SAVED BY A STRANGER

Verity Wareham, 42, thought she was losing her son until a Christmas miracle changed everything

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My boys raced around the living room, giggling and playfighting as I tried to enjoy a relaxing cup of tea, but who was I kidding? As a single mum to four boys, I had no chance of having a bit of 'me' time.

'Mum, can we put the Christmas tree up this weekend?' my youngest, Albie, then eight, asked.

'It's far too early!' I laughed.

It was November 2021, and Albie and his brothers Joe, 15, Cayden, 13, and Levi, 11, loved Christmas. Every year, we made a big thing of putting up the tree, playing festive tunes, drinking hot chocolate and writing letters to Santa – I loved to make it as special as possible. But November was way too soon for me to be thinking about Christmas.

'Let's wait until December,' I told him. But the following week, Albie started to look unwell. The whites of his eyes turned yellow and he told me he was tired.

I sent him to bed, but over the weekend he seemed lethargic, so first thing Monday, I made an appointment with the GP. Only, after the doctor took a urine sample, he sent us straight to Poole Hospital where Albie had more tests. Hours later, while we were still at the hospital, and Albie's brothers were at school, a doctor came to see us.

'We think that it's viral hepatitis,' a consultant said, explaining Albie's liver was inflamed. 'It should clear in a week.'

It was a relief to know Albie would be OK, but back home he just got worse and a few days on he started vomiting.

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