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I am fundraising for CMV Action UK. For so many people CMV is just three letters it could be in anything it certainly wasn't something that I'd heard of two years ago when I was expecting my fourth baby. And this is the problem, people just haven't heard of it and CMV Action UK exists to raise awareness of simple steps to help support prevention and to support families and individuals who are affected by this virus.

So I guess it's time for my story. In late August 2023 my husband and I were surprised and excited to find we were expecting a fourth baby perhaps not planned but very much wanted. I was an older mum and in theory there were a few things I had to keep an eye on during that pregnancy but actually a progressed really well everything was fantastic at the 12 week scan good news again at the 20 week scan. In January 2024 I became ill I had a range of symptoms and struggling to eat, I had an enlarged spleen, I was in a lot of pain, there was pressure on my breathing but nobody could find the cause after eight or nine days in hospital frightened and confused I went home with no answers not knowing if I was safe not knowing if my baby was safe. Then shortly after getting home I received a phone call, one of the blood tests they had done showed that I had a CMV infection I had no idea what this meant but I felt very uneasy as the nurse continued to ask me to come in for consultation with the antenatal doctors. That first consultation was incredibly hard the consultant was fantastic explaining to us that the risks were very unpredictable but that there was a risk to the baby. She explained that they had checked my blood from before pregnancy and could say that the infection that I had was the first time I've been infected with this virus. She explained that when you have the first infection when you're pregnant that the virus can cross the placenta and cause a range of problems for the baby. The worst case scenario on that day was that we may be asked to consider a medically advised termination. From then on we entered a waiting game and we are still waiting now we are waiting because we are lucky but the waiting is so very hard. The were multiple scans and antenatal MRIs.

My pregnancy progressed with a few complications and my water's broke at 34 weeks with my little daughter Astrid being born at 35 weeks. She was and remains amazing from the first moment. She did test positive for cmv at birth this is called CCMV (congenital cytomegalovirus) and comes with a lot of potential for challenges that can be seen at birth or sometimes develop further down the line. We had a fairly long stay in transitional care and came home just after Easter since then there have been endless tests and monitoring and fantastic support and this will continue until she's around seven years old. We have been enormously lucky that the majority of her tests appear normal. The only exception it's some slight abnormalities in some of her hearing tests. For every test that's normal I think if there is a problem further down the line hopefully it will be less significant. Unfortunately this isn't the same story as many of the other families I've grown to know since becoming involved as a parent within the support groups of CMV Action UK. Hearing loss is one of the most common side effects of cmv and is in fact we have the leading courses of childhood deafness, site can also be affected, many children are affected by cerebral palsy and other conditions associated with lesions and damage within the brain, likelyhood of autism and spectrum conditions is significantly higher in children with congenital cytomegalovirus. The list is quite extensive and as parent can be really frightening.

The shocking part is that this virus is enormously prevalent a huge proportion of people have had exposure to the virus and gained natural immunity early in their lives. The risk exists almost entirely for pregnant women who catch it for the first time and the risk is less for the mother than for the unborn child if and when the virus crosses the placenta. Yet in spite of this the virus remains almost unknown it doesn't show up in information packs given to pregnant women it isn't in the news and while expectant mothers are surrounded in information of everything they need to do to support the development of a healthy baby this topic is absent from almost all the literature. So how do you catch it? How do you prevent it? That must be a difficult problem to solve surely if the damage is so significant if the virus is so prevalent. Well it's transferred in bodily fluids any bodily fluids it could be from changing a nappy for an older child or contact with children in childcare adults and social care contact with people within the community. The risk is reduced by avoiding this contact and by regularly washing hands. There is a lot of research into other ways that CMV can be prevented or immunised against but right now it just isn't on the agenda. Right now it needs a voice.

So it's time for me to do my little part. CMV Action can use £7 to man the telephone lines supporting families every stage of a very difficult journey. Or for just £12 can produce two information packs. No I wish I could run an impressive race or some other incredible feat but as a mum of four with a full-time job in education I don't seem to find the time. And so I had a real think about what I can do what is a challenge and maybe it's rain but my hair is very much part of my identity it's never been shorter than shoulder length since I was around 10 or 11 years old and as a chubbier than average person I have to say I worry about what I might look like with short hair. So that is my offer I'm cutting my hair for donation to the little Princess trust. It is currently waist-length so hopefully somebody will get some good use out of it further down the line before that happens I hope my little attempt to being brave might be enough for you to support a cause that's really close to my heart. If you are able to donate something anything at all it will be enormously appreciated. If you're not able to donate at this time can I ask that you let any expectant mothers you know know about CMV just share that you've seen this post. And if you can spare the time pop over to the government petition requesting did cmv is given the same profile and an appropriate information campaign.

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/753995

If you've got this far thank you so much for taking the time to read this. I will be cutting my hair on Friday the 13th of February and crossing my fingers that I will have gone a little way to raise some funds in the process.

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