A British woman from Manchester had the shock of her life when she woke up after being in a coma for seven weeks. The world around her had just moved on, something made all too clear by what she had discovered. Her life before the coma had been completely different from what her life would be like after.
Laurel Ward, a 33-year-old woman from Tildesley, a village in Greater Manchester in the West of England, worked as a teaching assistant at Tillsley Primary School. At the end of the school year, the woman developed a sore throat and coughed a lot, as is the norm of these types of symptoms. She immediately had herself tested for COVID-19. The rapid test that she had done gave a negative result, however, her symptoms worsened so she also took a PCR test. This test showed a positive result – Laura had contracted COVID-19.
She went into quarantine and hoped that her symptoms would disappear soon. The symptoms worsened until at a certain point Laura could hardly breathe. She decided to call 9-1-1, where she was advised to go to the hospital. She stayed there for two weeks while her symptoms kept getting worse. It was a terrible time for Laura. The last thing she remembers is being returned to the COVID-19 ward in her bed one day, then everything turned black and she fell into a coma.
Time flew by for her, but it was a very difficult period for her family. It would be a long time before she woke up again. The family found it difficult seeing their beloved Laura like this. The teaching assistant didn’t respond to stimuli and was kept on a ventilator. Especially John, Laura’s partner, was having a hard time due to measures against the spread of COVID-19. He wasn’t allowed to come near his wife. It was seven long weeks for the family, but there were more than just sadness during this period, something incredible happened. Unfortunately, although Laura was physically present, she wasn’t conscious when the miracle happened. They would have loved for her to be able to experience this. It was still weeks before she would wake up. Laura’s relatives tried to contact their loved one during her stay in the hospital. Laura’s nurses regularly put her on the phone next to her bed so John could talk to his wife via FaceTime. He didn’t know if she could hear him, but it did wonders for his peace of mind. John told her how proud he was of her and how strong she was. He also told her what had happened and how sorry he was that she had missed this. He hoped she would wake up soon to see for herself what a wonderful thing had occurred. Unfortunately, Laura wasn’t able to hear any of this, which is why she was so shocked when she woke up weeks later.
Laura had contracted COVID-19. She had not been vaccinated against the virus because she belonged to a group that had until then been advised not to get vaccinated yet. This could entail risks. Laura had no underlying health problems other than a special type of diabetes. Just before Laura started to suffer from her symptoms, the NHS (National Health Service) adjusted the vaccination advice for her risk group. Unfortunately, this came too late for Laura and she ended up in the hospital unvaccinated and in a coma. When she got there and doctors consulted her medical records, it turned out that it wasn’t just her life that was in danger. The reason that Laura had not gone vaccinated was because she belonged to a certain risk group – Laura was pregnant at the time of her COVID-19 infection. She was six months pregnant when she was hospitalized. Laura was very concerned about her baby’s health. Once Laura slipped into a coma, John became extremely concerned about his future child. Fortunately, the doctors quickly reassured him – there seemed to be nothing wrong with the little one. They kept a close eye on the baby’s health and would notify him of any changes. Still, there was one thing John needed to keep in mind – the doctors said the doctors told John that although Laura wasn’t due until October 15th, there was a chance the baby would have to be delivered earlier. A pregnant woman in a coma has much less strength in her body than other women. John prepared for the worst. After a 31-week pregnancy, with more than two months to go before the October 15th due date, doctors decided to deliver the baby through an emergency procedure. Laura had a C-section while unconscious. John paced the hospital lobby, awaiting news. He hoped everything would go well. Medical experts at the Royal Bolton Hospital did everything they could to deliver the baby without any problems. It was a challenging medical procedure as the woman was comatose. The COVID-19 measures also had to be observed as much as possible. Everything was done to make the birth a success. Laura wasn’t aware of the procedure, but for John, every minute felt like an hour. After intense surgery, one of the doctors walked into the hall of the hospital. John jumped out of his chair and ran towards the doctor. He had good news – his daughter was perfectly healthy, and Laura’s condition hadn’t worsened. John couldn’t wait to tell his wife. When Laura was back in the COVID-19 ward, John called her via FaceTime. The nurses put the phone back in its usual place. John couldn’t hold back his tears as he told the news to Laura. For the nurses, this was the first time they’d heard a man telling his wife that she had given birth. Usually, it’s the other way around. Unfortunately, Laura still hadn’t woken up, leaving her unaware that she’d become a mother to a little girl. It would be weeks before she woke up.
