Latest news with #surprisebaby
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
I had no idea I was pregnant - until I gave birth on the toilet while on holiday in Canada
A British woman who had no idea she was pregnant ended up having a baby when she went to the toilet while on holiday in Canada. Helen and Michael Green, both 45, arrived in Toronto, Canada on May 21 for their 10 day road trip with their daughter, Darcy, six - unaware that Helen was nine months pregnant. When Helen, from Bristol, woke up with tummy pains in the middle of the night and went to the bathroom she suddenly felt an 'urge to push' and looked down to see a baby. Helen had experienced a cryptic pregnancy - when a person doesn't realise they are expecting until late in the pregnancy or even during labour - she even had a regular period. But the family are now delighted with their little surprise who they have named Olivia, 11 weeks old. Helen, who works in financial services, said: 'This was such a huge huge shock, and also such a lovely surprise. 'She just came along and it feels like she's always been with us. 'Everything feels complete now, she has made us all so happy. 'Even the doctors at the hospital were really surprised. 'I had no idea at all that I was pregnant, everything seemed completely normal. 'I worked, exercised, wore the same clothes and ate the same food as usual.' Michael, who works in financial services, said: 'It's so crazy and still feels surreal. 'It's been such a bonkers time. 'She's such a joy!' Helen, who also has an 18-year-old son Harry, had no symptoms during her pregnancy and had a series of miscarriages after giving birth to Darcy so thought she was perimenopausal. She said she had 'massive bumps' with her first two pregnancies and continued to go to the gym four times a week whilst unaware she was expecting. The family had just arrived on their holiday and were all tucked up in their Holiday Inn room by 11pm. Helen woke at 1.45am with tummy pains and went to the bathroom. She sat down on the loo, felt something slip into the toilet and looked down and saw a baby - which she scooped up and cuddled. Helen said: 'I had no idea what was happening, my body just took over. 'After two massive pushes there was a baby so I picked her up out of the loo and held her in my arms.' Michael woke up to hear Olivia, who was born weighing 8lbs 3oz, crying - initially thinking the sound was coming from the next door room - and was shocked when he found his wife in the bathroom with their newborn. He called 911 and an ambulance, and fire crew were sent to help - arriving within 10 minutes - and Helen and Olivia were taken to Mount Sinai hospital to be checked over. Michael said: 'I was in such a daze, we could hardly work out what was going on. 'We didn't know if the baby was well or whether it was full term. We didn't even check to see whether it was a boy or a girl - a paramedic told us. 'In the hospital they kept asking me about the pregnancy and I couldn't answer them, I just kept saying "I don't know".' The couple sent messages to friends and family saying, 'don't worry but Helen is in hospital', with a picture of Darcy holding baby Olivia - everyone was shocked and delighted. They named Olivia after one of the nurses in the hospital. Mother and baby were discharged the next day, but Olivia had no documents and couldn't leave Canada - they had to extend their stay while they waited for Olivia's birth certificate and her passport. Helen said: 'Registering her birth was a nightmare. All we had were discharge papers from hospital. 'There was confusion over whether she was a home birth because she was born in a hotel, or a hospital birth because the placenta was delivered in hospital. 'We had to get signed statements from doctors and paramedics. Helen said that 'getting your head round having a baby is hard, but it's something else when you didn't know you were pregnant' - however, they very quickly got used to having Olivia, and described the situation as joyful Olivia's unexpected arrival meant the trip cost the Greens an additional £9,000, with hospital fees and additional travel costs bumping up the price - but they are hopefully most of these costs will be covered by their travel insurance 'It was very draining and stressful.' They were finally able to fly home on June 25 and estimate the trip cost them £9,000 extra - £4,000 in hospital fees, over £2,000 on hotels, and nearly £1,000 on the hire car, flights home, baby equipment and living costs. But the family say most of their costs will hopefully be covered by their travel insurance. The family were able to take Olivia up the CN tower at just four days old, watch three baseball games and visited Niagara Falls twice. Helen said: 'Ultimately we got an extended holiday and had a really really special time together. 'It was very hard not knowing how long we would be there, and very stressful on week days chasing the birth certificate and passport, but great at the weekends when all the offices were closed and there was nothing we could do about it. 'Getting your head round having a baby is hard, but it's something else when you didn't know you were pregnant.
The Sun
7 days ago
- Health
- The Sun
I gave birth at 16 just ten hours after discovering I was pregnant – I thought labour was tummy cramps after house party
A MUM has revealed she gave birth to her baby girl just ten hours after learning she was pregnant at 16. Verity McConnell, from Aberdeen, was enjoying a regular Saturday night at a school friend's birthday party before her life quickly changed. Once home, she started to experience severe stomach cramps and, believed it was her period or a tummyache. She tried to sleep it off - but the pain kept intensifying and she was forced to wake her mum for help. She said: 'It just didn't feel right, just like something was off and then I started getting really bad stomach cramps. 'Every time I kept trying to go to sleep I couldn't, like it was so sore. 'At this point we're all probably just like 'oh no, it's nothing'.' After the pain intensified throughout the night, Verity's mum rushed her to the local maternity hospital after a call with NHS 24. Unaware of what was happening, Verity then faced the life-changing news that she was almost 38 weeks pregnant and already in labour. Still in complete shock, the teenager gave birth to a healthy 7lb 7oz baby girl the next morning at 10:30am - despite having regular periods throughout her pregnancy. With no preparation for motherhood, the hospital provided everything - from clothing to nappies - to help care for the newborn. Now a mum-of-three at 27, Verity reflected on her birth story as her daughter, Mhairi, is now almost 11. She added: 'I'm lying there. I'm 16, I'm terrified and she [the nurse] looks at me and looks at my mum and she goes, there is definitely a baby in there and you are going to have it very soon. "I had no bump, I could still fit in all my clothes. I'd been to T in The Park, I'd been on holidays, I'd been on water slides. 'I've had no scans, I've had no tests, I've had no midwife appointments, I've had no checks, nothing." She added: 'I think because everything was like such a rush and I was basically just running on pure adrenaline, I managed to give birth. 'She was 7lb 7oz so she wasn't even that small and I did all with just gas and air and pure adrenaline. 'I didn't have anything for this baby, not a single thing. 'My baby had to wear clothes that were donated to the hospital and nappies from the hospital.' Her shock birth story quickly went viral on TikTok, racking up more than 100,000 views across her videos. And it turns out she's not alone with her surprise pregnancy. Someone else wrote: "My mum had a cryptic pregnancy with me 26 years ago, didn't know until she went into labour." "I gave birth at 19 an hour and a half after finding out I was pregnant", another person chimed in. Meanwhile, a third added: "The exact same thing happened to me -your story is my story! I had a beautiful baby girl who is now 22! I was 18 years old." Verity later revealed that hospital staff inspired her to become a nurse. The determined mum returned to school to study for her highers when baby Mhairi was four-months-old. She said: "They [hospital staff] genuinely inspired me to take the path in life that I did. "They made it such a nice experience even though it was genuinely the most terrifying thing ever."
