Yorkshire woman who lost nine stone to get pregnant gave birth to 1lbs 2oz baby 16 weeks early

Della Shiel, 32, had always dreamed of being a mum but decided to lose weight after struggling to conceive for a year. She had a gastric bypass to lose nine stone and was delighted to fall pregnant with her partner Joe Morris, 31, a steel worker, in October 2022.

Della struggled with hyperemesis - severe morning sickness - throughout her pregnancy and went to Rotherham General Hospital after a "gush" of blood in March 2023.

Doctors told her she was 5cm dilated and in labour and two days later she had an emergency delivery when she suffered an umbilical cord prolapse - when the cord slips down in front of the baby.

Her son, Henry Morris, was born March 14, at 8.55am weighing a tiny 1lbs 2oz at Bradford Royal Infirmary. He spent 100 days in hospital battling sepsis, acute kidney injury, jaundice and underwent nine blood transfusions before Henry came home on June 22, 2023 - 12 days before his due date.

Now four months old, Henry is a healthy 9lbs 6oz and settling in at home.

Della, a homeless officer, from Rotherham, said: "I lost a lot of weight to have a baby. When I saw Henry for the first time it was just surreal. His skin was very delicate. I felt I was watching someone else's life. It was hard to recognise him as my baby at first. I felt so sorry for him. I feel really lucky to have him home. It's been lovely."

Della was so determined to have a baby she dropped nine stone in the hope it would help her to conceive. To her delight she found out she was pregnant in October 2022 but struggled with hyperemesis early on in the pregnancy.

Despite feeling ill herself, she was consistently told the baby was fine.

Della said: "On March 12, 2023, I was sat on the sofa, and I felt a gush. I looked and it was blood. I wasn't worried - I had a little bleeding early on."

Della went to Rotherham General Hospital to get examined and to her shock was told she was in labour.

She said: "I saw the nurse's face - she went to get someone more senior. They came back and told me I was 5cm dilated. It was too late to have a cervical stitch."

The doctors aimed to keep the baby in for as long as they could, but Della's waters broke, and they decided to transfer her to Bradford Royal Infirmary- where they were better equipped to look after premature babies.

Della managed to hold on until March 14, 2023, when she suffered a cord prolapse - meaning the umbilical cord had slipped in front of the baby.

Della said: "The room filled with people. I quickly caught a glimpse. They had four attempts to intubate him then took him to neonatal."

Della was able to meet Henry properly for the first time a few hours later.

She said: "I brought him into this world. I knew everything he had to go through. I felt a bit guilty watching him covered in wires. The first few weeks were the scariest. Seeing something so small fighting - but knowing he should be tucked up in the womb was so hard."

Henry stayed on a ventilator for seven days before being moved onto CPAP - to help with breathing. At two weeks old he battled sepsis and acute kidney injury.

When Henry was strong enough, he was transferred back to Rotherham Hospital on May 7, 2023, before having a short stint at Sheffield Teaching Hospital, on May 23.

He then came back to Rotherham General Hospital on June 15 before he was finally able to come home on June 22.

Della said: "The first few weeks were filled with anxiety. We were used to Henry being monitored."

Since coming home Henry has had laser eye surgery for his retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) - an eye disease often common in premature babies. He is monitored for his heart condition - pulmonary stenosis - a heart valve disease.

Della said: "It's been lovely having him home. He presents as a typical newborn - sleeping, eating and filling his nappy."