'I had an abortion - but I'm STILL pregnant three months later': Teenager, 19, discovers pills failed to work after feeling 'movements' in her stomach

Shannon Skinner had an abortion when she was eight weeks pregnant

She already had a four-month-old baby and she and partner Anthony were 'having problems' so thought it was not the right time for a second child

She continued to have morning sickness and to feel movements

Was told by doctors that it was just after effects of the abortion

Eventually, a pregnancy test came back positive and she was told she was five months pregnant - the couple have now decided to keep the baby

The baby does not appear to have been harmed by the abortion drugs

A teenage mother who had an abortion was shocked to discover she was still pregnant three months later. 

Shannon Skinner, 19, took the abortion pills when she was eight weeks pregnant, having decided it was too soon to have a second child.

But in a rare occurrence, the procedure failed and she continued having morning sickness and feeling movements in her womb.

Shannon Skinner, 19, had an abortion when she was eight weeks pregnant after she, and partner Anthony, decided it was too soon to have a second child - they also have a nine-month-old baby

Doctors told her they were side effects of the abortion, but after three months Ms Skinner and partner Anthony Hunt, 24, convinced medics to take them seriously.

Tests revealed the mother-of-one was pregnant - and her baby daughter had miraculously survived the induced miscarriage.

Scans have since shown that her baby looks physically fine and she is due to be born on May 7.

WHAT IS A MEDICAL ABORTION?

Medical abortion is available to women within the first nine weeks of pregnancy.

It involves taking two sets of pills over two visits to a clinic.

The woman usually experiences discomfort and heavy bleeding after taking the pills.

This normally lasts for a few days until the pregnancy has passed.

The abortion starts within four to five hours of taking the second set of tablets and is usually completed within one to two days.

Some women are not able to have a medical abortion, including those who are over 35 and smoke heavily, those who have a suspected ectopic pregnancy and those with heart disease.

Medical abortions fail to work in about two to three per cent of cases.

A spokeswoman for the British Pregnancy Advisory Service told MailOnline: 'There is a small risk of your pregnancy continuing with early medical abortion. 

'Good follow-up care is important, and any symptoms of ongoing pregnancy should be investigated. 

'The medication used has been associated with an increased risk of birth defects but that does not mean women in this rare situation cannot go on to have a healthy baby, and scans should provide reassurance.'

Source: Marie Stopes

Ms Skinner, who also has a nine-month-old daughter, Lacie, with Mr Hunt, said: ‘We thought she had gone.

‘I had grieved for that baby and we'd just managed to get our heads around it.

‘Anthony and I felt like we'd made the right decision because we were having problems and we didn't think it was right to bring a baby into that.

‘I'd always been one of those people that was against abortions and hated them but I was suffering with post-natal depression.

‘Lacie was just four months old at the time, so I had to do what I thought was best. 

‘But it was not an easy decision and I regretted it straight away after it and even at the time didn't know if I was doing the right thing.’

Ms Skinner, from Bristol, went for a medical abortion - which involves taking a series of tablets - on September 20.

But she returned to her GP after weeks of feeling unwell and she was given a pregnancy test to do at home - it was positive.

When she returned to her doctor another test was negative and she remained unaware she was carrying a baby until December 20 when a third test revealed she was pregnant.

She was told she must have become pregnant again after the abortion, even though she had had a contraceptive implant fitted.

But further tests revealed her baby had survived the abortion.

The couple have been told that survival after a medical abortion occurs in just three per cent of cases.

They are still inside the legal 24-week termination limit but the couple say their baby girl is now too old and has been put through too much.

Ms Skinner, a stay-at-home mother, said: ‘We've now decided to keep the baby, as we don't feel it's right to have an abortion at this stage.

‘She's obviously a little fighter, and we don't want to cause her any more harm.

After the abortion, Ms Skinner continued to suffer morning sickness and to feel movements in her womb. She has just been told she is five months pregnant and that the abortion failed to work

‘When I had the abortion it didn't feel the same as it does now - we have seen her and her heartbeat.’

Ms Skinner had her latest scan last week where midwives confirmed her baby daughter looked physically fine - but could not rule out future complications.

She said: ‘Everything is OK at the moment, everything is the way it should be.

 

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‘But the consultant couldn't promise it will stay like that when she is older, with her functioning skills.

‘There is nothing to say everything will be hunky-dory, there's no guarantee how it's going to go.’

A midwife at St Michael's Hospital, Bristol, where Ms Skinner is receiving check-ups, is investigating what happened and the couple have complained to Marie Stopes International who carried out the failed abortion.

Ms Skinner and Mr Hunt have now decided to keep the baby. It is not believed that she has suffered any ill effects as a result of the abortion drugs

A spokesperson for the family planning organisation said: ‘Very occasionally, the medical abortion pill can fail.

