Caitlin Sarah Aisling

My beautiful baby was born at The Queen Mother's Hospital in Glasgow on Friday 7th May 1993. She weighed 3lbs 15oz. She was the girl we had longed for after two wonderful sons. Both of her brothers were so excited to have a baby sister. Steven wanted to call her "Blossom" and Kyle wanted to call her "Pom-Pom". Caitlin was diagnosed shortly after birth as having a rare chromosome disorder called "Edwards Syndrome" (Trisomy 18). This meant that her heart was damaged and that it was very unlikely she would live for long. We set about making whatever short time we had with our daughter as memorable as possible. We took Caitlin to visit as many people as possible and she touched many, many peoples lives with her gracious presence. I believe Caitlin was "an old soul" as she had such a serenity about her and had her own very strong little character from the get go. She adored being held and made it very clear when she wanted attention. On Saturday 19th June aged 6 weeks and 1 day old, we took Caitlin to a meeting of the support group set up for families who had had a baby with a trisomy (SOFT). She was made a great fuss of and, I believe, eased the pain a little of some of the families who had lost their babies.

Sadly, that was to be Caitlin's last outing and on Sunday 20th June, her health deteriorated to such an extent that we had to take her back to the hospital. As usual, the medical team rallied round and we were given all the support and respect we could have wanted. Many of the people who had been involved with Caitlin from the beginning popped in to see her and say their goodbyes. At around 5.45pm, Caitlin' breathing became even more laboured and while she lay in my arms, she drew her last breath. Thankfully, Caitlin's death was peaceful and calm and dignified. She passed away 45 days after her birth on Monday 21st June 1993.