Amy, from Barnsley in the UK, is blissfully happy after being able to take her premature baby home after the tragic death of its twin.

Elsie was born at 23 weeks and weighed just 1lb 4oz. Sadly, her twin, Dotty, died in the womb after suffering from transfusion syndrome, when only one baby gets all the nutrients it needs.

Amy, their mother, was only allowed to hold Elsie for 30 seconds after her birth before she was rushed to an incubator, last December.

“Losing Dotty was really difficult”, Amy recalls. “Because it was before 24 weeks, I was never able to register her as a stillborn… [and] she was classed as a miscarriage… [which] meant I wasn’t able to put on Elsie’s birth certificate that she was a twin.”

Thankfully, Amy was eventually able to hold Elsie and take her home. Doctors asked her to hold Elsie skin-to-skin for up to four hours every day to help her pull through the difficult recovery process.

“The first time I held Elsie properly was amazing”, Amy says. “I’ve never known anything like it. There’s no other feeling in the world that compares… It’s so surreal to hold your baby and think about how you could have lost her. Having her home after all that uncertainty was just bliss.”

SPUC comment

A SPUC spokesperson said: “Baby Elsie is a living testament to the joy a new life brings. We should never lose sight of the sheer miracle of life.

“The joy, and the heartbreak, that comes through life and death, which Amy experienced in equal measure, shows that every life matters and must be protected.

“SPUC wishes Amy, Elsie and their family all the best for the future.”

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