A baby boy who was born 12 weeks prematurely, weighing just 1lb 13oz, and had to spend the first 78 days of his life in hospital is all grown up and starting school.
Jaclyn Kerrigan’s pregnancy was all going as expected until her 20-week scan, when she and her baby’s father, Grant, found out something was wrong – their son was not growing as expected.
The Glasgow mum had to attend weekly foetal medicine appointments, where doctors monitored her unborn baby’s growth and assessed the blood flow from the placenta. The family was told that he was very small, and that every additional week of pregnancy would be important.
As an early birth became more likely, Jaclyn and Grant were given a tour of the neonatal intensive care unit, and mum Jaclyn received steroid injections to help prepare her baby’s lungs, which are often underdeveloped in prematurely born babies.
“We were told we needed to get to 28 weeks”, Jaclyn recalled. “If Coran was born before then, he would be too small to be intubated”.
Two days before mum Jaclyn’s planned Caesarean section, tests showed that the blood flow from the placenta had further reduced, and it was no longer safe for her to return home.
Baby Coran was born not long afterwards, exactly 12 weeks before his due date, weighing 1lb 13oz. He was transferred for further neonatal treatment a few days later.
He spent a tough 78 days in neonatal intensive care and a special care baby unit before he was able to go home, but when baby Coran was finally able to leave hospital, he’d almost doubled his weight and was welcomed home by his parents and big brother, Nate.
“We didn’t know what to expect with Coran’s health and had prepared ourselves for possible bumps in the road”, mum Jaclyn reflected, “but thankfully he has come through it and shown us how strong and how much of a fighter he really is”.
“These babies are superheroes”
“Before this was my experience, I knew nothing about NICU”, mum Jaclyn explained. “After having a healthy, full-term pregnancy with my first son, I never imagined this could happen to us”.
Mum Jaclyn praised the kindness and compassion of the staff who cared for baby Coran during a difficult time for the family.
“The staff treated us with kindness and compassion at the hardest times of our lives”, mum Jaclyn shared. “Being a premmie parent or a parent of an unwell child is a club that no one wants to be in”, she continued. “You can only think about today and the progress each day”.
“You can’t get tied up worrying about the future and what it will look like”, mum Jaclyn advised. “Don’t compare your story to anyone else’s and don’t blame yourself for your child being here”.
“These babies are superheroes, and they show us just how strong we can be”.
Spokesperson for Right To Life UK, Catherine Robinson, said “We are so pleased that baby Coran has gone on to start school after being born 12 weeks prematurely and spending 78 days in neonatal care. His story is a powerful reminder of the immense strength and resilience shown by so many premature babies”.
“Every premature baby deserves the specialist care, support and chance to flourish that baby Coran received. We wish him and his family every happiness for the future”.
