Mummy’s Little Hero
Laura's brave lad saved her life
Laura Harper, 24, Bushmills
Good girl,’ I cooed, easing Evie’s chubby legs into a pink sleepsuit. My wee princess was just 10 weeks old and we’d got settled into a cosy bedtime routine.
She’d just finished bathtime with her big brother Leo, 3, and now it was PJ time.
Evie’s dad Mark, 20, usually came round for his dinner every night and helped with bathtime.
But this night he was off playing bowls with some of his friends, so
I was looking after the kids single-handed.
Pyjamas on, we settled in front of the telly.
Peppa Pig was on – Leo’s favourite.
I looked down at Evie, lying across my knee, and snapped a quick photo of her to send to my sister.
Then I got up and carried my baby girl over to her Moses basket.
She wasn’t due to go down for a while yet and was ready for a feed, so I’ve no idea why I did this.
Looking back, all I can think is that some deep mother’s instinct kicked in.
Because, as I walked back to the sofa, I got pins and needles all over.
‘What’s wrong, Mummy?’ asked Leo as I slumped into the sofa.
I realised that I was losing feeling in my right side.
My head was lolling – I couldn’t hold it up properly. I couldn’t speak either.
Next, I felt myself slipping in and out of consciousness.
It was like I was having an out-of-body experience.
At one point, I picked up my phone and managed to call Mark’s mum Joanne, but it clicked through to her voicemail.
I tried to ask for help, but all that came out was a mumble.
‘What’s wrong, Mummy?’ Leo asked me again. ‘Mummy, why aren’t you talking?’
He’s off!
I heard him starting to cry, then he hopped off the sofa and ran out of the room.
Wait, Leo... No!
I could hear the front door opening.
‘Help!’ Leo shouted.
‘My mummy needs help. Something’s wrong with my mummy. Help!’
Terrified, I managed to haul myself off the sofa and dragged myself after him.
Just moving felt like a superhuman effort.
I found Leo standing on the
I realised that I was losing feeling in my right side...
doorstep with our neighbour Jackie, who’d heard his cries.
‘What’s wrong, Laura?’ she asked, bending over me.
I tried to talk but all that came out was ‘chips’.
I worked in our local chippy, so Jackie assumed I was talking about work.
We didn’t really know each other very well. She probably thought I was drunk or on drugs!
She half carried me back to the living room, set me on the sofa and put a blanket over Evie.
Then Mark’s mum Joanne ran in.
‘Laura, are you OK?’ she gasped. ‘You left me a 10-minute message, but all I could hear was Leo shouting for help!’
Mark was right behind her. He took one look at me and knew there was something seriously wrong.
‘Call an ambulance,’ he said. The last thing I remember is Leo sitting next to me, holding my hand as the paramedics came in.
I woke up in hospital four days later. ‘You had a stroke,’ Mark explained. ‘What?’ I asked groggily. I was only 24. Strokes happened to old people – not young mums...
It turned out I had a small hole in my heart. It’d been there since I was born but I’d never known about it.
Doctors thought that that, coupled with the natural thickening of the blood during pregnancy, had probably caused the stroke.
My mum Brenda brought Leo to hospital to visit me.
‘This little fella probably saved your life,’ doctors said when they heard what he’d done.
He probably saved his sister, too. Evie could’ve been lying in her basket all night, without a blanket or any milk, if Leo hadn’t called for help.
‘My little hero,’ I told him. After a couple of weeks, I was allowed home, but that was only the start of my recovery. I
Thank goodness he found his voice to shout for help
have epilepsy as a result of the stroke and still have weakness down my right side.
I also struggle to feel temperature differences, so I can’t bath the kids without someone to help.
Special treat
Mark and I told Leo he could choose a treat for being such a good boy.
‘Can I go to see the Gruffalo?’ he asked.
So we took him to Chessington World of Adventures, where they have a special Gruffalo ride and even Gruffalo-themed rooms in the hotel.
And there, my little hero met his hero.
Little Leo was speechless! But thank goodness he found his voice to shout for help when I needed it.
If not, I might not be here to tell you this story.