Laura Leece (36) became ill with Covid-19 during the 2021 pandemic. Her condition worsened to such an extent that that at 31 weeks, well before her expected due date of October 15, she was put to sleep for an emergency caesarean section, writes .
Laura, from Wigan, Manchester, was told before she was put into a coma she nodded her consent to the birth, but she doesn’t remember it. Her next memory was of waking up seven weeks later, on September 30, and the sight of her daughter awaited her, which she didn’t even know was born.
Her daughter was born prematurely at Royal Bolton Hospital, spent five weeks in the neonatal unit before returning home with her father John and brother William. John he didn’t want to name their daughter without Laura present and referred to her only as a girl until they were able to choose together and decided on the name Hope, which means hope.
“It’s all very hazy now. I don’t really remember how I came out of the coma. I remember Hope being laid down next to me and I turned my head to look at her but I couldn’t speak at that point,” she said Laura. “In the beginning I took so many medicines and who knows what else, it’s all a blur. I remember John bringing William to see me. It was his third birthday in October and I hadn’t seen him since July, so I was very moved,” she added.
After the tracheostomy and feeding tubes were inserted, Laura was unable to speak at all for two weeks and has not been able to speak since then she had to relearn how to perform the most basic daily activities. When she returned home just weeks before Christmas, she was still unable to climb the stairs. However, through physical therapy and determination, Laura has made incredible progress. A few months later, she was climbing the stairs and helping with bathing.
Missing the first milestones with Hope, who is now three, was one of the reasons Laura wanted to do it again and Laura is pregnant again. The boy should be born in March. “We are all very much looking forward to it. I missed so much with Hope. Her first bottle, her first bath, I missed it all and it still touches me when I think about it.” said mom. “I’m even looking forward to the night feeding, although I probably won’t say it then. You’ll never get those first bits back,” she added.
“It worries me but I try to stay positive and look to the future and think that I’m still herehe still has me and it could have been a lot worse,” said Laura. “It’s something I want for all of us, but I needed to do it for myself as well. I didn’t fully experience it last time, and although I’m nervous, I’m mostly looking forward to it,” she added. After initial treatment at Royal Bolton Hospital, Laura was referred to Wythenshawe Hospital, where she spent 35 days in a coma on an ECMO machine – the highest level of life support.
Now Laura is back at work as a teaching assistant at a primary school in Tyldesley, but a bit struggling to breathe. As a result of long-term immobility, it also partially remained numb left leg and back of foot. Even though she’s currently unable to exercise, that hasn’t stopped her from returning to the Zumba classes she loves, and she credits them with helping her get back in shape.