‘We discuss this with any woman considering the treatment and advise on the necessary follow-up to monitor for a failure, so further treatment may be sought if needed.

‘Cases like this are few and far between but of course that does not make the situation any the less upsetting.’

A spokeswoman for the British Pregnancy Advisory Service told MailOnline: 'There is a small risk of your pregnancy continuing with early medical abortion. 

'Good follow-up care is important, and any symptoms of ongoing pregnancy should be investigated. 

'The medication used has been associated with an increased risk of birth defects but that does not mean women in this rare situation cannot go on to have a healthy baby, and scans should provide reassurance.'

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2531658/I-abortion-three-months-later-I-STILL-pregnant-Woman-19-discovers-pills-failed-work-feeling-movements-stomach.html#ixzz2p5XRCCF2 
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Teenager, 19, who thought her watery eye was caused by make-up discovers it is CANCER tumour behind her nose

When Tasha Jilka began suffering from a watery left eye, she put the strange symptom down to her make-up or the seasonal weather.

But far from being an innocuous allergic reaction to cosmetics, the teenager's bizarre ailment was one which changed her life forever, as she was later diagnosed with cancer.

The 19-year-old's watery eye was caused by a rare cancer tumour called olfactory neuroblastoma at the back of her nose which left doctors eventually having to rebuild her whole face.

Rebuilding her life: Tasha Jilka has had extensive surgery to rebuild her face following the shock discovery of a cancer tumour behind her nose

Tasha's rare diagnosis was eventually made a year after she first suffered the watery eye, having been missed by doctors and opticians.

Her ordeal began in May 2008, when, aged 16, her symptoms began.

Tasha, from Leicester, said: 'My left eye was very watery but I just put it down to make-up. It kept getting worse and I decided to go to my GP.

'It was put down to a cold and the weather and I was told it would go by itself.

 

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'I went back a few times when it didn’t get better and was referred to an optician, but they couldn’t find anything either.'

Four months later, her eye had got worse and she was referred to a Cambridgeshire hospital, as she was living near there at the time.

Tasha had an operation to clear a blocked tear duct - but it still did not solve her problems.

In 2009, when she and her family moved to Leicester, she again went to her doctor and was referred to specialists at Leicester Royal Infirmary.

Tasha said: 'I had a similar eye test but this time doctors also looked up my nose and could see a lump.'

A biopsy was taken and a short time later, Tasha’s cancer was diagnosed.

Rare: Olfactory neuroblastoma is a form of cancer which affects the superior recess of the nasal cavity (stock picture)

She said: 'When I was told it was as if they were talking about someone else. I knew it was serious.

'I thought it was a little lump in my face but the news began to sink in.'

In May 2010 Tasha had surgery to remove the tumour.

It was so severe that surgeons had to reconstruct her nose and she is still having problems with the vision in one eye.

She has had two major operations, one to remove the tumour and a second to rebuild her nose.

It has also meant the shape of her face has changed.

Tasha said: 'I am very strong and I am pulling through, but it is very hard.

'I feel if I had been diagnosed earlier and known more about the symptoms, I might not have had to have two such major operations.

'I have lost a lot of feeling in my face and my sense of smell.'

Tasha is now backing a campaign by charity the Teenage Cancer Trust to raise awareness of cancer in young people.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2138048/Teen-19-thought-watery-eye-caused-make-discovers-CANCER.html#ixzz1tfmVviMV

Anorexic cover girl model, 19, dies in her sleep after weight drops to just six stone

An anorexic teenage covergirl died of heart failure in her sleep after her weight dropped to just six stone. 

Bethaney Wallace, 19, appeared to be living a dream lifestyle, appearing on the covers of glossy magazines including Girl Talk and Popgirl from the age of 12. 

But despite her stunning good looks she never believed she was attractive enough and succumbed to anorexia and bulimia aged 16.

Self conscious youth: Bethaney modelled from the age of 12 - but she never saw herself as attractive and was anorexic and bulimic by 16

The illnesses left her too weak to work and she was forced to step away from modelling.Over recent months she had shown signs of finally getting on top of the devastating condition by cooking for herself and had even put together a new modelling portfolio. 

But on April 18, she tragically passed away in her sleep while she was staying at her grandmother's house. 

Her devastated parents Clive, 47, and Cathy, 42, yesterday said there were indications Bethaney's weakened heart had failed as she slept. 

 

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They believe her anorexia developed as she struggled to keep off weight she lost during a bout of glandular fever. 

Mr Wallace, a roof tiler, said: 'We found it difficult to get help for her until she was willing to do it. There needs to be information out there for parents so they know what warning signs to look out for.

