Chaddesden parents raise £2,600 for baby unit after their little 'miracle' Rosie beats odds
TWO teachers have raised more than £2,000 for a baby unit with the help of their students.
Sarah and Simon Tomlinson, of Chaddesden, both secondary school teachers, nearly lost their twin daughter Rosie after complications during birth.
But thanks to a baby cooling unit in Nottingham she survived and has grown into a healthy 15-month-old.
Mrs Tomlinson, who is a humanities teacher at Anthony Gell School in Wirksworth, was pregnant with Benjamin and Rosie and induced on December 1, 2011.
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She said: "Rosie's twin brother was born at the Royal Derby Hospital with no complications but Rosie suffered a placental abruption shortly after and was born via an emergency C section.
"When it happened they thought it was Ben's placenta that had come away but it turned out it was Rosie's. Her heart rate dropped to nothing and she had no oxygen.
"I was desperate for them to get her out. It seemed like forever until I got into surgery.
"I think it was worse for Simon because he was left in the delivery room with Ben, who was just wrapped in a towel, and he had no idea if either of us would make it."
When Rosie was delivered she was blue and not breathing, not had a heart beat for about 30 minutes and took 20 minutes to be resuscitated.
She was transferred to Nottingham City Hospital for baby cooling, where a baby is cooled down to 33.5 degrees for three days, which helps the brain to recover from trauma and prevents further damage.
Mrs Tomlinson, who also has a three-year-old son, Isaac, said she was told her daughter had an 80% chance of suffering severe brain damage.
The 34-year-old, of Gertrude Road, said: "We just didn't know what was going to happen.
"Usually with a baby you wrap them in blankets and keep them as warm as you can.
"But with Rosie she had to be cooled for days. We didn't know whether we would have a disabled child.
"When she was taken off the ventilator her lungs collapsed and she lost oxygen again."
Rosie finally recovered from her trauma and was allowed to go home the day before Christmas Eve 2011.
Mrs Tomlinson said: "When we got her home, for ages she was just really floppy and weak.
"It was hard. Because we had Benjamin we could compare the two. Ben had lots of muscle tone but Rosie didn't.
"But I realised that she would be okay when she smiled before Ben. That was the moment I thought she might actually be all right."
Simon, a drama teacher at John Port School in Etwall, and Sarah have since had help from their students, family and friends to raise £2,610 for the baby cooling unit in Nottingham.
Mr Tomlinson's students took part in a bungee jump and had a competition to see which form group could raise the most money.
Mrs Tomlinson's students held a coffee morning for staff, a sponsored roller skate and a Fifa tournament on PlayStation.
The money they raised may go towards research into baby cooling or to help the unit buy new equipment.
Mrs Tomlinson said: "I feel like it's a complete miracle that Rosie is okay. I am completely blessed that I live in the age I do that this is possible and that the NHS provide this.
"I'm so grateful to our students for helping us to raise this money. The fact groups of teenagers have taken this on board is just wonderful."
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