Posted on 03/01/2018 1:41:26 PM PST by nickcarraway
Rhiannon Oldham thought she'd just 'put on some Christmas weight'
A newly-engaged woman who thought she’d just put on some weight over Christmas had the shock of her life when she gave birth to a healthy baby boy.
Rhiannon Oldham dialled 999 with severe stomach pain and within minutes had given birth to her son at her home in Pontnewynydd, near Pontypool.
Her partner Gareth Williams was on hand to deliver baby Phillip Alan, who is the couple’s first child and weighed 4lb 13oz.
After a brief spell in hospital the couple – who got engaged on Valentine’s Day, three days before Phillip’s arrival – are back at home and revelling in their new bundle of joy who is now 12 days old.
Newborn baby Phillip Alan Williams came as quite a surprise to his parents On Wednesday they were reunited with the ambulance crew and call handler who helped to bring baby Phillip into the world.
Gareth, 34, said: “On the Friday, Rhiannon had been complaining of stomach pain but we dismissed it and just kept an eye on it.
“By the early hours of Saturday morning she was in agony and I had to carry her from the bathroom to the bedroom and that’s when I could see that something strange was happening.
“I called 999 and I told them there was something seriously wrong with my girlfriend and within minutes Rhiannon had actually given birth.
“It was a huge shock because we had absolutely no idea that she was pregnant but we’re over the moon.”
Rhiannon and Gareth with newborn baby Phillip Rhiannon, 30, a call centre worker in Cwmbran, said: “Just before Christmas I had what I thought was heartburn but I just took a Rennie and got on with it.
“I’d put on weight over Christmas too but I just put it down to overindulging. I now know that the 4lb I’d put on was actually baby Phillip.
“The last couple of weeks have been a blur. One minute we were planning for a wedding – now we’re planning for a nursery.”
It was Welsh Ambulance Service call handler Chelsie Holbrook who took the couple’s 999 call and quickly identified that Rhiannon’s stomach pain was actually the advanced stages of labour.
Chelsie, who is based at the trust’s clinical contact centre in Cwmbran, said: “The alarm bells started to ring for me when Gareth said that Rhiannon had a large lump and before we knew it she had actually given birth.
“The adrenaline was well and truly pumping at that point. I’ve delivered five babies in my time as a call handler and this one’s definitely up there in terms of the most dramatic.”
Paramedic Paul Ockenden and student paramedic Sian Todd were first to arrive at the couple’s home.
Paul said: “The initial call we had was to a female with abdo pain and the next message we had was that a midwife was en route, which we thought was unusual.
“When we got to the property Gareth led us to the bedroom and there was Rhiannon on the bed cradling their newborn baby.
“It’s fair to say they were a little shellshocked but we set about making the necessary checks and then Gareth cut the cord.”
Sian, a second-year paramedic science student at Swansea University, added: “When we first got the call we thought that perhaps the patient had appendicitis.
“It was only when we got to the address and Gareth opened the door looking very pale did it become clear that Rhiannon had actually given birth.
“Phillip is the third baby I’ve helped to deliver while I’ve been training as a paramedic.
“There’s a tradition in paramedicine that if you deliver a baby you have to try and persuade the parents to name the child after you.
“I suggested to Rhiannon and Gareth that they call the baby Todd, after my surname, and they very politely said they would consider it – but they were having none of it really.”
Paul and Sian were backed up by paramedic Kate Jones and emergency medical technician Elaine Thatcher.
Kate said: “We did all of the post-birth checks to make sure mum and baby were okay and they were absolutely fine – if not a little surprised.”
While her colleagues were looking after Rhiannon Elaine walked to a nearby Premier store to ask whether they would be prepared to donate some essential supplies.
“Because they weren’t expecting baby Rhiannon and Gareth had literally nothing,” she said.
“I explained the situation to the shop assistant Ian and asked how charitable he was feeling and he very kindly let me take some nappies and wet wipes.
“Later Paul and I went to Tesco where they also gave us babygrows, hats and socks. The community has been so generous.”
Rhiannon and Gareth, who have been together for nine years, have thanked the ambulance service for coming to their aid.
Rhiannon said: “The ambulance service were absolutely marvellous, we can’t thank them enough.”
Gareth, who works at a Brynmawr garage as an MOT examiner, added: “The call handler in particular kept me calm and gave me really clear instructions about what I had to do, despite my sheer panic.
“It’s been a whirlwind couple of weeks to say the least but we’re delighted.”
I was almost 6 months along with my second and honestly had no idea I was pregnant.
Happened to me. I had no idea. The thought never even crossed my mind. Almost fainted when the doctor called.
How can you not feel a baby moving? Yes, you can get some gas-like twinges but mine were dribbling basketballs and working out on a speed bag in there.
The first I felt at 16 weeks; the last at 13 weeks.
Six months, yes. But after that it’s pretty hard, even though it does happen.
This girl that I mentioned is a big girl, and at the time was a little overweight. Now, two children later she’s lost a lot of that ‘baby fat’.
She apparently had no movement or shifting to suspect anything. Her husband was shocked! They didn’t plan to have children for a couple of more years..................
She probably got wider instead of sticking out. Maybe just looked thick waisted.
No prep. That's quite a shock to the system.
Good for them.
I dig Welsh chicks.
I’m glad your friend has had a successful life!
“I’m sorry, but it is not possible to not know you are pregnant”.
I have to agree with you on that one.
Beyond that, there are many other signs that a woman has, or does not have, that indicate to her that she's pregnant.
I've been pregnant three times and you cannot not know unless you are in absolute denial.
What a wonderful surprise she got. :D
And she saved months and months or researching and discussing baby names.
How did that get in there????
I have been pregnant more times than most people and find this really hard to believe. There has to be a lot of denial going on with all the symptoms and movement that goes on in there.
Thank you for your service to our country.
My thought exactly.
“”Dad looks a bit like a cadaver””
Well, I wasn’t going to be the one to say it but I probably wouldn’t have that nice....
I’d say they were “engaged” a little further back than 3 days before giving birth.
Engaged in what?
There's an entire television series with that title:
"I Didn't Know I Was Pregnant."
Five seasons. 60 episodes. Dozens of instances.
It is actually not all that uncommon.
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