Paulson’s story: “The Butterfly Fund helped us feel we weren’t alone”

Baby Paulson was welcomed into the world at only 24 weeks on 11 December 2023. He died just four days later. This is the story of Paulson’s short but precious life, told by his parents, Paulina and Jesiah.

During a routine scan, the family learnt of complications to the pregnancy and the decision was made to welcome Paulson into the world early. “When Paulson was born, he didn’t make a sound. He was the quietest baby you’ve ever seen. He was also the tiniest! Apart from being very premature, we didn’t think there was anything to be worried about.”

Paulina and Jesiah had time for only a brief cuddle before Paulson was rushed to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and placed on a ventilator to help him breathe – a common procedure for premature babies. They didn’t know it yet, but he would stay on the ventilator for most of his short life.

With Paulson admitted to NICU for the foreseeable future until he grew a little bigger and stronger, Paulina and Jesiah moved into hospital accommodation so that they could spend as much time together as a family as they could. “As soon as we woke up, we’d go over to the hospital and say hello to our baby boy. We’d stay there until the sun set, enjoying time together as a family and soaking up all the cuddles. Paulson is our first and only child and we wanted to soak up as much baby time with our little boy as possible – even with all the hospital noise in the background!”

But on his third day in hospital, Paulson took a turn for the worse and Paulina and Jesiah received the devastating news no parent wants to hear: the medical team had found severe bleeding in Paulson’s brain. They likely had a matter of hours left together.

Faced with the worst news, Paulina and Jesiah made the unbearable decision to remove Paulson from the ventilator. “Giving the doctors the go ahead to remove Paulson’s ventilator was one of the hardest decisions we’ve ever had to make. But we didn’t want Paulson to be in any more pain. We didn’t want our baby boy to suffer any more, just for us to spend a few more hours with him.”

Paulson died in the arms of his parents, only four days old.

After Paulson’s death, the family were referred to their local children’s hospice. Paulson and his parents moved into family accommodation at the hospice and they were able to spend seven more precious days together.

During their stay at the hospice, the team looked after the family’s every need. No request was too great. “They were simply wonderful. They helped with everything, from giving us the extra time to spend together as a family, to helping with funeral arrangements. We could not have got through those first few days without them.”

The care team also referred Paulson’s family for a Butterfly Fund grant from Together for Short Lives – a one-off £300 financial gift that the family can choose to spend however they want.

“Neither of us were working so the Butterfly Fund was a huge comfort during a really difficult time. The money went a long way. We were able to arrange for beautiful flowers at Paulson’s funeral, and it helped take the pressure off daily living expenses in an already tough time.”

Donate to the Butterfly Fund today. Your gift will give a family like Paulson’s a helping hand when they need it most.