Staff member takes part in Ribbon Race to raise money for SANDS as part of Baby Loss Awareness Week

One of our staff members is taking part in a charity run with a family member who sadly lost her baby to raise money for SANDS, which supports families who have lost a baby.

Emma Trueman, a team leader at our call centre, is running the five kilometre Ribbon Run on Canvey Island sea front on Saturday 14 October with her husband’s cousin’s wife Aimee Butler, and friend Lucy Jolly, who used to also work for EPUT.

Aimee’s daughter Lillie was born in April and sadly died just before she turned five months old.

Emma, who hopes to raise at least £150, said: “It just seemed so fitting to take part in this event during Baby Loss Awareness Week, having seen first-hand how devastating the loss of a baby is.

“We are hoping to raise as much money as we can. Whether it is £5 or £500, every little helps.”

Lillie was born at 36 weeks by emergency caesarean and had hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE), which is a lack of oxygen and blood flow resulting in damage to the brain.

Aimee said: “As a second pregnancy, things were a little more complicated than expected.

“I had bleeding in the second trimester and a gestational diabetes diagnosis by the third trimester. I then experienced a placental abruption at 36 weeks.

“Lillie was delivered by emergency caesarean after 90 minutes from the emergency call and I was put under general anaesthesia and only remember waking up in the recovery room without my baby.

“The first time I saw my baby she was around 13 hours old and I was informed that she would need to be transferred to a London hospital for specialist treatment.

“Lillie was hooked up to more wires than I could even count and surrounded by several machines. Once I arrived in London with my husband we were told she had experienced a HIE event and doctors could only tell us “time will tell”.”

Lillie spent a few days in the hospital but things weren’t looking good.

Aimee added: “We were distraught. We returned to our usual hospital the following week and there she remained in the neonatal intensive care unit for a further seven weeks before being discharged home.

“Lillie had two MRI scans which confirmed significant and global damage. We had no idea what life would look like and spent five weeks at home as a family of four making memories.”

Lillie was then readmitted to hospital for a further seven weeks due to respiratory struggles. She had two electroencephalogram scans in which family were told she had damage at the stem of the brain, which meant she could struggle to swallow or breathe.

Aimee said: “I was heartbroken as they confirmed she would likely live a short life and we were just preparing for her returning home when I got the call to say she was very poorly.

“When we got to the hospital we found out she had experienced a cardiac arrest and required resuscitation. She was transferred to Great Ormond Street Hospital paediatric intensive care ward.

“She peacefully passed in our arms just two days before her five month birthday. We are absolutely heartbroken and devastated by this tragedy and as much as we are hurting we are glad she is not.

“I would like to raise as much money as possible for the SANDS charity, who help support bereaved families like ourselves when they have experienced a neonatal loss.”

If you would like to help, please donate through Emma’s fundraising page at https://fundraising.sands.org.uk/fundraisers/emmaseymour