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Swine flu baby delivered
Laura Stace
Friday, September 11, 2009
? The Cairns Post
A CAIRNS woman returned home from hospital yesterday after contracting swine flu during her pregnancy and spending the past three months fighting for her life in intensive care unit.
"I can?t wait to get home and get back to my normal life," said Kimberley Friday as friends and family gathered by her bedside for her final few hours in hospital.
Ms Friday said she was diagnosed with a common flu in July by her GP, but after waking up with purple fingers, she knew something was wrong.
At the time she was admitted to hospital, she was 36 weeks pregnant and underwent an emergency caesarean section for both her and her child?s well-being.
After giving birth to a healthy baby girl, Ms Friday was taken to ICU where she remained in a coma for five weeks.
"When I woke up, I thought I had been asleep for only one night," she said.
Cairns Base Hospital ICU director Drew Wenck said Ms Friday almost died.
"We had some very close shaves with Kimberley; every night I worried about her," he said.
During her hospital stay, Ms Friday?s family and friends stayed by her side and, after what they described as the worst three months of their lives, were ecstatic to see the 20-year-old return home.
Dr Wenck said Ms Friday would be quite weak after spending so much time in ICU but says within about six months she should start to feel like herself again.
"I am so grateful for all Dr Drew and the staff at Cairns Base Hospital did for me," she said.
"They spent so many hours fighting for my life. I am so lucky to be alive."