37-year-old Cristina Rosi from Monte San Savino, in Tuscany, was seven months pregnant when she suddenly suffered a heart attack and found herself in a 10-month-long coma. Upon awakening, the woman discovered she had become a mother after having gone through an emergency Caesarean section while comatose.
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Road towards recovery
Baby Catarina was said to have been born in healthy condition. Husband Gabriele Succi explains that the first word uttered by the new-mother after waking up was 'mamma.' Mr. Succi said:
It's a real joy after so much suffering. Even the doctors in the room have confirmed that Cristina has said her first word.
The first time mother has since been transferred to an Austrian clinic where Ms. Rosi will be receiving specialised care 24 hours a day to undergo a neurological rehabilitation programme and is expected to make a full recovery. Speaking to a local newspaper, Mr. Succi said:
My wife breathes and swallows by herself. Seeing her progress and thinking about how she was only a few months ago with all the tests she had to overcome, it seems like a miracle.
And added:
Cristina is hardly recognisable now. She's more relaxed, they removed her tracheotomy [and] through a pump they are giving her a medicine that should lead to other physical progress.
GoFundMe donations
The treatment in question is estimated to cost around £250,000, but thankfully the husband has set up a GoFundMe page that has raised more than half of the total cost of her therapy. He said:
So far we have been able to guarantee Cristina the therapies. We cannot stop now. My wife and daughter deserve to go home in the best possible condition.
In an effort to boost donations for Ms. Rosi, Margherita Scarpellini, mayor of Monte San Savino wrote on facebook:
Apart from donations, it is important to tell Cristina's story so that help arrives as fast as possible from as many people as possible.