Susannah, mum to Reuben, says,
“My eldest daughter was born in 2018. I had never heard of GBS. Whilst on maternity leave, I watched This Morning and saw Iwan Thomas interviewed about his baby and GBS. I was shocked and saddened and decided to pay for a private test for future pregnancies.
My daughter was premature, so I saw many consultants when pregnant with my son. I asked them about getting tested, where and when, and was happy to pay. But I was repeatedly told not to worry about it, it wasn’t needed, so I left it.
Upon admission for a bleed at 32 weeks, I was swabbed and, days later, was told I was indeed a carrier. I was extremely anxious but provided with information on antibiotics in labour and told not to worry as very few babies get sick.
At 33 weeks I was admitted, and then at 34 weeks had an emergency c-section – totally forgot about GBS and worried about prematurity, weight gain, and feeding tubes. I had never heard of late-onset GBS infection.
At eight weeks old, Reuben was home and doing well. We were starting to go out and about and enjoy him after the stress of his arrival. On the Tuesday, he was more upset than usual and had been having some strange nappies. This continued on the Wednesday, when I contacted the health visitor, who advised a GP appointment that day.
The GP couldn’t find anything obvious; no high temperature, feeding, and weeing so hydrated. He sent us home with instructions to go to A&E if he deteriorated when the surgery was closed.
At 7pm, we had the first smile from Reuben. I fed him and put him to bed. At 10pm, I went to bed and, as usual, picked him up to offer a feed before I nodded off, but he wasn’t interested. I put him down, expecting him to wake up hungry before too long. I woke at 1am and thought it was odd he hadn’t cried for a feed. As I came around, I became aware that he was making a strange groaning noise. I picked him up, and he was on fire. Something clicked inside me, a mother’s instinct, I think. I raced out of bed, pulled some clothes on, grabbed a bag, picked him up, and ran out the door, stopping for 10 seconds to tell my husband, ‘I’m taking him in.’ He wondered what on earth was happening, but I didn’t stop to explain.
Upon arrival at A&E, which was heaving at the peak of the Strep A scare, Reuben was hot but awake, and I wondered if I had overreacted. Due to his age, we were seen quickly. The doctor checked him over, then sent a registrar in to take bloods. Before his eyes, Reuben suddenly became listless, purple, mottled, began taking breaths every 10 seconds, and his temperature rose to 40 degrees.
The next couple of hours were a blur, with big teams of doctors and nurses running many tests, getting hydration, antibiotics, breathing support and feeding tubes to stabilise him. It wasn’t until morning that I rang my husband to tell him how serious it had become and how glad I was that I had raced out the door.
Later that Thursday, the result came back from the lab – GBS. Suddenly it all came back to me – was it from me? Was it my fault? I felt awful. The following day, the lumbar puncture returned positive for group B Strep meningitis. Reuben was treated with a month of antibiotics and came home in December 2022.
I found out about Group B Strep Support while searching for answers whilst in hospital, and they have been invaluable in answering my questions and queries about how my son contracted this infection and put my mind at rest. Reuben is now nine months old and has excess fluid in the brain due to his infection, so he is under continual review, but we are so grateful to have him with us. We will do anything to assist the charity and raise awareness of this terrible infection.”