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A woman who didn’t know she was pregnant, has given birth in a hospital toilet and nearly flushed the baby down the drain.
The 23-year-old student, identified as Lalene Malik, was rushed to Northwick Park Hospital in Harrow, London, by her family after she complained of an intense stomach ache at their home in Greenford, west London, on March 26.
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According to Lalene, she had been taking contraceptive pills for months because she was not planning to have a child yet, and took two pregnancy tests in February 2022 which came out negative, so she thought the stomach ache was constipation.
While waiting at the hospital, Lalene went to the toilet and her mother, Sumra, said she heard her screaming in pains while using the toilet and called the doctors.
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As Lalene was about to flush the toilet, she noticed a tiny arm in the toilet bowl and raised alarm. It’s believed that the baby may have been in the toilet for seven seconds before being rescued by medics.
The medics said the baby looked lifeless and was not breathing, but thankfully, they were able to resuscitate him.
Lalene said, “I was gone. My mind was blank. I was put in another room because obviously I was crying and my mum was crying.
“It was a complete shock and a trauma for both of us and I felt that my life was in danger.
“(My mum) started crying and (said) to me: ‘Don’t you know you have a baby?’ From then on I was pale.”
The baby who has been named Mohammed Ibrahim, was born full-term and is now healthy after he was given oxygen and monitored by doctors.
An A&E registrar at the London hospital, Dr Ewa Grocholski, said she has never seen a baby born in such circumstances and it was the “most amazing experience” of her medical career.
“I’ve seen young ladies like Lalene before coming to A&E not knowing they’re pregnant and delivering in the A&E department, but it was always in a more safe place,” she added.
The new mom said her son is a “miracle baby” but accused her family doctor of not conducting enough tests on her to detect that she was pregnant.
“If I had known I was pregnant, I would have cherished those moments going shopping, getting stuff ready for the baby,” she said.
Lalene’s husband wasn’t in the country at the time and was in utter shock when he learnt about his son’s birth.
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