Mathilda

At just 48 hours old, Mathilda needed surgery after developing a dangerous condition. Life for her parents, Andy and Katie, turned on its head, and a normal birth turned into three weeks in St Michael’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Read on for Mathilda’s hospital journey. 

“When I was pregnant, we found out there was a risk of gestational diabetes. It meant Mathilda was born at 37 and a half weeks. I had a caesarean, but it was a relatively normal birth. As far as we were aware, we’d be home with our baby in a few days. 

Everything was going okay – she was doing really well with breastfeeding, and things seemed good. Then, one morning, she started vomiting bright green liquid. The doctors noticed and were concerned, starting an investigation right away. They took some bloods, and by lunchtime we were in the Radiology Unit in St Michael’s Hospital for a scan. 

It was there that they noticed Mathilda had a malrotation of the intestines, which meant her stomach had twisted and folded over. Although it usually happens in the womb, Mathilda’s malrotation had happened at some point after her birth, so vomiting was our first warning sign. It can be dangerous for the baby if it’s left for too long, so we were beyond grateful for the speed and care they treated Mathilda with. 

From St Michael’s Hospital, she was taken to Bristol Children’s Hospital and was being prepared for corrective surgery almost immediately. From realising she was unwell to her coming out of surgery – it all took a matter of hours. The surgeons there were fantastic; they explained everything they were going to do and what it meant for Mathilda. Having to watch our two-day-old baby go into surgery was distressing, but they were so clear and open about the operation that it eased our concern a little.

I texted Andy what had happened, and he came straight from work with Bea to see her. The surgeons waited for him to get there before she went into surgery, which we were grateful for. It just relieved a little bit of that fear, being there and actually seeing her. 

The surgery went perfectly and afterwards, she came back up to St Michael’s NICU for further treatment. After that, we didn’t know how long we were going to be there. Mathilda had to recovery from surgery enough to build up her feeds through a feeding tube and, eventually, move back to breastfeeding, and that was just a bit of a waiting game.

At this point, I was still an inpatient in the maternity ward, still recovering. After Mathilda went into surgery, and then was moved to NICU, the staff on my ward found me a bed in a quieter area. It was something I didn’t know I really needed until it started to sink in: I was surrounded by new mothers and their babies, but mine was in a different ward. That was difficult. I was grateful for the empathy the staff showed me.

We went to visit Mathilda in NICU and one of the Sisters, Fay, reassured us that she was comfortable, happy and in the best place possible. Fay and Olivia in NICU both made an effort to check in every time they saw us – they were genuinely interested and very caring. 

Discharge from the maternity ward was approaching for me, and we started to worry about how we’d get back and forth between the hospital and home. We lived a little under an hour away, but I couldn’t drive after my caesarean. Andy was looking after Bea at home so she could go to nursery, and we still had our farm animals to think about. 

One of the nurses told us about Cots for Tots House, free family accommodation for parents with babies in NICU. The very next morning Anne, the Family Accommodation Manager, gave us a call and invited us to come and look at the house. 

We agreed that I’d stay at Cots for Tots House so I could be close to Mathilda, and Andy would stay at home with Bea, so she still had a sense of normalcy and routine. Andy and Bea visited regularly though and stayed over whenever we needed a bit more time together. 

It really did feel like a home-from-home. All the small details: colourful soft furnishings, artwork, fresh flowers, a bright, open kitchen and living room… it made a world of difference. We never felt like we had to just stay in our room – sometimes it was nice to sit on the sofa and have a cup of tea, cook with another parent, eat in the dining room. Or, if it was a tough day, we had the option to go back up to a cosy bedroom, watch some TV and switch off. 

That’s what you really notice when you walk in. It feels like home.

It’s always been us against the world, so it was strange for us to accept help, but it was offered so freely by everyone around us – NICU and Cots for Tots staff alike. 

Our workplaces even showed their support. We had some lovely messages from colleagues, and they each put in for a collection. Andy’s workplace, the National Composites Centre, raised £95 and my workplace, Companion Care Vets, also raised £200. 

A few days into our stay, Andy got really unwell with tonsilitis. It meant he couldn’t see me or Mathilda for several days, which wasn’t easy for either of us. But the unit staff were amazing. He could ring up at any time, day or night, for an update. And we made great use of vCreate, a video and photo messaging service also funded by Cots for Tots, which NICU staff use to send small updates to parents. 

In the middle of the night, when he was wide awake with the stress of it all, getting a picture of Mathilda sleeping soundly made everything feel a little easier. Someone taking the time to send a picture and give us a little update meant we knew someone cares just as much as we did. So, even when we weren’t there, she was never alone. We can’t stress enough the positive impact vCreate had. 

Because we caught it so fast, and they got her into surgery so quickly, Mathilda has the best possible chance of recovery. She should heal and grow normally, like any other baby. Our NICU stay lasted three weeks, and Mathilda made us so proud, fighting hard to get better. 

We’re all back home now, enjoying the time together as a family we so sorely missed while we were apart. Little things like trips to the beach, gardening, seeing our friends and even cat cuddles. Bea adores Mathilda and wants to be with her all the time. She’s a wonderful big sister. 

The future looks bright and hopeful for our family, and we couldn’t be more grateful to St Michael’s NICU for giving us that.”