A mother has shared a crucial message for other parents after losing her six-month-old son to sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)
Jennifer and Stephen Wakefield lost their son Ralph after he died in his sleep in a cot at his childminder's house in September 2015.
While medics said Ralph's death was unavoidable, Jennifer, from Hull, is now spreading the word about safer sleep for babies to prevent stoppable tragedies, reports Hull Live.
Recalling the day she got the agonising call to say her son had died, Jennifer said: "I was at work in Scunthorpe when I got the call from the childminder to say that Ralph had been put down for a nap and just died in his sleep.
“They just thought he had a really long sleep and didn’t realise he had died.
"A colleague rushed me over to Hull Royal where Ralph was – the paramedics had done their best to save him, but he had died a while before, so there was nothing to be done to save him."
The devastated parents had celebrated Ralph's six month birthday just three days before he died.
Jennifer added: "He was not ill at all at the time – he had a cold the week before and that was it. He was our first child and he was perfect.
"We were in complete disbelief and shock and the loss of Ralph – it was absolutely surreal as we couldn't work out why a perfectly healthy baby that was put down for a nap didn't wake up again.
"His death had a massive impact on us, as no parent ever expects to lose their baby – Ralph was our first and we were full of joy and happiness with him, and had just celebrated his six-month-old birthday, and then three days later he died.
"Then the inquest was emotional and gut wrenching and hard to deal with – the coroner said Ralph's death was unascertained, but we knew that it was SIDS that could not be avoided."
Months after Ralph's funeral, Jennifer fell pregnant with her now three-year-old son Edward.
The couple also now have nine-month-old Edgar.
Jennifer also channeled her grief into raising awareness of sudden infant death syndrome and started working with the Lullaby Trust and Hull Royal Infirmary.
She added: "We went through a massive bereavement but being pregnant again helped us as, when Edward was born, we were able to see another baby healthy and thriving, and we let out a sigh of release after we passed the six-month mark with him.
"We had never experienced teething when that started for Edward, and then when all the next stages of growing up started with him, it was like being new parents all over again.
"There was nothing that we needed to change in terms of sleep practices with Edward, as we had followed all the advice when putting him down.
"But we thought it was important to spread the message of safe sleeping practices, as Hull and the East Riding has some of the highest rates of SIDS in the country and not much is known about it.
"If more parents were educated, unlike Ralph's death, many other SIDS deaths could be avoided."
SIDS claims the lives of around 240 babies a year in the UK, with five dying every week. Around 85 per cent happen in the first six months of life and boys are at a slightly higher risk than girls.
Last week, Mrs Wakefield joined midwives from Hull Women and Children’s Hospital at St Stephen’s shopping centre as part of Safer Sleep Week, the national campaign organised by the Lullaby Trust.
She continues to support SIDS awareness, and has baby Ralph's ashes planted under a tree in the family's garden. She has told her sons about their much cherished brother, whose legacy will always live on through the SIDS campaign.
More information on SIDS and how to access advice and bereavement support from Lullaby Trust can be found here.
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