A TODDLER who fought off pneumonia after being born 12 weeks premature is saying a special thank you to the team who saved his life.
Freddie Chandler, from Pound Hill, was born at 28 weeks and four days and spent a month in intensive care receiving round the clock care after falling gravely ill just days after he was born.
Now 18 months old, Freddie and his mum Stacey Fielding will be taking part in the Push for Prems sponsored walk which raises money for the Trevor Mann Baby Unit, based at Brighton's Royal Sussex County Hospital where he was born.
Miss Fielding was rushed to the hospital in October 2012, having felt ill.
Initially she was taken to Princess Royal Hospital, in Haywards Heath, where staff realised she was in labour and sent her to the specialist unit in Brighton.
Miss Fielding said: "I thought I was getting a cold, I didn't feel right for a few days and I started getting pains which turned out to be contractions.
"Freddie was my first child so I didn't have anything to compare how I was feeling to.
"I was persuaded to go to hospital and when they said I was in labour I couldn't believe it. I had to be taken down to Brighton in an ambulance on blue lights.
"Freddie was born weighing only 2lbs 5oz, he was absolutely tiny. He was able to fit in both my hands if I held my palms together.
"In his first few days Freddie caught pneumonia. The team warned us that he had a fight on his hands and that it was touch and go whether he would pull through.
"There was nothing we could do as parents. We had to place our son's life in the hands of the doctors and trust them entirely to save him."
Freddie was kept in an incubator for two weeks where he had two members of staff caring for him at all times.
Miss Fielding, 35, added: "Freddie was wired up from nose to toe. The medical team recreated the environment as though he was still in my womb developing.
"There were nights when he would stop breathing and have fluid levels problems but the team were always there for him.
"They completely reassured me and helped me bathe and change him when he was so small.
"His nappies were absolutely tiny and because he was so small I feared I would hurt him."
After a month in the unit Freddie was transferred to the Princess Royal Hospital where he remained in specialist care for a further five weeks.
This made it easier for all the family, including his dad Nigel, half-brothers Henry and George, and half-sister Millie to see him.
"Freddie is such a happy boy now," Miss Fielding added.
"He is still small for his age, coming out of size nine to 12 months clothing, but is very feisty and determined.
"He is learning quickly and once he sees me do something he tries to do it himself straight away."
The Push for Prems event is in its fifth year and a £20,000 target has been set to be raised this year.
This is the amount of money needed to purchase a much-needed piece of equipment for the unit – a neonatal cerebral function monitoring machine.
This machine can detect any brain abnormalities in the first six hours of life, helping to determine what support is needed.
The event is taking place on June 29 and involves a four-mile walk from Royal Sussex County Hospital to Hove Lagoon.
Those taking part will then celebrate with a picnic and release balloons in memory of the babies who didn't make it home from the specialist unit.
To donate towards the cause visit http://www.justgiving.com/PushForPrems2014
![Toddler born 12 weeks premature to thank docs who saved him with charity walk]( "Toddler born 12 weeks premature to thank docs who saved him with charity walk")