'When she was 16 food became a problem. She would go to the supermarket with us and stare at the food. But she would not sit at the dinner table with us.

Teen sensation: Bethaney Wallace appeared on the cover of popular magazines including Girl Talk at Pop Girl

'You can't feed them because they will just sick it up. Her friends said they would go to a restaurant and Bethaney would only order bread.

'The first time my wife noticed something was when Bethaney was asleep on the sofa and when she woke up the first thing she did was touch her stomach. 

'She lost her self esteem. She would say she was fat. But she was so beautiful. She didn't realise how pretty she was. Once a man was staring at her on the escalator so much that he fell down. 

'But she had up days and down days. It was like Jekyll and Hyde. 

'I tried to warn her that her organs would fail, but she just said "don't be silly". She would stay at my mother's house. 

'If you mentioned food it would start an argument.'

Grieving: Cathy and Clive Wallace were terrified for their daughter, but every conversation about food became an argument

Bethaney, who volunteered for Care UK in her home town of Newmarket, Suffolk, died at her grandmother's house in nearby Carlton on April 18. 

Her eating problems began when she got glandular fever aged 16 after a holiday in Greece - and became determined not to put the weight back on. 

The model's parents said she became agitated whenever anyone asked her what she was eating and would order just bread when she went out with friends. 

Mr and Mrs Wallace also told how they could never enjoy watching her eat because when she tucked in they knew she would make herself sick later. 

The couple today said they were left feeling helpless because Bethaney was legally an adult and they had no rights to force her to change. 

Mrs Wallace said: 'It was so hard to get the help. I went to the doctors a few times on my own. 

'I asked them to call her in for something else and then bring up the eating
disorder. 

'But Beth was not a child so I could not force her to get help. For parents you are slowly watching your child die. 

'It was out of our hands.'

Bethaney modelled for teen magazines Popgirl, BBC Girl Talk and Make It Groovy in 2004 when she was 12, making £112 per shoot. 

The former student of Hills Road Sixth Form College in Cambridge had hoped to pursue a career in photography and modelling. 

She stopped modelling for two years to concentrate on her school work and achieved four A*s, four As and one B for her GCSEs, as well as an A* for photography, B for Biology, B for Geography and C for Media Studies at A-level. 

Her parents said Bethaney's death had been made more tragic because they had started to feel like she had turned the corner and was getting on top of her conditions - after years of being too weak to even go shopping. 

Mr Wallace said: 'She was getting better. She was having counselling and making good progress.' 

He added: 'She had started doing more. I wonder if she had done too much. The paramedics said her blood sugar level was very low.'

Bethaney, left at a shoot, was forced to step away from modelling when her illnesses left her too weak to work

Housewife Mrs Wallace added: 'Girls were never jealous of Bethaney because when they spoke to her they realised she was really nice. The loveliness inside came out. 

'She stayed friends with everyone.

'Everyone who saw Bethaney knew she was a beautiful girl. But those who got to know her realised that she was beautiful inside too.

'She had an inviting smile and big brown eyes that would make everybody happy.

Bex Parramint, 30, from Power Model Management in Norwich, Norfolk, who represented Bethaney when she was modelling, paid tribute to her today. 

She said: 'I remember that as a little girl Bethaney would always have fresh flowers in her bedroom. 

'She was a really bright, smiley, beautiful little girl. She was so cute. She was just right as she was.' 

Mary George, spokeswoman for eating disorder charity Beat, said anorexia and bulimia 'take a huge toll on the body over a period of time'.

Unhappy: Despite her success, Bethaney lost all her self esteem and would only bread inn restaurants

She said: 'Our hearts go out to Bethaney's family - eating disorders are devastating illnesses and it is particularly poignant that she had been making progress in her battle to beat her illness. 

'Eating disorders take a huge toll on the body over a period of time.'

The coroner for Suffolk said the cause of Bethaney's death is uncertain pending tests. 

An inquest was opened and adjourned on April 23. Bethaney also leaves behind a sister Shari, 22. 

West Suffolk Eating Disorder Service in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, gave Bethaney an eating plan and she had been receiving counselling for a year. 

The bulimia and anorexia sufferer was 5ft 3ins and had weighed 6st 10lbs in February. 

Her BMI was 16.6, which meant she was categorised as dangerously underweight.

At Madrid Fashion Week 2012 models were banned from taking part if they had a BMI of less than 18. 

On the night she died, Bethaney had gone to stay with her grandmother in Moulton, Suffolk, on the night she died. 

The next morning her parents received a phone call from Bethaney's grandmother and they rushed round to find her dead.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2137423/Bethaney-Wallace-Anorexic-cover-girl-model-19-dies-sleep-weight-drops-6-stone.html#ixzz1tYpckVOd