HAPPY FOR MY TIME WITH STILLBORN SON
E XPECTANT mum Emma Fairbairn was 23 weeks and five days pregnant when she was involved in an horrific car crash.
Despite feeling her unborn son kicking on the way to hospital, doctors couldn’t save the child and she gave birth to a stillborn baby three days later.
To help with the grieving process, Emma shared some heartbreaking images of her baby boy so she could “feel like any other mother”.
“When I talk about it, it feels like I’m telling a story about someone else. It still doesn’t feel real,” said the 21-year-old from Pembrokeshire.
“I still think I’m going to have a baby in September. A part of me doesn’t want to have any children again – I just want him.”
Emma said she was driving at around 60mph on a main road near Milford Haven on May 25 when a car pulled out in front of her from a side lane.
“I just remember the impact. Both vehicles ended up facing the opposite way around,” added the healthcare support worker.
“I just remember my body feeling like it was on fire. I tried to take my seatbelt off but I couldn’t move. I was in shock.”
Emma said fellow drivers stopped to help her out of her car when it began filling up with smoke.
“I kept on telling people I was pregnant and they’d ask me whether I was in any pain,” she said.
“Once the initial shock went I started getting pain in my hips.”
“I was sitting on the floor and I didn’t open my eyes much to see who was helping me,” added Emma, recalling her wait for the paramedics.
“When I got into the ambulance I did feel the baby move, which was a relief.
“They gave me some fluids and they checked my stomach. I felt a weird bit of pressure there.”
She said the ambulance arrived at Withybush Hospital in Haverfordwest at around 1.30pm and, following some initial tests, her baby’s heartbeat was monitored.
“It took about five minutes to find one but that was normal.
“They were concerned the heartbeat was a bit fast so I was sent for a scan.”
Blood tests which could have picked up any internal bleeding were carried out but everything returned normal. Another scan revealed that the baby’s heart rate was returning to normal.
She was sent to Glangwili Hospital in Carmarthen that evening to be monitored overnight.
But, following a round of observations on her ward later that night, she was given the news every expectant mother dreads.
“My mum had come to the hospital and had left as the blood tests and scans had come back normal,” she said. “The midwife came round to do some more checks and again listened for the baby’s heartbeat.
“After half an hour of trying I was rushed off to a scan.
“I was walked down to the scanning room. The screen was facing me and they were scanning for ages.
“Usually you see a little heartbeat but they couldn’t see anything.
“I was just so shocked as I thought everything was going to be okay.
“The midwives were amazing and they called my mum.”
Emma had to go through the agony of giving birth to her son three days later, on May 28.
But, thanks to a specially-refrigerated cuddle cot, she was able to spend two days on the ward with son Flynn, who was born weighing 1lb 6oz.
She shared photos of his tiny hands and feet on Facebook.
“I can’t even explain what it was like giving birth to him. I was happy that I got to spend time with him,” she said.
“There was only one cot in the whole hospital but luckily I was able to have it all to myself.
“He was fully formed but he didn’t have proper skin yet. There were lots of covers around him.
“I took hundreds of photos. To me he was the most beautiful baby ever and I just wanted to share how gorgeous he was with everyone just like every mum does with their baby.”
Following her Facebook posts she said messages of support had been sent from across the globe.
It also allowed her to find out about bereavement support groups.
A fundraising group was set up to pay for the funeral costs for Flynn, which took place earlier this month.
To donate visit www.gofundme. com/for-emmas-angel-baby-flynn