East Kilbride mum emotional as 'little warrior' twins turn one after 'traumatic birth'

Lily and Mason Scott were born prematurely at just 29-weeks, leaving their families fearing the worst.

The pair, from East Kilbride, had to be kept in hospital for two months as tiny Lily battled a  brain hemorrhage while Mason suffered a hole in his heart.

The babies with mum and dad in hospital

Parents Ellie Brown, 24, and Jamie Scott, 27, had no idea what to expect and are “mind-blown” by how far the babies have come after their miraculous recovery.

It comes after they spent six weeks at Wishaw Neonatal and 10 days in a newborn intensive care unit (NICU) following their birth on July 17, 2021.

Now they have celebrated the huge milestone of their birthday - with Ellie admitting it brought all the emotions “flooding back".

The twins turned one in July

The twins celebrated the huge milestone

She told the Glasgow Times: “Their first birthday was very emotional and I was just bursting with pride as always at my little warriors for coming so far.

“All the emotions from their birth and NICU stay just come flooding back and looking through all the old photos and videos and comparing to now is just mind-blowing.

“It's hard to believe they were ever that tiny.

“I think [losing the twins] was always a worry in the back of our mind, especially when they first arrived as we just didn't know a thing about prematurity.

“Especially with them being twins, I didn't know what state they would be in when they arrived.

“The birth itself was very traumatic with every bad thought passing through my head but they came out breathing and crying exactly how they should have.”

The twins were born at just 29 weeks

After being born 11 weeks prematurely, the twins were transferred 60 miles away to Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy, Fife, for 10 days - just 12 hours after they were born as Wishaw Neonatal was full.

Lily was born first at just 3lb 1oz and was put on Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) breathing support.

She was diagnosed with a grade one brain hemorrhage days after birth, which was monitored through scans and was able to heal itself.

The twin's clothes were the same size as their mum's purse

After being moved onto high-flow oxygen, the tot was able to breathe on her own within her first week.

Meanwhile, her brother Mason, who was born weighing 3lb 6oz, had to be ventilated the same day he was born before being transferred to teams in Kirkcaldy.

The twins are happy at home

He remained ventilated for 48 hours before he was able to go onto high-flow oxygen.

Mason relied on low-flow oxygen for a couple of weeks before he was able to breathe on his own.

He was diagnosed also with patent ductus arteriosus at days old which left him with a hole in his heart.

Mason and Lily with mum

Doctors monitored the condition and were relieved when he made a miraculous recovery on his own.

Lily and Mason both had apnea of prematurity meaning they would stop breathing for short periods of time.

This set off monitors and colour would drain out of them before stimulation from medics and their parents reminded them to breathe again.

It became a daily occurrence with little Mason also needing a blood transfusion as he became anemic.

Finally, on September 3, 2021, the parents got to ring that bell and start their life as a family-of-four outside of the hospital.

The twins were in hospital for two months

Ellie explained: “The thing with premature babies is that things can change so quickly for them.

“You're always aware that anything can happen at any point so you don't fully settle that they are going to make it whilst they are in NICU. It's very much just taking it one day at a time.

“It was a lot of one step forward and two steps back throughout their journey.

“I found once they had been moved to special care is when we relaxed a bit and knew we were going to get them home.

“We were just incredibly lucky that they both fought so well. They really are our little miracles.

“The staff at Wishaw Neonatal are all absolutely amazing. They become part of our family and we will be forever grateful for all they have done for us.”

The twins on their expected due date