As i hit my 200th follower, i though i'd share a little of my story, & why research is so important to me, most of this is going to focus on my birth, & i'm not hear to show-off, just that it will provide a context to some of my posts, but i am also proud my achievements...

i was born in Southmead, Bristol, 1978 @ 26 weeks 2lb2oz, being extremely premature I had a lot of complications. (RDS, PDA, Pulm Haem, CHF, Apnea, Sclerema to name a few, at at 6 week i was baptised, at 8 weeks i developed Systemic Candidiasis (meningitis)..

..I was the first preemie in the UK to receive pioneering treatment for this (Amphotericin & Flurocytosine) and v proud of that....but i was in good hands! my Consultants were Brian Speidel & Peter Dunn my Sen Reg. was Peter Fleming. (obvs not the only baby they've ever treated)

but I've also been very privileged to get back in touch with them & many other staff members to thank them personally for my care. - It's very humbling to realise so many recall treating me and understand the lengths they went to save such a tiny baby.

Growing up i was aware of my treatments - my mum kept a diary & was followed up until I was 10, but it wasn't until recently i could add a lot more context, having books, papers, letters, - a gov reports certainly helps! yet it was only a few years ago that i stumbled upon this.

To find that my treatment had been written up as a case study in the BMJ https://adc.bmj.com/content/57/11/884
enabled me to see the impact my own treatment has had over the years, it is why research matters, & i know that tiny babies are still changing the lives of future generations today.

but i also found something else, i found other adult preemies, & when I started to talk to them, familiar issues start to show. They get what it was like at school, at work, to be just that little bit different, & just a little different from each other too, i had found my clan.

In fact, i'd also say it's not just the adult preemies i've found to be so supportive, its also the many other people who have listened to and encouraged me, especially here on Twitter, so would also like to say a huge thank you to everyone her too. - i'm not here to gloat or

namedrop. i'm aware i've no professional qualifications, and these are only my experiences, but as more people start to take an interest in long term impact of prem birth, i thought I'd share my story, so that people can understand a little more of where i'm coming from. Thx