Donna's Story

It was 20th October 2000, and I awoke to a ravishing hunger.  I got up to get myself breakfast, and as I bent over to get the milk, things took a turn for the worse.  I doubled over with pain in my abdomen.  I managed to struggle to the bathroom, but by then the pain was so intense that I was crawling, unable to stand upright.  I was clammy and sweating and felt like I was on fire.  I managed to run a cold bath thinking that it might help cool me down a little.  Well, getting into the bath was one thing, but getting out-WOW-that was another!  I managed to struggle and fall out of the bath, and by then I realized that there was something seriously wrong.  Laying on the bathroom floor trying to cool myself on the floor tiles, I remember slipping in and out of consciousness.

I knew I had to move and call someone for help.  I managed to crawl to the telephone.  I now realize that I had been on my own in that condition for more than 3 hours.  I finally phoned my doctor, who came to the house straight away as I was barely conscious on the telephone.  He took one look at me and I was rushed to hospital.  Once at the hospital (with 8 doctors and 4 nurses surrounding me), the head doctor told me the news that I was pregnant with an ectopic baby.  After 10 years of longing for a child, the news was devastating.

I then had to sign a consent form for an emergency operation.  It took the doctors 5 1/2 hours to stabilize me for the operation, as by then I had lost 6 pints of blood.  It certainly was life threatening.  I had no blood pressure and no pulse.  The only way that the doctors could get blood and fluids into me were through my jugular vein.  The morphine that had been put into me had no effect on the pain because it was not circulating around my body so there was no pain relief for me.  I was rushed into theatre as soon as I was stable and had enough blood inside.

Once in the operating theatre, the surgeon said that they opened me up to find I had ruptured my tube, part of my womb, and an artery.  I had unknowingly been 14 1/2 weeks pregnant.  I'd been to the doctor the week before, feeling a little strange, but had just put it down to being run down as I'd had tests that had proved I was highly unlikely to ever become pregnant naturally.  Therefore it hadn't dawned on me that I was pregnant.  I'd had normal periods all the way through. After I awoke from the operation, I was devastated. I'd had my right tube taken away, an artery repaired, and my womb repaired as much as possible (as the surgeon hadn't wanted to give me a hysterectomy as I was only 26 years old).  Most of all, I was devastated that I'd lost the baby I had so longed for.

I was in the hospital for 8 days and had to stay off of work for 3 months.  It's been a year and 6 months, and I am coming to terms with the fact that the likelihood of me ever becoming pregnant again are nil and it makes me very sad.  I will never forget my little angel and I am writing this to tell other women that I hope they will not be frightened to try again for another baby after an ectopic if they can, because if I could I would.  Even though I went through all of this, I would just like to think that my baby found a place with all the other angels.  I deeply sympathize with all who have sadly lost their babies.  I know I will never forget mine, and not a day goes by without me thinking of my baby.