Mum on the hunt for Easter eggs - and more volunteers

Beverley McClure, who is now a volunteer with the charity, is helping promote the forthcoming Easter egg hunt on Easter Tuesday which is designed to raise funds for the Northern Ireland-wide charity.

“The Easter Egg Hunt will be a great famliy day out and we would like local families to consider taking part,” said Beverley, mum to Matthew (7) and Cameron who will turn three on April 14. “This is the first time TinyLife has organised an Easter event and the day should be great fun for both children and adults. The sponsorship is only 10 per family and the hunt will take the two-mile course around the lake in Lurgan Park - with the Easter Bunny leading the way. ”

After both her sons suffered health problems when they were born, Beverley is happy to help the charity when she can - to the extent she completed the TinyLife training programme for volunteers last September.

“TinyLife really helped me after Cameron was born seven weeks prematurely and weighing just 4lbs,” she explained. “I had been unwell and suffered from high blood pressure throughout most of my pregnancy, but in the end, due to pre eclampsia, I had to have an emergency delivery at Craigavon Area Hospital where Cameron was born.

“I was in the high dependency unit in hospital and was quite ill, while Cameron was being treated in the nearby neo-natal unit and needed a ventilator to breathe. It was a fraught time for my husband Nigel, who had to run between both wards, and it wasn’t until Cameron was five days old that I was able to give him his first cuddle.

“He was in hospital for a total of three weeks and it was very traumatic looking at such a tiny, vulnerable baby having a tube placed down his throat, as he had to be tube fed until he developed the ability to swallow from a bottle.”

Pre-eclampsia is a complication of pregnancy and occurs in one in every 14 pregnancies, and, although there are certain risk factors, the cause is largely unknown.

Symptoms include high blood pressure, linked with protein in the urine, headaches, blurred vision and abdominal pain and, as in Beverley’s case, usually the only treatment is prompt delivery of the baby. If the conditions progresses to eclampsia, which is a type of seizure, it can present a life-threatening situtation for both mother and baby.

“Fortunately, I was already being monitored in hospital and I had time to be given two steroid injections to strengthen the baby’s lungs before I was whisked off to theatre,” said Beverley. “Then, after Cameron was born, he was whisked away after I just had a quick glance. It was all very scary, but at the time and because everything happened so quickly, I don’t think I realised just how dangerous a predicament we were both in.”

Thankfully now Cameron is a lively, inquisitive nearly-three-year-old and, according to his mother, quite the chatterbox. “He attends Banbridge Pre-school Nursery and is just a typical wee boy,” she says. “He loves Thomas the Tank Engine and is a real chatterbox who could buy and sell you!”

Beverley’s eldest son, Matthew, also provided more than a few sleepless nights and worrying days for the McClures after he developed bleeding in the brain after being born a week early - a serious condition which necessitated a stay in the neo-natal intensive care unit.

“At the time, they painted quite a grim picture for us, but fortunately Matthew passed all his developmental milestones and is now an enthusiastic pupil at Ballydown Primary School,” said Beverley. “Because I had gone through the anxiety of having ill babies both times, I felt I would like to help other families going through the same worries and emotions and that is why I wanted to volunteer.

“After Cameron was born, I was worried about all sorts of things to do with his development and I contacted TinyLife for support and advice. I am lucky enough to have a strong family network of support, so I didn’t avail of the services of the family support officer, but she was there if I needed her, and that knowledge alone brought great comfort and assurance.”

Now, as a newly-trained family support officer herself, Beverley is seconded to a Banbridge family with six-month-old twins who were born prematurely - and she is loving every minute of her new post.

“I work part-time in Debenhams in Rushmere Shopping Centre as well as being a mum to two young boys, but I really wanted to give something back to TinyLife and I was determined to fit in some volunteering,” she added. “It is very rewarding work and I would encourage others to think about getting involved with the charity.

“It can bring huge piece of mind and make all the difference to mothers and fathers struggling to cope with the practical and emotional stresses of having a premature or sick baby.”

Anyone who would like more information on volunteering with TinyLife or who would like to take part in the Easter Egg Hunt should contact Andrea Milligan of Samara Prentice at TinyLife on 028 908 15050.