Jess's Story
Mother of two Jess opens up about her daughter Lilly's bronchiolitis diagnosis at only 6 days old.
I have a 3-year-old and a 7-month-old and while I was giving birth to my youngest daughter Lilly, my older daughter had come down with something which we thought at the time was a cold. She had passed it on to me and when I gave birth to Lilly, within the first few days, she developed a cough, was feeding less and irritable.
On day 6, I became concerned as I noticed Lilly's breathing became fast and laboured and the muscles under her ribs were sucking in with each breath. Her nostrils were also flaring.
I was going back and forth in my head and second-guessing myself, thinking what Lilly was experiencing could be normal, so I decided before calling 111, I would post a video of her breathing on a Facebook parenting group I'm in to get a second opinion. I received a lot of responses and other parents encouraged me to call 111.
I made the call to 111 and following their advice, I took Lilly to A&E and she was admitted to a children's ward. I was informed shortly afterwards that she had bronchiolitis, caused by RSV, at only 6 days old. She was monitored at the time and not given any oxygen.
“I remember feeling very scared seeing my week-old baby hooked up to monitors.”
After further monitoring, the doctors determined that Lilly was ready to be discharged and I was given advice on what to look out for should Lilly's symptoms continue or even escalate. Her breathing difficulties continued for another week before she recovered, however, she was still struggling with mucous and congestion throughout the night almost three months later.
The experience was terrifying and really made me more cautious as a parent when it comes to my child's health. For example, after going through this, I always ensure that any friends and family are well before they visit us, as I do not want to have to go through this experience again.
My advice to parents and caregivers is to limit visitors when your baby is so little and to trust your mother's instinct if you sense something is wrong.
Find more advice on how to manage RSV and its signs and symptoms on our Know the Facts page.
Continue