St Ann’s mum speaks of losing her baby to sudden infant death syndrome

A mum has spoken of how she lost her baby son to sudden infant death syndrome as part of a hard-hitting appeal to other parents.

Amy Swann, 34, from St Ann’s, was on holiday with her little boy Matty Swann-Raynor when he died in his sleep in 2008.

She has spoken publicly of her loss as part of national Safer Sleep Week 2016, helping parents to cut the risks of the condition.

Since 2009 there have been 35 infants deaths in Nottinghamshire linked to unsafe sleeping or sudden infant death syndrome.

It is known as SIDS and also sometimes called cot death.

Its exact causes are unknown but in many cases there is believed to be a link with a baby’s sleeping position and problems with breathing.

Amy said: “If my story being told prevents just one baby from losing their life, then that makes the pain of losing Matty a little easier. I don’t want any other parent to go through what I did.”

Amy was on holiday with her partner to celebrate her son’s first birthday at the end of December 2008.

They had taken Matty, who was born on New Year’s Eve 2007, to Blackpool to see the lights and originally planned to stay just the one night, December 28, before returning to Nottingham.

Amy said: “We’d had such a nice time that we decided we’d like to stop for an extra night.

“The place we booked for the 28^th had a travel cot and we asked if we could stay on for the 29^th. Unfortunately they were fully booked, but we managed to find some self-catering apartments on the Promenade which had room.

“The first thing I did was ask if they had a travel cot, but they didn’t. I knew not to put Matty in bed with us because of the risk of suffocation, so we decided he would be safest in his pram.”

When it came to bedtime, Amy carefully wedged the pushchair between her side of the bed and the wardrobe to stop it from moving. She put Matty down to sleep and tucked in his blanket to keep him warm.

Amy continued: “Matty woke twice in the night for a feed and I settled him off the second time between 5am and 6am. I stirred next a little after 7.30am and just had a feeling that something was wrong because I couldn’t hear him.

“I jumped out of bed and could see that the pram had toppled backwards, with the hood and blanket covering Matty’s body. When I pulled it back I could see him lying on his left-hand side and his lips were blue. We were screaming for help and I was desperately trying to resuscitate him, but even before the paramedics arrived I knew he was gone.”

The day after Matty’s funeral, Amy discovered that she was pregnant and her son Ben is now a happy, healthy seven-year-old. She gave birth to another boy, Leo, six months ago.

There’s not a day that goes by where I don’t think about Matty

She said: “There’s not a day that goes by where I don’t think about Matty – I talk about him to the boys all the time. Ben asks to come with me to the cemetery and speaks about him often. There would have been less than two years between them and I know they would have been so close.

“What happened that night was a tragedy. At the inquest the following year, the coroner said how sorry she was and remarked that she would probably have done the same thing herself in the circumstances

As part of Safer Sleep Week Nottingham City Council and Nottinghamshire County Council are reminding families of the advice around babies and nap and sleep times. The campaign was set up by the Lullaby Trust.

City councillor David Mellen, portfolio holder for early intervention and early years, said: “Babies have very specific requirements when it comes to where, when and how they sleep. The advice from the Lullaby Trust is vital, and it’s also important to remember that it applies not only to bedtime but also daytime naps as well.

“It’s not just for parents either. Grandparents and other family members need to understand about safe sleep because many youngsters spend the night away from home.

“We need to work together to make sure that everyone is armed with the potentially life-saving knowledge to keep their baby safe at bedtime.”

Councillor Joyce Bosnjak, chair of the Health and Wellbeing Board at Nottinghamshire County Council, said: “It is crucial that parents, grandparents and other carers are following the advice from the Lullaby Trust to make sure their babies sleep safely.”

Advice cards are being made which will be available at doctor surgeries, children centres and health visitors.

More information about advice on how to put your baby to sleep is available on the Lullaby Trust website.