Woman Lies Upside Down for 3 Months to Prevent Miscarriage
A pregnant woman agreed to lie upside down 24 hours a day to avoid having a miscarriage- and it worked.
Donna Kelly of the U.K. suffered from a weak cervix after the birth of her son four years ago and was faced with the prospect of miscarrying when she was five months pregnant.
In an attempt to strengthen her cervix and prevent a miscarriage, the former nurse agreed to lie at a 45-degree angle with her feet raised upwards, according to Mail Online.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
"I was surprised when [the doctor] told me to lie in bed at a tilt but I was ready to give anything a try," Kelly said.
"It made me feel sick and I had a massive head rush at first but after a couple of days my body adjusted and I soon got used to it," she added.
Kelly, 29, lay upside down 24 hours a day for 10 weeks and only got up out of bed to use the rest room. The mother was under specialized supervision as she ate, watched television and read books in the unusual position in order to remove pressure from her cervix.
Kelly has suffered from two miscarriages prior to her most recent pregnancy, one at 19 weeks and the other at 23 weeks. Although doctors attempted to stitch the neck of her cervix so that it would regain strength, all efforts were unsuccessful- but Kelly was determined.
"I'd even have to stay in the bed to eat by rolling onto my side, but I'd always have a dead arm by the end," Kelly said. "It could be boring at times but I knew it wouldn't be as painful as losing my baby," she added.
Eventually Kelly's long term discomfort paid off and she gave birth to a healthy baby girl in August.
Kelly delivered baby Amelia through an emergency caesarean because she was six months premature.
Amelia weighed in at 4 lbs, 15 oz., and after a few weeks inside a hospital incubator, she was deemed healthy enough to be taken home.
"Donna's condition is rare- second trimester miscarriages only occur in about 0.5 percent of women- and while the treatment may sound strange, it is very effective," explained Professor Quenby, a consultant obstetrician and gynecologist.
