It took the woman almost six months to return her newborn son.
God forbid someone to go through what happened to 25-year-old Englishwoman Gina Hodgkins. She recently returned home from the hospital with her beloved Teddy – in the family of Gina and her husband Joshua, their six-year-old daughter Amelia was already growing up, and the spouses so wanted another son …
“We were so happy. The nursery was prepared: we took Teddy’s one half away, we even decorated the wall with his name, ”says Gina.
The boy was born on time, healthy and strong, he had an excellent appetite. True, there were problems with sleep: at night the baby would wake up every now and then. Gina had to get up with him. Therefore, the young mother picked up her sleep rate during the day, falling asleep with the child on the couch. One day she woke up from the fact that seven policemen broke into the house. People in uniform demanded to give them the child.
“I cried, asked what happened. And they said that my husband and I were arrested on charges of child abuse, ”says Gina.
The baby was forcibly pulled out of the mother’s arms. Teddy and his older sister were taken away and sent to a foster family.
“It was terrible. The neighbors saw us being handcuffed into a police car. The children were crying. Amelia asked her mother, and I had to explain to her why she could not stay at home. What could I tell her? After all, we have never offended our children! ” Gina still recalls that day with horror.
As it turned out, a nurse who came to examine Teddy complained about Gina to the police. She saw bruises on his face.
“When Teddy was born, his arms and legs were bruised. Even the eye had a hemorrhage. I asked the doctor if it was normal. She assured me that these are all the injuries that the baby received during childbirth, that everything is fine, ”explains Gina.
The bruises are really gone. But new ones appeared all the time. Gina noticed this every time she held her son with a post after feeding. She supported Teddy’s head by her chin, and bruises immediately appeared from under her fingers. Therefore, the nurse decided that the mother was beating her newborn son. It took Gina and Joshua five months to prove their innocence. As a result, it turned out that Teddy suffers from congenital vascular fragility. That is why bruises appear at the slightest touch. The children were finally able to return home.
“You have no idea what I went through. I wasted five whole months of precious time I should have spent with my son. He was deprived of breastfeeding. I was afraid all the time that the children would forget me, that Teddy would stop recognizing me, ”says Gina.
The only apologies the parents heard were from the judge, who ruled in their favor. The same patronage nurse never asked for forgiveness for her lack of professionalism.