Laura became pregnant by accident and is currently carrying her baby.

“I was diagnosed with PH when I was 14 and at the age of 17, when I was transferred into adult services, I was told that it was very important not to get pregnant because it was so risky.

I brushed it under the table because I was young and wasn’t even sure I wanted children.

I’m now 30 and 17 weeks pregnant. It was an accident, and as soon as I found out I contacted the team at my specialist centre. I was told again how risky it was and given all the options. It was a hard conversation.

We spoke about termination and I was told because it was early, I could take a tablet, and not have a surgical termination. But I very strongly told them I was going to have the baby.

My partner was very shocked, but he is ok with it now. We are not together, but it is amicable.

It’s a stressful situation as there are so many risks with a normal pregnancy, and obviously more with me having PH.

My family are being very supportive, and my mum spoke to my specialist centre herself; as you can imagine, she was very worried.

This support is vital because it is hard having people questioning my decision and asking if I’m fully aware of the risks. You just need people to be with you and say they are going to support you.

At the moment I have no medical problems and have needed no treatment changes.

I am excited right now, and happy, but I am also worried about quite a lot of things. I’m worried about the baby being born early and about not knowing how things are going to go. I’m worried about the amount of blood that will be going back to my heart when the umbilical cord is cut, as I understand that’s one of the biggest risks.

I try to think positively though, and I would call my specialist team if I was really concerned about anything as I know they would support me.

It’s difficult to give advice to others who find themselves in my situation as although I was originally very sick with PH, I am now extremely well, very fit, and I work full time. My doctors tell me I am one of the more active people with PH. If my condition was more severe, my decision may have been different.”