Charlotte Wyatt

In May 2005 Darren wrote up this account of little Charlotte’s birth and the months following— the story of Charlotte and themselves:

It all happened on the 18th of October 2003. It was one of those days when I just wanted to get out of college, then suddenly my phone kept ringing. I was at that time in class doing silver service, I was not supposed to have had my phone on, I said to my friend what shall I do he said just answer it, so I did and it was Debbie. She said that the midwife had been round and told her that she needs to go to hospital to get checked over so I rushed straight back, up to that stage we was told that the pregnancy was all ok, when we got there they monitored Debbie over the weekend then, they told us that they needed to get the baby out and the chances of survival was very minimum, so then Debbie had to go to theatre and I was there also. This was very scary I could not stop shaking Debbie was looking at me and holding my hand saying is everything ok, I just said yes as I didn’t want to worry her. At around 7.30 pm on the 21st of October 2003 Charlotte was born.

I could not believe my eyes she was so tiny, only weighing 458 grams what is less than a bag of sugar, but she was alive I heard her little cry I just cried then they had to take her away into the intensive care department . We didn’t even think she would make it one night. I could not sleep, I had to rush back to get Daniel who is our oldest son he was around 10 months at that time. The next day me and Debbie went to see Charlotte together for the first time, it was scary we just both looked at each other and cried we was told that Charlottes survival was less than 50% but we just held each others hands and took a deep breath, and I prayed please God let our little girl live and I believe with my heart that is what God is doing. At that time there were loads of different noises, bleeping sounds and Charlotte had loads of wires attached to her all over, she was so tiny and fragile her skin was even fragile you could see all her veins. I thought we are not giving in and I believe maybe in her own way she thought the same. We could not even hold her at that time; all we could do was containment holding what is one hand on her head and one on her stomach they call it bonding. Because Charlotte was so premature and so tiny she had problems with her lungs, kidneys, and her heart as she was born at 26 weeks all the main organs was not developed properly yet, and also this was even more fatal as Charlotte was the growth of a 19 week old baby. The reason for the early delivery was placental abruption.

I could not understand why this was not picked up at Debbie’s 12 week scan, but I suppose that is another story. Anyway we both took it day by day with Charlotte has we did not know what to expect the next day, you didn’t even know if she would make it a week, but a week became two weeks then they told us that Charlotte had to go to Southampton to have a operation. Charlotte was so tiny and she was going to have two clips on her heart because she had a heart murmur, what is also called a duct , this was very scary as you didn’t even know if she would get through the operation but we got to Southampton and then they told us that the operation could go either way it was 50 /50 so we was horrified to hear that, so we decided to go for a walk while the operation was taking place, I was so scared as our little Charlotte could go and I we was horrified but when we returned the doctor came in with good news the operation was a success I just started to cry as I was so happy. Anyway when she came back to Portsmouth hospital we just took it day by day again doing our containment holding and just praying please God let her live. Three months went past and then it came to the time where we could hold Charlotte. It was so nice to actually hold her for the first time we felt so happy.

In Charlottes first three months she had infections and she could have died at any time as she was so fragile, but she got over those I think she even got to the stage in the first three months to be ventilated but Charlotte is a fighter and she got over all that, so at that time Charlotte was three months and she could come out of her incubator she was on the cpap at the stage and this went on for a while then she was transferred next door what was special care what is the next stage from intensive care so Charlotte was in a step in the right direction she was even feeding from a bottle then as well what I believe was in January 2004, and then she was transferred to a cot, Charlotte was diagnosed as her sight and hearing was ok and her brain was ok as well at that stage, it was just her lungs, kidneys and heart we had to worry about. Anyway Charlotte seemed to be making progress, and she was growing, then one day she had a set back. This is the one before July, but she recovered really well. I was there at that time– it was very scary but, our Charlotte is a fighter, and after that she made tremendous progress she was even on the nasal prongs. It was now at the stage where we was looking forward to her coming home, she got to the stage in June 2004 where she was in 0.4 on the nasal prongs. We were told at that time she would be home soon if she carries on improving, then the hospital moved her from the baby unit to the children’s ward, and that is when all this big set back happened.

I noticed over days her oxygen crept up, and up, and then I was told one day that she had a infection what was a blood infection, and then they had to reventilate Charlotte. Up to the stage where she was transferred she was ready to come home and she was in a lot less oxygen what she is in now, we have been told by the hospital if Charlotte gets to 30% oxygen she can come home, but she was in less oxygen than 30% when she was transferred to the children’s ward so why didn’t they let her go home then, as she would not have caught the blood infection what caused her set back?

Anyway I get a call saying please get to the hospital as soon as possible as Charlotte has to go on a ventilator due to a lung collapse. Then she had to be transferred to Southampton yet again, Charlotte was there for around five days and we was told that the infection had got into the brain what had caused her brain activity to be slower than when she was born, then when we got back to Portsmouth with her we was told they would not reventilate her again as it wouldn’t be in her best interests. We was told by the doctors that she was basically brain dead, in pain and had no quality of life– could not see, hear, and goes on and on, so we decided to take it to the high court.

Since September we have noticed Charlotte getting better and now she reaches out for things, she smiles she knows who her parents are her oxygen as come down and there great signs that she can see, hear and does have a quality of life. That is why we will battle on, as we believe the hospital maybe have given up on her but we have not. That is our story up to now.