Once awake, her world had changed completely. Due to the COVID-19 measures and the early birth, John and Laura’s baby had to stay in the hospital with her mother for the foreseeable future. Laura couldn’t believe her eyes when she woke up after being in a coma for seven weeks at the Royal Bolton Hospital. Laura Ward finally woke up, very confused. It must certainly be a crazy experience to fall asleep and wake up seven weeks later, especially when you wake up to find something as special as what was waiting for Laura. After Laura had oriented herself in the room she woke up in, her eyes fell on something incredible – she wasn’t alone in her bed. How is this possible? For her, it felt like it was still seven weeks ago. She was surprised by something that told her very clearly she hadn’t just taken a nap – there was a baby beside her in her bed. Her baby.
Laura was greatly surprised by this miracle. That’s why it took a long time before she finally realized what had happened. By now, her nurses had realized she had woken up and began to calmly update her on their situation. Laura couldn’t believe what she heard. She had spent seven weeks in a coma during which time she’d given birth to a healthy girl. She looked around for her husband but he was nowhere to be seen. The nurses told her that because of the measures, he wasn’t allowed to come near her so he hadn’t been able to hold his daughter yet. Laura was overjoyed until she discovered something that threatened to throw a spanner in the works – much to Laura’s shock, she was unable to lift her arms. She couldn’t move her legs either. After trying to move different parts of her body, Laura found that all she could do is nod and shake her head. She couldn’t speak either. This was a terrible feeling for Laura who wanted nothing more than to hold her baby in her arms. Unfortunately, this would have to wait.
It took two weeks before Laura could utter a word. After this, she had to relearn the simplest day-to-day things. The coma had a profound effect on her. Laura did everything she could to hug her child as soon as possible. She relearned the simplest things – eating, drinking, brushing her teeth, all the things you learn as a toddler posed a huge challenge for the woman who’d just been in a coma for seven weeks. It took a lot of energy to relearn everything. Fortunately, Laura had a very strong source of motivation – she did everything she could to be able to hold her daughter in her arms as soon as possible. In her mind, she could already picture herself with her little one, but she was still a long way from being able to do this. After weeks of rehabilitation, Laura finally regained some control over her body. At the beginning of December, she was finally able to walk again and could also use her arms again. So, it was finally time to give her little girl the hug she deserved.
During the coma, John always called the girl “baby girl” because he wanted to wait until he talked to Laura before they gave her a real name. They quickly agreed on the name – a symbol of the miracle the girl had been. They chose the only name suitable – the girl was named Hope. John had always kept hope, no matter how hard it had been to stay positive. Laura’s family had panicked when she slipped into a coma, which makes sense as things seemed to be going the wrong way. John remained optimistic. He helped the rest of the family stay positive and keep hope. “She’s not giving up, and neither are we,” said John. “Let’s stay positive. We’re not going to lose her.” It was precisely this hope of John that guided the rest of the family through this difficult time.
Now that Laura can finally cuddle with her little Hope, she won’t let a moment go to waste. The two love each other very much. Hope is doing well and Laura also notices her condition improving a bit every day. She has since been transferred to another hospital for the final phase of rehabilitation. It wouldn’t be long before the two could go home to be reunited with John. Laura hopes to be home by Christmas. She can’t wait to celebrate the holidays with the family’s new addition. And in any case, the first gift has already been given to her – nothing beats her little miracle. Laura hopes to return to the primary school where she works as a teaching assistant in September. With how well her rehab has gone so far, that doesn’t seem like an impossible prospect. She hopes that her students aren’t too shocked by the fact that she was in a coma. The new mother herself was very shocked indeed. Although she had no underlying medical problems, she ended up in a coma anyway.
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