How Mum’s Premonitions She’ll Die During C-section Delivery Saved Her Life

41-year-old Stephanie Arnold who had been very vocal about her premonitions that she’ll die during delivery slipped away on the operating table, after welcoming her second child, a son, Jacob, via C-section. Before she was wheeled off to the operating room, convinced that she would die, she had said goodbye to her husband, Jonathan, and their 18-month-old daughter, Adina.

The mum of two subsequently ‘died’ on the operation table after suffering an amniotic fluid embolism – a rare and often fatal pregnancy complication, where the amniotic fluid – the fluid that surrounds the fetus – enters the mother’s bloodstream, triggering anaphylatic shock. Doctors however miraculously revived her after 37 long seconds.

Now, 43, Mrs Arnold reportedly claims it was her premonition of what was about to happen to her, that alerted doctors to her fate.

Mrs Arnold who told DailyMail she experienced six detailed vision of dying in childbirth during her pregnancy, said, ‘The reason I am alive today and able to speak the way I am able to speak is because they were prepared.’

The Chicago mum was 20 weeks pregnant when she was told she had placenta previa – a condition that affects one in 200 pregnancies and causes the placenta to grow on top of the cervix. She was surprised to hear the news after suffering no complications during her first pregnancy. So, after receiving the diagnosis, Mrs Arnold researched the condition and learned that, in the worst case scenario, placenta previa can turn into placenta accreta – a dangerous condition that can cause severe hemorrhaging and necessitate an emergency hysterectomy.

She said, ‘I got a visceral reaction that this is exactly what was going to happen to me.’ She could not shake off a dark shadow – visions of her own death while pregnant.

‘From that day on, until I gave birth, I had detailed visions. I was walking through Tribeca Park [in New York City, where I used to live]… and I looked at the empty fountain. I was strolling my daughter across the park, and I imagined the water falling and turn to blood,’ she said.

Mrs Arnold immediately went to the hospital, convinced something was wrong with her pregnancy. She told the doctors that she knew she had placenta accreta.

However, after an examination, the mother was told she was fine and sent home, but she knew the doctors were wrong. She told her husband, her family, her friends – but no one believed her, she claims they dismissed her as being ‘pregnant, hormonal and crazy.’

Yet, Mrs Arnold was convinced she was going to die, and started writing goodbye letters and preparing for her death. Desperate for answers, Mrs Arnold then sought out specialists for help.

They did an MRI to see if there were any signs of placenta accreta – and once again, Mrs Arnold was told she was fine. However, someone flagged her file with a note that extra blood should be present in the operating room just in case.

Mrs Arnold said: ‘That effectively saved my life.’

During the delivery, Mrs Arnold’s heart stopped – yet doctors were able to revive her and move her to intensive care.

Seven hours later, they noticed she was still hemorrhaging, and had to perform a hysterectomy.

‘Even though the MRI was negative, when they did pathology on the uterus, they saw the accrete had formed,’ she said.

Mrs Arnold spent the next six days in a medically induced coma – without even meeting her baby son, Jacob.

During that time, doctors – and her husband – had no idea whether she’d wake up with full brain function, due to the loss of oxygen while her heart stopped.

But when Mrs Arnold woke up, it was clear almost immediately that she was fine.

Through regressive therapy, Mrs Arnold said she has been able to ‘go back’ and relive the moment where she died.

She said that she could recall – in perfect detail – what went on in the operating room, and even what her daughter did while playing down the hall with the nanny as the C-section was happening.

Mrs Arnold taped her therapy sessions and showed them to her doctors, who were shocked.

They said she couldn’t have possibly remembered all of those details – especially without attending medical school.

Now, a mother to two healthy babies, Mrs Arnold works extensively with the Amniotic Fluid Embolism Foundation to raise awareness of the condition. She said,

‘It doesn’t matter your race, age, religion, blood type or the sex of the baby – there are some women who have it on their first child and some that have it on their eighth child. If you sense something, say something, she said. ‘It’s so important – even if you think you are crazy. It’s better to speak up because it could save your life.’