I thought my biggest thrill in Skegness would be the rollercoasters, but there was a bumpier ride ahead. By Melissa Lody, 31
I looked down at the little white stick and snapped a picture to send to my partner Tom.
See! Not pregnant! I wrote.
Tom had been urging me to take a test after one of his friends had fallen pregnant using the same contraceptive pill I was on.
Deep down, I already knew I couldn’t be having a baby. My periods were regular as clockwork and I hadn’t put on any weight.
I said to Tom: ‘I’ve had four kids already, I know what being pregnant feels like!’
After my fourth, I’d wanted to get my tubes tied but the doctor refused, saying I was too young. So we’d booked an appointment to see what our options were.
In the meantime, I hoped the test would put Tom’s mind at rest.
That weekend, we were due to take the kids on a family visit to see my Auntie Michelle in Skegness.
On the Friday morning, 12 of us crammed into a mini-van and set off on the four-hour journey from my home in Woking, Surrey.
My mum Dawn had planned our visit down to the last minute and when we got there, we went out exploring.
Then, on Saturday morning, we were up at 8 o’clock for a fry-up at our camp site, before heading out to the amusement park.
I hadn’t been on a rollercoaster in ages, and looking at the drops and loops, I decided to watch from the side lines instead.
But my daughter Lexie, 12, had other plans.
‘Come on, Mum, let’s go on that big one!’ she said, pointing to the biggest rollercoaster in the park.
My stomach churned at the sight of it, but not wanting to let her down, I reluctantly followed her to the queue.
On the rollercoaster, I screamed as it looped, twisted and spun, thrashing me around.
When it finally stopped and we got off, I felt dizzy and lightheaded.
Seeing my face, Michelle laughed, and said: ‘You’ve gone green, Melissa.’
‘I don’t feel great,’ I admitted.
I decided to give the rollercoasters a miss after that, and slowly I started to feel normal again.
That evening, we played bingo and went to a family disco. I wasn’t a big drinker but seeing as I was on holiday, I allowed myself to have a tipple after Mum had taken the kids to bed.
‘Cheers!’ I said, knocking back my peach schnapps and lemonade.
'I did not see that coming!'
At around 11pm, I went to bed but I couldn’t sleep. I kept having to go to the toilet, keeping Tom awake too.
‘What’s wrong?’ he said. ‘Can you go and sleep on the sofa if you’re restless.’
‘My stomach is really sore,’
I said.
I sat on the loo again and suddenly a wave of pain hit me. I let out a scream and Tom ran into the bathroom.
‘What now?’ he asked.
But his face soon filled with concern, as tears started pouring down my face. I doubled over and let out another almighty howl.
Before I knew it, Tom had flown out of our caravan and was bashing on Mum’s door.
‘Melissa’s dying!’ I heard him screaming at the top of his lungs.
Mum dashed into our caravan and helped me on to the sofa. She dialled the NHS non-emergency number and spoke to an operator.
‘Melissa,’ she said, ‘they’ve asked if there’s any chance you could be pregnant.’
‘No,’ I said. ‘I took a pregnancy test a few days ago and it was negative.’
I knew tests weren’t always completely accurate, but I didn’t even have a bump.
Just then, however, I felt an overwhelming urge to push down below.
‘Mum!’ I wailed. ‘There’s something coming.’
Mum bent down to look, and moments later she stood up, holding something in her arms.
When I saw what it was, my jaw hit the floor.
‘I did not see that coming!’ Tom said.
‘Me neither!’ I gasped.
It was a baby girl.
Mum placed her in my arms, but I was in shock.
‘You take her,’ I said to Mum.
An ambulance arrived, and we were whisked to hospital to be checked over.
When we got there, I had a thought.
I turned to Tom in a panic, and said: ‘We don’t have anything we need.’
‘I’ll sort it,’ he said.
He and my sister Becky left and made a mad dash to the supermarket for essentials.
They cleared the store of bottles and babygros and came back with something that wasn’t on the list.
‘What do you think of Poppie as a name?’ Tom asked me.
‘I absolutely love it,’ I said.
We were moved to a family room, where I had the chance to bond with Poppie. She weighed 6lb 3oz, and the doctor said she was full term.
But to me she looked tiny.
‘That’s probably why you didn’t feel her,’ one of the midwives said. ‘She was hiding behind your stomach.’
Mum checked in to a hotel so she could stay near me, while Tom took the kids home as planned.
I hoped to join them the next day, but I started feeling woozy and my temperature shot up.
I was moved to A&E where a doctor took one look at me, picked up the phone, and said: ‘I’ve got a sepsis emergency.’
He hadn’t even examined me, and I thought: Wow, I must look as ill as I feel.
I was moved to intensive care but, luckily, I started to improve quickly. It turned out Poppie had sepsis too, and I was racked with guilt, thinking I was responsible.
I felt that if I’d known I was pregnant, it wouldn’t have happened.
I also felt guilty about going on the rollercoaster and drinking.
‘What if I’ve done her long-term damage?’ I said to Mum.
‘You weren’t to know, love,’ she replied.
Fortunately, Poppie responded well to treatment, and a week later we were told we could go home.
Michelle came to say goodbye.
‘Hopefully, when you come again, it will be as exciting as this time,’ she said.
‘I hope not,’ I replied, my eyes widening. ‘There’s been a bit too much excitement if you
ask me.’
Back at home, no one could believe what had happened. The kids were baffled by Poppie.
‘But where did she come from?’ they asked.
It was hard to explain that she’d been in my tummy all along, but I hadn’t known.
Since her arrival, I’ve switched from the Pill to a contraceptive implant. Poppie was a lovely surprise, but we’ve definitely got all the children we need now.
When I went to Skegness, I only expected to get a stick of rock, but I came back with something much better.
When Poppie is older, we’ll take her back there and tell her: ‘This is where you appeared out of nowhere.’
I wonder if she’ll be as surprised as I was, finding out
I was secretly preggy in Skeggy!