Mum battles coronavirus, sepsis and burst gallbladder as 3lb premature baby fights for life
A MUM has battled coronavirus, sepsis and a burst gallbladder while her premature baby kept fighting for her life.
Mhairi Mornin, 35, was rushed to the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley, Scotland, when she was 30 weeks pregnant after suffering several complications.
Her baby Demi weighed just 3lb 4oz when she was born by emergency caesarean at 1.19am on May 21.
Shortly after, Mhairi, from Renfrewshire, started showing symptoms of coronavirus.
Hours after testing positive for Covid-19, Mhairi started experiencing pain in her abdomen and doctors found out it was due to a ruptured gallbladder.
Her condition was rapidly deteriorating, so Mhairi was taken to the ICU unit at the hospital, where she was also diagnosed with sepsis.
Because Demi was born so early and Mhairi’s health continued to cause concern, doctors told the mum she could not see her new baby.
FIGHT FOR LIFE
The mum-of-four said: "I'd only seen Demi for a few seconds before she was rushed off to the special baby unit.
"I lay in bed crying, wondering if it was the first and last time I'd see her."
Mhairi's condition kept getting worse and she was worried not only for herself and her newborn, but also for other mums and babies in the unit.
A team was sent to operate, but because the woman was so ill, doctors felt they could not remove the gallbladder and had to rely on surgical drains instead.
After the emergency surgery, Mhairi kept feeling weaker and sicker - a situation made even worse by the fact she could not see any member of her family because of the lockdown.
It was then that doctors told Mhairi she had sepsis, the reports.
Fearing for her life, the loving mum called her eldest son William, 19, telling him to always remember how much she loved him and begging him to stick together with his brothers and sisters.
She said: "I was afraid if I closed my eyes I’d never wake up again.
"The only thing that kept me fighting was the thought of my family growing up without me.
"I knew I had to find the strength from somewhere to keep going for them."
LOVING MUM
As Mhairi battled both sepsis and Covid-19, her husband Stephen, 41, had to self-quarantine.
He said: "The thought of losing Mhairi was driving me out of my mind, but I couldn’t even comfort her, the kids, or touch the baby.
"There were several days when it seemed my whole world was collapsing in front of my eyes."
At the hospital, nurses regularly showed Mhairi photographs and videos of baby Demi.
The young mum slowly started recovering and was eventually discharged from hospital 10 days ago.
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She will require surgery to remove her gallbladder once she is well enough, according to the .
Baby Demi is still in the special baby unit, but there are plans to get her out of hospital in two weeks if she continues to grow well and her coronavirus tests are clear.
Mhairi can now see Demi twice a day, with the use of PPE, while her brothers and sisters can still only see her through pictures.
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