A WOMAN who was left infertile after undergoing major surgery has given birth to a baby girl.

Charlotte Rawlinson, from Benfleet, was forced to have emergency surgery for a blockage in her bowel and an inflamed kidney, after experiencing symptoms so severe that doctors initially thought she had bowel cancer.

Echo:

Family - Charlotte Rawlinson with partner Mark and Eloise

Sadly, she was then diagnosed with endometriosis, a condition where tissue similar to the lining of the womb starts to grow in other places, such as the fallopian tubes, which Charlotte had to then have removed.

The 33 year old explained: “I wasn’t able to even think about having a baby in my twenties because I was struggling so much with my debilitating condition.

“I had suffered with painful periods since I was a teenager, so just assumed it was perfectly normal for women to want to pass out and throw up every month.

“I then started getting other symptoms and gradually it got worse until it really interfered with my life.

“I’m so glad that my partner, Mark, insisted I go back to the doctor because otherwise I could have ended up losing a kidney.

“I was diagnosed with the most serious stage of endometriosis and had to have an operation to remove my fallopian tubes, which meant that I would be unable to conceive naturally.”

Having planned to start a family, Charlotte and Mark were referred to the Bourn Hall Fertility Clinic in Wickford for IVF, and were delighted when treatment was successful first time round.

She continued: “I took the test and couldn’t bear to look at it, so I put it on the side and told Mark to look at it. When he told me I just burst in to tears, it was the best day ever.

“Having Eloise has totally changed our lives for the better, I can’t remember my life without her in it.

“No one prepares you for the total lack of sleep but it’s definitely worth it when you wake up to your baby’s smiling face first thing in the morning.”

Charlotte is speaking out ahead of Fertility Week, which runs from October 28 to November 3.

She continued: “What I would say to anyone else is that even when you are at rock bottom and think you’re never going to get pregnant, I’m proof that it’s possible.”