to remove the tumour on October 6 and will soon start chemotherapy designed to give her as much time as possible with her son. The thought of becoming well enough to change his nappies is keeping her going.
“None of us expected I’d deteriorate that quickly,” she says. “At the moment I need help with him as my left side doesn’t work. I’m looking forward to a time when I can do those things. I know I’ll be back to normal again after the treatment.”
Meanwhile supermarket worker Graeme, who lives in Glasgow with Christina, 28, has regular Skype calls with Nicola to ensure Archer knows their voices. The two women formed a close bond while pregnant at the same time and are spending as much time together as possible during Christina’s visits.
Caring Christina had no doubts about offering to bring Archer up.
“When Nicola found out she was pregnant, I was expecting Aaron – he’s only four months older than Archer,” she says.
“I was thinking about it at the time but I didn’t mention it. After Aaron was born, it just felt right.” But Archer’s future had been keeping her awake at night.
LEGAL
“When Aaron was about a month old I said to Graeme, ‘I just can’t spend another night not knowing where Archer’s going to go’. I wanted something secure in place.”
The family are making the decision legal via social services and a solicitor.
Nicola has named Graeme as Archer’s ‘special guardian’ – which gives him parental rights – in her will. He will be
allowed to adopt Archer and will step in when Nicola needs help.
Nicola says Archer’s birth dad is aware of the agreement, but has not met his son and is not on the birth certificate. She still has regular contact with the father of her two other children who she says adore their half-brother.
She will spend the coming weeks and months writing heartfelt messages in the cards, and is keeping a daily diary, recording all the things she and Archer have been doing together.
“Every day I write about what we’ve done, what nursery rhymes I’ve been singing to him,” Nicola says. “We’ve made videos so he can remember the sound of my voice.” And she has made memory books for her other children.
She says: “I just want to fill in the gaps, so even when I’m not there, Archer will have something to let him know I’ve always thought of him.”
It was the right thing to do. I’ve had my life taken away, now I have a life to give cancer MuM nicola ON THE DECISION TO HAVE HER BABY