A mum-of-two from South London has published a book about premature birth, neonatal care, and their impact on families, following her own experience of giving birth 15 weeks early.
Thirty-nine-year-old Amy Brett’s ‘heart wrenching’ memoir Twenty-four Plus Six, is a candid account of what life was like when baby Anela was unexpectantly born in June 2019, during a family holiday.
Ronald McDonald House Charities UK and five other neonatal organisations will receive an equally split donation of 5% of Amy’s author royalties on all sales of Twenty-four Plus Six during the first six months post-publication. Amy, from Beckenham, has chosen to support Ronald McDonald House Charities UK since the Charity, which provides free ‘home away from home’ accommodation for families with children in hospital, supported her family in three of its 14 Houses.
Amy, who lives with her husband Alex, 39, and daughters Alina, eight, and Anela, four, said: “Before I had Anela, I knew nothing about prematurity and had no idea that babies born so early could survive. When I was about to have Anela, I asked the doctor what her chances of survival would be, and he said around 50 percent.”
Anela was born at Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton, weighing just 725g. Amy and her family had been enjoying a family holiday in Bournemouth when Amy started to experience ‘slightly odd symptoms’ and went to get checked out at the local maternity unit. From there, she was sent to the General hospital and later blue lighted to Brighton, where Anela arrived the following day.
Amy said: “Anela had sepsis and that was what had sparked my pre-term labour. The cause was an infection I’d contracted, which had spread to the placenta and transferred to Anela in the womb. She was in a very critical state, and I was very poorly too; we both had to have intravenous antibiotics. Anela was taken straight to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and I was discharged after five days.”
Amy and Alex live an hour and 45 minutes’ drive from Brighton, so they were ‘hugely relieved and grateful’ to be offered a room at Ronald McDonald House Brighton, allowing them to be just moments away from their baby girl.
Amy said: “Our first impressions of the House were of a haven, a place of safety and calm away from the incessant beeping of the hospital ward. It smelt homely, rather than sterile and clinical. It was a real ‘home away from home’.”
The family spent six weeks in Brighton before Anela was transferred to a specialist London hospital for heart surgery. Once again, they were given a room in the nearby Ronald McDonald House Evelina London. After a week, Anela was transferred to another major London hospital and the Bretts checked into Ronald McDonald House Camberwell, again allowing them to be by her side in a matter of minutes.
Amy said: “We stayed at the Camberwell House for three months. Anela crashed on arrival and was in an induced coma for much of her time there. She developed candida sepsis, had blood clots in her legs, caused by the cannulas, as well as extravasations, which is the leakage of fluids from a vein into the surrounding tissue. She still has the scars to show for it.”
Exactly 150 days after her unexpected entrance into the world, on 21 November 2019, Amy and Alex were finally able to take Anela home.
Not long after their return home, Covid-19 hit and the family were forced to ‘shield’, to keep Anela safe. It was during this time that Amy helped her oldest daughter Alina to write a book, called ‘My Very Little Sister and the Very Big Story’. Illustrated by Alina, it provides a ‘heart-breaking and heart-warming window into the sibling perspective’, detailing how she came to terms with the effects of having a little sister on a neonatal unit.
Now Amy is following in Alina’s footsteps, having written her own memoir about the ‘terrifying journey’ she went on after giving birth 15 weeks early.
Amy said: “It’s the story of my inner world, the darkest parts of my mind and the thoughts that no one wants to voice. It’s a real no-holds-barred account of the psychological and emotional impact of premature birth, particularly on a mother’s mental health. My aim with it was to break taboos, voice pernicious thoughts and explore the many heart-wrenching dilemmas we faced.”
Twenty-four Plus Six is available to order now – www.brettbooks.co.uk/twenty-four-plus-six – both in paperback and Kindle format. On Saturday 11 November, Amy will host a Literary Evening & Book Launch at The Green Bird Cafe, St John’s Church, Beckenham, to celebrate her new publication.
Ronald McDonald House Charities UK is an independent Charity, which operates 14 Houses across England, Wales, and Scotland, providing free ‘home away from home’ accommodation. The Houses keep families together, close to their children in hospital. They provide a place to sleep, cook and retain some sense of normal life; a lifeline for families at a very stressful time, especially when they are far from home. A Ronald McDonald House saves each family an average of £1,240 in out-of-pocket accommodation expenses.
Abigail Sainty, Community Fundraiser for Ronald McDonald House Charities UK, said: “We were privileged to be able to support Amy and her family during their time of need. It’s wonderful to learn that Anela is now thriving, despite the incredibly tough start she had. We’re delighted Amy has chosen to support our Charity through sales of the book and thank her for her ongoing support, as a regular giver to Ronald McDonald House Charities UK.
“We wish Amy all the very best for her book launch. Her revealing memoir will no doubt help to bring comfort to many other families going through the trauma of having a young child in hospital.”
Ronald McDonald House Camberwell, which opened in April 2000, provides free accommodation to the families of children being treated at King’s College Hospital London. The newly refurbished House is equipped with 24 ensuite bedrooms, communal lounges and kitchens areas and a children’s play area. 230 families stayed at the House in 2022.
To sign up to Amy’s book launch event, please visit: www.stjohnsbeckenham.churchsuite.com/events/xlku4783
To purchase your copy of Twenty-four Plus Six, please visit:
www.brettbooks.co.uk/twenty-four-plus-six
