A mum has described the horror of waking up during the birth of her daughter to find doctors performing chest compressions in an attempt to revive her.
Keeley Wilson, 36, remembers hearing a long beep as the ECG (electrocardiogram) monitor she was attached to flat-lined as the surgeon tried to deliver her baby.
Her next memory is seeing the face of the anaesthetist performing chest compressions on her before her heart stopped again.
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Keeley came round a second time to hear her newborn daughter, Sophia, crying.
The new mother had suffered broken ribs during the attempt to restart her heart, so she was in agonising pain.
Later, she was told she had suffered two cardiac arrests during the birth — and she says the whole ordeal has left her with PTSD, anxiety, flashbacks and nightmares.
“I think it’s fair to say I actually died twice,” said Keeley, from the British town of Rochdale.
“My last memory was feeling so sick, then seeing the line go flat and hearing that long beep, and everyone hitting buttons.
“Then I remember the anaesthetist standing over me saying my name over and over.
“I saw her face in my sleep for about six months because I had nightmares about this.”
Sophia, now three, was born on May 18, 2021, after an uncomplicated pregnancy.
Doctors used a defibrillator to restart Keely’s heart, and gave her adrenaline to bring her back to life.
“I was in so much pain afterwards,” she said.
“I couldn’t move. I had to sleep propped up for about two months because of the pain in my chest.
“I couldn’t lift my baby and it even hurt to have her lay on my chest, and that made me so sad.”
Keeley was also worried about the potential of not bonding with her baby.
“I just wanted to cuddle her and couldn’t — that made me feel like a failure — and I worried in case we didn’t bond,” she said.
“The first time I could pick her up and hug her felt amazing.
“Thankfully we have a really strong bond: if anything I think this has made us even closer.”
After the birth, Keeley met with medics but no-one could explain why her heart had stopped beating.
“I had PTSD from this,” she said.
“I was emotionally traumatised for about six months.
“I’ve never had any other mental health problems but this gave me real anxiety and flashbacks.
“The midwives, my GP, and the anaesthetist all said they didn’t know how that could just happen to me.
“I still can’t work out how to feel about it.”