Young mum who tested positive for Covid while pregnant dies two months after giving birth

A young mum who tested positive for Covid while pregnant has died on Boxing Day - two months after giving birth to her only child.

Natalie Forshaw, aged 30, celebrated the arrival of her son, Caleb, on November 3.He was delivered by an emergency C-section at St Mary's Hospital in Manchester - but Natalie was forced to remain in hospital after testing positive for the virus.She was treated in the Intensive Care Unit of Manchester Royal Infirmary but died in the early hours of December 26.

Natalie, a beautician and hairdresser from Burnage in south Manchester, had seemed to be improving slightly in mid-December, which had given her family hope.Her mother, Bernie Wilton, said: "Natalie was at home when she first became poorly."Because she was pregnant we took her to see a doctor and her oxygen levels were very, very low. She was getting bad pains in her chest."She went to hospital and the baby was delivered but Natalie was transferred to intensive care. She was not able to see Caleb for a week."

Just days after giving birth, Natalie was put in a drug-induced coma as part of her treatment. But in mid-November a blood clot was discovered inside her heart.

Her mum and Caleb's dad, Jay Hurst, were only allowed ten to 15 minutes a day at her bedside in the intensive care unit.By December 6, her condition had worsened and days later her family was told there was nothing more than could be done.Less than a week afterwards, there were some signs of improvement in Natalie's condition.At the time, her mum wrote on social media: "I was sat with her and she started to blink, she is starting to come round... and when I spoke about baby Caleb she cried... all the nurses were clapping and so happy for her... she is so looked after... she is fighting."Medics were "amazed" at Natalie's condition, and her mum added she was being called "the ICU celebrity" as so many nurses and doctors were rooting for her.

On December 20, though, Natalie suffered a major setback when her heart failed and she had to be fully sedated again.

Bernie posted on Boxing Day that Natalie had lost her fight and the next day added: "Today, my heart broke into many pieces."I don't think it will ever mend. I am going to miss your daft ways, the fact that you text me 8,400,000 times a day even if it was just to say love you mammy."We had an amazing bond, not only mother and daughter but best of friends."Bernie, and Natalie's father, Nigel Forshaw, and the couple's son, Natalie's brother, Scott, have been left devastated by the loss.Bernie said: "She was absolutely beautiful and would brighten up everyone's day. There are thousands of people who loved her."

Natalie chosen not to have any vaccinations for Covid because she was pregnant. An appeal set up to help Natalie's family, Caleb, and Jay, has so far raised £6,500.

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