Walking around the hospital grounds with my 21-month-old daughter Beatrix, I hold her soft hand as she toddles along and looks up at me with her big blue eyes. Despite wires snaking out of her chest into a machine wheeling along beside her, she couldn’t possibly comprehend the gravity of her situation. Yet this hospital has been our home since May. And it will still be our home for Christmas, and beyond unless Beatrix is given the greatest gift of all – a new heart…
We have been through a lot in the last few years. In September 2018, my baby girl, Isabel, was stillborn at 26 weeks after being diagnosed with hypoplastic left heart syndrome. My husband Terry, then 41, and I were inconsolable and my daughter Eliza, eight, couldn’t understand how she’d lost her little sister before she’d even had a chance to meet her.
It was crushing - but we found solace in agreeing to give Isabel’s heart and tissue to research. Our girl was a hero.
Eighteen months later, we fell pregnant with Beatrix. When she was born in January 2021, she completed our family and took away some of the pain of losing Isabel.
Denne historien er fra November 07, 2022-utgaven av WOMAN'S OWN.
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Denne historien er fra November 07, 2022-utgaven av WOMAN'S OWN.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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MIND OF MY OWN
The Woman's Own columnist has her say on the gender gap, cats and timed hugs
Check out CHICAGO
With a spectacular skyline, sandy beaches and great food, the Windy City is calling, says Zoe West
LET'S EMBRACE OUR CHRISTMAS TAT!
Becky Dickinson explains why she'll still be rocking around her tinsel-strewn tree this year
BURIED SECRETS
We look at the shocking cases of celebrities posthumously accused of being sexual predators-and how they got away with it
FESTIVE NO-BAKES
Pop on the Christmas tunes and whip up a batch of these easy sweet treats
PROTECT YOUR SMILE
Are you doing enough to look after your teeth and gums?
'TIS THE SEASON TO SHINE!
At last, Hayley McCrossan, 39, feels fit and healthy
FOR THE LOVE OF TOM
When Deborah Mitchell, 57, lost her son, she vowed to help other families facing the same heartbreak
THE NURSE WHO LEFT MY GRANDAD FOR DEAD belict
Rachael Fealey, 31, had one question for the woman who killed her beloved Grampa - how could you?
Coleen's MONEY WORRIES
What are the reasons behind her financial and marriage fears?
