His tiny chest wasn’t moving and he was cold… the horrific moment I realised my baby boy had died in bed with me
GIVING his four-month-old son a bedtime kiss, Jayden Ward had no idea it would be the last time. When he woke up the next morning, baby Bronlee was stone cold – his tiny chest not moving. Tragically, the infant had died suddenly in his sleep. The dad, from Adelaide, Australia, went to bed beside Bronlee […]
GIVING his four-month-old son a bedtime kiss, Jayden Ward had no idea it would be the last time.
When he woke up the next morning, baby Bronlee was stone cold – his tiny chest not moving.
Tragically, the infant had died suddenly in his sleep.
The dad, from Adelaide, Australia, went to bed beside Bronlee while his wife Dee-Jay was in hospital having surgery last Friday.
But when he opened his eyes hours later his son wasn’t breathing.
Mr Ward told news.com.au: “I had looked over just to check him as I always do and I seen his chest wasn’t moving.
“I grabbed his forehead and felt it was stone cold. I had picked him up and I screamed ‘bubba’ multiple times.”
He then ran into his mother-in-law’s room yelling for help.
Mr Ward tried to resuscitate his son for two minutes with the aid of a paramedic who ran through the steps of performing CPR over the phone.
Numb
“I didn’t really feel anything at that point, I just wanted my son to be OK,” he said.
“While counting the compressions I eventually lost it, crying.”
The first response unit turned up and pulled the shattered father out of the room and took over, but sadly, Bronlee couldn’t be saved.
His cause of death is unknown at this stage, however it is believed he died from sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
Writing on a GoFundMe page set up to help the family with funeral costs, Mrs Ward said: “I still haven’t and I don’t know when I will accept that fact that he’s not coming home.
“I’m still in shock.”
I still haven’t and I don’t know when I will accept that fact that he’s not coming home
Mrs Ward
The mum, who described her son as being a happy, healthy boy, received the devastating news while she was still in hospital.
Her husband said: “I struggled to get the courage to tell her.
“The whole ride to the hospital a million scenarios ran through my head, and it was still probably one of the hardest things I had done.”
At first she didn’t understand what was happening when her mum and husband entered her hospital room.
They said to her “I’m sorry” and that’s when she “dropped to the floor and kept saying ‘no, no, no’ repeatedly”.
The grieving mother left the hospital immediately, saying it was the “worst day of my life”.
The cause of Bronlee’s death is unknown as the coroner’s report found the reason for his death was inconclusive.
Mr Ward said: “Preliminary reports are suggesting SIDS as the report had come back inconclusive.”
So far more than £4,000 ($8,000) has been raised to help the family lay their baby boy to rest.
Writing on the fundraising site, Mrs Ward, who is still in hospital recovering from surgery, said: “I just want to thank everyone again through these hard last few days, you have no idea how much this means to us.
I hope your still smiling away in heaven baby boy, I’m so happy you passed peacefully in your sleep my baby boy
Mrs Ward
“At the moment it’s covered the first part of our funeral and we can still work out the second part.
“Again thank you for helping Bronlee have the beautiful send off that he’s going to have.
“The amount of love and support we have received we will forever be grateful for and no one will ever understand how much it means to us and how much we appreciate it.”
In an emotional Facebook post, Mrs Ward shared a family photo of her husband and baby boy alongside the words: “I hope your still smiling away in heaven baby boy, I’m so happy you passed peacefully in your sleep my baby boy, I’m glad you never felt pain, anger or sadness!
“You were and always will be the light of our life’s (sic).”
What is sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and what can be done to prevent it?
SUDDEN infant death syndrome (Sids) is the sudden and unexplained death of an infant where no cause is found after detailed post mortem.
Experts do not know what causes Sids.
For many babies it is likely that a combination of factors affect them at a vulnerable stage of their development, which leads them to die suddenly and unexpectedly.
However, we do know you can significantly reduce the chance of Sids occurring by following safer sleep advice.
While Sids cannot be completely prevented, you can reduce the risks of it occurring considerably by following our safer sleep advice.
Parents can:
- Sleep your baby on their back for all sleeps – day and night – as this can reduce the risk of Sids by six times compared to sleeping them on their front
- Share a room with your baby for the first six months – this can halve the risk of Sids
- Keep your baby smoke-free during pregnancy and after birth – this is one of the most protective things you can do for your baby. Around 60 per cent of sudden infant deaths could be avoided if no baby was exposed to smoke during pregnancy or around the home
- Never sleep on a sofa or armchair with your baby as this can increase the risk of Sids by 50 times.
- Do not co-sleep with your baby if you or your partner has been drinking, is a smoker or has been taking drugs; these factors can put babies at an extremely high risk of Sids when co-sleeping. One study found that the risk of Sids when co-sleeping is six times higher in smokers than in non-smokers.
The above is especially important for babies who were born premature or of low birth weight, as these babies are at a higher risk of Sids.
To find out more visit The Lullaby Trust.
The grieving mother had posted previous images of her son, hugging him, kissing him and showing off his adorable dimples.
“For the rest of my life at least I know I’m going to have you to love and to be loved by back, I’m going to be the best mum for you and promise to give you the life you deserve.
“You are the light of my life, my happiness and my favourite part of every minute of every day.
“I’ll always love you endlessly … thank you for completing my life and making everyday worth it,” one of her Facebook posts from May read.
Mr Ward told family and friends to “hold their child close, no matter their age”.
“Give them the biggest kiss and cuddle you can. You never know when it may be your last,” he wrote in a separate Facebook post.
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The parents are now hoping to raise awareness for SIDS.
“We’re wanting parents to do research, to understand what you can about SIDS,” Mr Ward said.
“If we can help raise enough awareness and prevent even just one family from going through this pain, it will help ease us.”
A version of this article originally appeared on news.com.au and has been republished with permission
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