Aycliffe Mother Shows Great Courage
Single mother Rachel Faith Hetherington is holding a charity event on the 5th of June at the Iron Horse Pub who are sponsoring the event in aid of the Hospital which did so much for Rachel’s new born baby who has been given little time to live.
Briannah was born on the 25th of March following many difficulties all through her mother Rachel’s pregnancy. She was born by emergency section eight weeks early when her heart rate dropped. She was in the Special Care Baby Unit at Darlington Hospital for three weeks before being allowed home, a perfect, beautiful girl.
32 hours later, however, she stopped breathing and was ‘blue lighted’ back to Darlington Hospital and placed on Continuous Airway equipment. Briannah worsened over the next two hours and was then ventilated and transferred to James Cook Paediatric Intensive Care Unit.
At that point no one had a clue what had gone wrong. At James Cook Hospital Briannah had to be resuscitated three times and her brain was starved of oxygen, but the hospital staff saved the baby girl.
Briannah had Group B Strep, secondary to meningitis and had 84% brain damage and epilepsy. Rachel was told many times her beautiful little girl wouldn’t make it through the night. Intervention was too late and the ventilator would be turned off as she could not breathe on her own!
“They turned the machine off and amazingly my little Briannah begun to breath on her own! Now four weeks later she is alive, but disabled with Cerebral Palsy, brain damage heart failure and Epilepsy. She has to be fed through a Nasogastric tube and I have been told she could only have days or weeks left to live.” said Rachel
Briannah is in a coma and it was suggested she be admitted to a hospice, but Rachel wanted her baby at home close by her and 3 year old brother Laytonlewis who loves his little sister and is constantly by her side stroking her tiny face.
“It would be lovely if we could give a little something back to the hospital for all they have done for my little girl! I know we can’t save Briannah, but we could help save another child’s life!
It would mean the world to us if Newton News could publish this story so people know about Briannah’s fight and the money raising event at the Iron Horse” said Rachel.
The event will include live entertainment, dancing, raffle, auction and a buffet. Donations of cash and raffle prizes would be gratefully received by ringing Rachel on 07518 882149 where you can also order your tickets price £5 each.
Newton News, like readers of this story, will be proud of Rachel who has shown immense bravery now and throughout her ordeal.
Her concern for others, at this time of tragedy in her own life, shows great character and her effort to raise cash for James Cook Hospital deserves support.
