A couple who suffered 13 miscarriages have welcomed their 'miracle' baby into the world - and raised over £1,000 for the charity that helped them.
Laura Worsley and her husband Dave had been trying for a family since 2008, but two medical conditions caused Laura to repeatedly miscarry.
In addition to 11 miscarriages before the 12-week stage, two of Laura's pregnancies ended at 17 weeks and 20 weeks and she lost her baby boys Leo and Graceson.
Advert
Laura and Dave kept trying, and, aided by the Biomedical Research Unit at the University Hospitals Coventry & Warwickshire Charity (UHCW) and Professor Siobhan Quenby, Laura took part in world-leading miscarriage research and fell pregnant for a fourteenth time.
Despite the good news, Laura and Dave thought history would repeat itself, especially when Laura's waters started to reduce at 14 weeks pregnant. Thankfully, everything was OK and Laura was put under the care of an expert in high risk pregnancies, Mrs Mukherjee.
At just 30 weeks into the pregnancy, Laura's waters broke and their baby Ivy arrived. She weighed just 670g (1.7lbs) around the same size of a Christmas pudding, when she was born nearly two and a half months premature. Ivy spent 11 weeks being cared for by the neonatal team at UHCW, and nearly nine months later, is doing fantastically.
Advert
"I cannot thank the research and the maternity teams at University Hospital enough - they have helped me to have the baby I always dreamt of," said Laura. "It feels like all of my Christmases have come at once."
Laura and her sisters have been busy fundraising to be able to give something back to UHCW.
Money was raised at Ivy's baby shower, which took place after she was born, so that Laura and Dave were able to give the charity a £1,120 cheque which will go towards continuing the pioneering biomedical research that helped Laura conceive and deliver Ivy.
Advert
"It's so important to be able to make a difference for anyone else going through what I went through," says Laura. "Through my story I want to give others the hope and strength to carry on even when things seem impossible."
Laura continues to fundraise for the Biomedical Research Unit at University Hospital Coventry & Warwickshire to help fund vital research to help those that have experienced baby loss. You can donate online at https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/miracle-baby-ivy
Featured Image Credit: Victoria Jane Photography