Cillian O'Gallachoir

In December 2019 I was delighted to find out that my husband and I were expecting our first baby. The pregnancy ran smoothly, albeit a bit different than what I would have expected with us being in lockdown for much of it. At a growth scan at 29 weeks, we were referred to fetal medicine due to a few issues being spotted that may have been cause for concern. After our appointment, we opted for amnio and were both absolutely devastated to find our son had Trisomy 13. We hadn’t heard of it before and getting our diagnosis, especially in lockdown, was awful. He had stopped growing so I was induced early.

Our beautiful son Cillian was born sleeping. I had heard so many awful things about this condition and was even made to feel afraid to see him by some of the medical staff but he was absolutely beautiful and the midwives ensured that my husband, my mum and I were cared for exceptionally well and we made some beautiful memories with him during our short time together. Meeting others at Soft has been a lifeline and I am honoured to be given the opportunity to help others in the same situation.