Baby's heart stopped beating for 17 minutes but he's home after more than three months in hospital

Sheffield mum Bethany Homar, aged 28, was told there was a high chance her little boy wouldn't make it when she was rushed for an emergency c-section at 26 weeks and three days. She had suffered a placental abruption - where the placenta separates from the wall of the uterus before birth - which can be fatal for the baby.

Little Isaiah Gordon was born weighing 1lb 10oz on April 7 this year at Sheffield Children's Hospital. He had to be resuscitated for 17 minutes before he started breathing and was rushed to the neonatal ward. Doctors still didn't think Isaiah would survive and underwent multiple blood transfusions to keep him alive.

Bethany, a stay-at-home mum, said: "I was given two choices. Let him die inside me while they stopped my bleeding or have him there and then with a high chance that he wouldn't make it. When they told me they had resuscitated him for 17 minutes I couldn't believe it. They were about to give up and he pulled through. He was very sick and needed lots of transfusions, but he battled on. I can't believe he is now home and OK. He's a miracle."

Bethany had a smooth pregnancy until she started getting cramps at 26 weeks and noticed blood in her bath. She said: "My cramps were just like period pains, so I didn't think much of it. I just thought I'd have a bath to help with the aches but then I noticed blood and started to panic.” After calling the doctor she was rushed into hospital, where they realised she was suffering with placental abruption. Bethany was given two options - doctors could stop the bleeding and let her baby pass away inside her or risk a c-section which didn't have good odds for his survival.

"I broke down crying when they told me my choices," she said. "I knew I couldn't just let him pass away without trying. I had to give him a chance. I didn't know what had happened when I came round. Then they told me he was very sick, and they were not sure if he would survive. He wasn't born breathing and doctors told me they resuscitated him for 17 minutes and if it had been a few more minutes they would have had to stop. He pulled through at the last second."

Bethany had to wait until he was stabilised to be able to see her newborn son. Isaiah had a low blood pressure and needed multiple transfusions and had to stay in an incubator to help his breathing. He was born with a hole in his heart and an open valve - which doctors will continue to monitor as he gets older. After 112 days in hospital, battling the odds, Isaiah was able to come home.

Bethany said: "He has chronic lung disease so he's on oxygen still at home. But it's very surreal that he's home. For a while it didn't seem like there was an end in sight. It's uncertain how affected he will be until he's older. But I'm just so glad he's home."