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Miracle baby Róisín is one
03.05.11
by Caoimhinn Barr, Inishowen Independent
A MIRACLE baby born last May is looking forward to
her first birthday party this Thursday.
Smiling Róisín McDermott, from Inch Island, weighed
just 1lb, 15 ounces when she arrived, fifteen weeks
early in Letterkenny Hospital, last summer.
Mother Tina feared she would not survive the night
after baby Róisín was baptised immediately before
being removed by special ambulance to a Dublin
hospital.
“She was taken away straight away and that night I
didn’t think she would make it. It was all tears.
Watching her being taken away was the hardest thing
but we had to be strong,” she said.
Parents Tina and Declan then faced a gruelling
journey to Dublin for the next eight weeks as baby
Róisín fought for her life in an intensive care
unit. |
“I had a caesarean
section so I was unable to drive for six weeks and
Declan had to go to work so we were only able to get
down to see Róisín about three times a week. It was
so hard. There were good days and bad days. It was
touch and go for along time,” Tina said.
“I was able to hold Róisín skin-to-skin and that
would bring her on a bit. She was kept in an
incubator and it was really tough. I remember
walking down the stairs of the hospital in tears
because I had to leave her and go home.”
After two months in Dublin, things took a turn for
the better for the McDermott family when Róisín was
transferred back to Letterkenny Hospital.
“She was beginning to get stronger by that stage. |
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Bubbly Róisín McDermott who weighed
less than a bag of sugar when she was born last May. |
After another five
weeks in hospital we eventually got her home. That
was still two weeks before my due date. It was the
best day ever to get her home,” Tina said.
When Róisín finally made it home to Inch last August
she weighed almost 6lbs. Almost one year on she is
happy and healthy.
“She is all smiles. Róisín is a really lively baby
and she gets on great with her sister Erin. She
isn’t walking yet but she is starting to say a few
words like ‘dada’. I can’t believe that she will
soon be one year old!” Tina said with a smile.
“We had to be careful with her all winter because
she was prone to infection but thankfully she seems
to be perfect now,” she added.
Tina thanked the hospital staff who cared for Róisín
and all those who offered prayers for her.
“The support we had was absolutely amazing. Everyone
was very good to us,” she said. Róisín will have a
birthday party at home in Inch on Thursday. |
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