A teenage girl who thought her stomach ache was just constipation was amazed when she turned out to be pregnant and only realised when she gave birth in her bedroom.
Niomi Thomas was on placement working at a nursery on July 28 last year when she started experiencing stomach pain and backache, but assumed it was either constipation or period pains. The next morning her pain worsened to the point where she could barely stand.
She lay on her bed and an overwhelming urge to push came over her. Hours later she gave birth to her daughter Talia Thomas. The 18-year-old described it as a "shocking discovery" as she had no symptoms throughout her pregnancy, took contraception daily and still had periods.
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Now, nine months on from the surprise birth, Niomi is sending a message to others who have experienced 'cryptic pregnancies' that they're "not alone". Photos from two weeks before the birth shows Niomi with no sign of a baby bump.
Niomi, who was 17 at the time and completing an apprenticeship as a nursery nurse, said: "It was a very crazy and shocking discovery. It sounds a bit silly because usually your periods stop, you get a bump and morning sickness and loads of different things, but I literally had nothing.
"My periods were still coming and going and I've always had irregular ones, so I just thought that was normal because that's how I've had them for quite a few years now. I didn't feel anything different. I just knew that I'd put on a bit of weight and was obviously quite upset about that but I didn't think it was pregnancy because it didn't look like it was a pregnancy gain as such.
"I was on the pill and took it every day. I never felt any movements and everyone was like 'how did you not feel her?'. They said that the placenta was in front so every time she was kicking she wasn't kicking me so it wasn't coming through to my stomach."
Niomi added: "The day before I was working and thought I had my period, so I was having a lot of bad back and stomach pains which is normal for me when I have my period. It got to the point where I couldn't work anymore so I went home.
"Overnight it got progressively worse and obviously looking back at it now, that was labour. I thought it was just constipation at the time because everyone [mother, neighbour and 111 operator] was like 'it might be constipation'.
"Because I thought I was on my period, I thought it was a combination of both. The next day I woke up and couldn't go to work as I could barely stand or sit down.
"I was just getting hot flushes and it got to the point where I was like 'I'll take myself to A&E'. I was saying to my mum 'I'll be fine, don't worry about it'.
"About half an hour later I couldn't move at all. I was in my room and messaged her saying that I really didn't feel well so she told me to take some painkillers."
The mum said she took painkillers but soon became hot and sweaty, as well as feeling increasingly ill. She said: "I went to lay on my bed and just looked out the window to try and focus on something else and by then water came out.
"I realise now it was obviously my waters breaking but at the time I didn't realise so I was really scared. I texted my mum saying 'I'm really scared, something is happening to me'. By the time she'd seen it I was already halfway through giving birth.
"It was obviously really traumatic and very scary because I was very confused about what was happening as I'd never felt that kind of pain before. I had this massive urge to push and I then felt a relief and thought 'oh great, the pain's gone' and I turned around and I was like 'oh my god, I've had a baby'.
"I was so shocked, it was literally like it wasn't reality. It's a lovely shocking story now but it was so traumatic to just see a baby on the bed without knowing you were going to have it."
The full-time mum gave birth to her daughter Talia weighing 7lbs 3oz just before midday. Niomi said she was 38 or 39 weeks pregnant when she had little Talia and suspects she was in labour for more than 12 hours. After giving birth, she immediately rang her mum, screamed for her father to help and rang an ambulance before she was taken to Kingston Hospital in Surrey for five days.
Having no idea that she was expecting, Niomi said she drank around four iced coffees a day and enjoyed an average of three alcoholic drinks a week - despite this little Talia, now nine months old, was perfectly healthy. Niomi said: "Holding her in hospital was like 'wow, I'm actually a mum now and I've got a little girl that I have to look after'. It was just a very special moment."
