When I found out I was pregnant with our first baby, I couldn’t have been happier. My pregnancy went smoothly, and I imagined a calm, joyful start to parenthood. First cuddles, long nights of feeding, and bringing our tiny bundle home to start life as a family of three. But when our son Freddie arrived in September 2025, our world flipped upside down within hours.
When Freddie was first born, everything seemed fine. He was perfect; a tiny 7lb miracle, but very quickly, something didn’t seem right. Every time he tried to feed, he would choke and struggle to breathe. Midwives tried suctioning large amounts of mucus, but he continued to gasp and turn blue. It became clear that something was seriously wrong.
The medical team whisked Freddie and my husband, Mylo, away for an X-ray, and I remember lying there following my c-section feeling empty and helpless, my heart pounding as I waited. When the doctor came back and explained what was happening, it was the worst moment of my life. Freddie had been born with a rare condition called oesophageal atresia with tracheoesophageal fistula, or TOFS. His oesophagus wasn’t connected to his stomach, meaning that anything he swallowed would flood his lungs.
Emergency transfer to London
In that moment, I felt like the floor had disappeared beneath me. I had never even heard of TOFS before. One moment everything was normal, and the next our baby, not even 24 hours old, was being prepared for an emergency transfer from Southend to The Royal London Hospital for life-saving surgery.
We barely had time to process it all. Just hours after Freddie was born I watched him leave the Intensive Care Unit in a huge incubator, our tiny baby inside, and felt utterly lost. Mylo travelled with Freddie to London, while I had to stay behind for two nights before being discharged, praying that our baby would be okay.
At The Royal London, the surgical team moved quickly. They explained that they would operate by going in through Freddie’s back to repair the fistula and connect his oesophagus to his stomach. It would be a complex four-hour operation. When Freddie was in theatre, we felt the weight of every second that passed. Those four hours were the longest of our lives.
When the surgeon finally explained the operation had gone well, we both broke down with relief. Freddie was stable. He had a long recovery ahead, but our brave little miracle had made it through.
A lifeline at Stevenson House
That’s when The Sick Children’s Trust entered our lives. Until then, we had never heard of the charity. But one of the nurses told us about Stevenson House, a ‘Home from Home’ just minutes from the hospital where parents like us could stay while their child was in intensive care. I can honestly say it was a lifeline.
We live in Essex, so the thought of travelling back and forth to London each day was overwhelming, not to mention expensive. The idea of being even an hour away from Freddie was unbearable. But Stevenson House changed everything. We were given a room just a few minutes’ walk from the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, which meant that we could be with our baby every single day, every single moment.
Until you’re in a situation like ours, you can’t imagine how much that means. When your baby is fighting for their life, the thought of leaving them alone in a hospital miles from home is unbearable. But The Sick Children’s Trust made sure we never had to.
We stayed at Stevenson House for just under two weeks while Freddie recovered. It was so much more than just a place to sleep; it was our own little safe haven away from the chaos and beeping of machines on the ward. We could rest, shower, and eat a proper meal, but still be close enough to rush back to Freddie’s bedside whenever we needed to. There were other families staying there too, each with their own story, and there was such comfort in knowing we weren’t alone.
Finding the strength to keep going
Those small, everyday things like making a cup of tea, washing a few clothes, taking a moment to breathe, mattered so much. They gave us the strength to keep going.
The staff at Stevenson House were incredible. They were always kind, always understanding. They knew what we were going through without us even having to say it. They made sure we had what we needed, and they gave us space to feel all the emotions that came with having a baby in intensive care: fear, exhaustion, hope, and eventually, joy.
Without that support, I honestly don’t know how we would have coped. We would have had to find a hotel or travel in and out of London every day, adding so much stress and cost at an already unbearable time. Instead, we could focus entirely on Freddie.
Freddie’s recovery has been nothing short of amazing. Once the surgeons had repaired his oesophagus and closed the fistula, he was fed through a tube – which goes through the nose and down the oesophagus into the stomach – while he healed. It wasn’t long before he was able to start feeding safely by mouth. Each small milestone, from his first successful feed to the first time we got to cuddle him without tubes in the way, felt like a miracle and the biggest relief.
After nearly two weeks, we were finally discharged and able to take our baby home. Walking out of the hospital with Freddie in my arms and Mylo by my side was the best feeling in the world.
Freddie’s bright future
Today, Freddie is thriving. Our tiny 7lb newborn is now over 10lbs and growing stronger every day. We still have regular check-ups with both our local hospital and The Royal London team, but so far, everything looks perfect. The repair has worked beautifully, and our little fighter continues to amaze us.
Looking back, I still can’t quite believe how much happened in such a short time. It was the most frightening experience of our lives, but it was also when we saw the best of people. The doctors and nurses who saved our baby. Our family and friends who surrounded us with love. And The Sick Children’s Trust, who made it possible for us to stay close to Freddie when he needed us most.
I don’t think we’ll ever be able to fully express how grateful we are. The Sick Children’s Trust took away one of the biggest worries for us, where we would stay and how we’d manage, allowing us to simply be parents to our very sick baby. It made an unimaginable situation just that little bit easier.
To everyone who supports the charity, please know what a difference you make. You help families like ours get through the darkest days, and that’s something we’ll never forget. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you.
Olivia Browne, Freddie’s mum
Baby Freddie with mum Olivia and dad Mylo.