HEARTBREAKING REAL LIFE
Dion Stewart, 23, from Cullybackey, Northern Ireland, will never forget her bubbly little girl…
Heading to my 16-week ultrasound scan, Iwas so excited to see my baby on the screen.
Finding out that me and my partner Julian, 32, were expecting a baby in July 2022, Iwas so excited to see my firstborn.
I’d experienced a little bleeding just before my 12-week scan, so the doctors booked me in for a 16-week scan to check on my baby’s health.
Only, with Julian by my side, we were in for a nasty shock.
‘I’m afraid your baby has gastroschisis,’ my consultant said. What the hell is that? I thought. ‘I’ve never heard of that before,’
Julian said.
But there was only one big question on our minds.
‘Will they die?’ I panicked. The hole in my baby’s stomach hadn’t closed, so the intestines were growing outside of their body.
‘Your baby will likely be born with their organs exposed,’ the consultant explained. ‘They’ll have reconstructive surgery after birth.’ The surgery sounded terrifying. What will they look like?
But the consultant wasn’t worried –one in 2,000 babies had gastroschisis and recovered every year.
So, we were reassured that our baby would be safe –I even had check-up scans every few weeks.
With everything progressing smoothly, I finally allowed myself to feel excited –especially as at our 20-week scan, we found out we were expecting a baby girl.
Being close to my mum Helen, 44, my sister Erin, 18, and Julian’s mum Clair, 53, it was so perfect.
‘I’m going to be a big sister,’ Julian’s daughter Cassie, six, exclaimed when we told her.
Our baby would even be a little cousin to my nephew Carter, one, who lived with us.
And Iwas going all out for my firstborn girl, too, buying her a pink Moses basket and so many pink dresses.
‘Do we need any more pink?’ Julian laughed.
My boss even gifted me a pink toy bunny with her name embroidered on it –Rue.
While setting up a nursery for her in our bedroom, Rue was always kicking inside me.
But when she stopped kicking in January 2023 at 31 weeks, I just knew something was wrong.
‘You need to go to the hospital,’ Julian said.
After undergoing scans at Antrim Area Hospital, Rue’s heartrate was fluctuating dramatically –it was worrying. So the nurses decided I’d need an emergency C-section.
Being transferred via ambulance to Belfast Royal Children’s Hospital, Iwas petrified –I had no idea what to expect for the birth.
Luckily, Julian held my hand through it all.
‘Everything is going to be OK,’ he said. ‘She’ll be grand.’ Rue’s birth was a
