"He was our miracle baby and our last chance of having kids - now he's gone."
These are the poignant words from a Yorkshire mum, Sammy Knowles, who has shared the harrowing final moments of her four year old son Jaxon's life. The Sheffield family faced an unimaginable ordeal when Jaxon began 'crying blood' after developing a rash, which led to a fatal case of meningitis.
Sammy, 40, and her husband John, 38, had recently enjoyed a holiday in Blackpool with Jaxon, where he was his usual energetic self, diving into the pool and playing with his uncle and a family friend. However, upon returning home on Sunday, February 16, Jaxon's condition deteriorated rapidly.
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Recounting the tragic events, Mrs Knowles said: "He was complaining about under his arm [armpit] hurting. He then went to sleep for a while before waking up to say that he had a tummy ache."
She added, "When we got home around 6pm on Sunday, as I lifted him out of the car he kept asking to sleep in 'mummy's bed' - which he always did when he was ill.", reports Yorkshire Live.
Tragically, Jaxon passed away in hospital the following day, Monday, February 17.
"He often got chest infections, so it was nothing new. I gave him some Calpol, which usual sorts out illnesses and did keep his temperature down. I stayed up with him till 2am and then woke up at 5am where I used my torch on my phone so I was able to see his temperature reading - but that was when I saw a rash.
"My first thought was that it was chicken pox and I was devastated for him but when I turned on the lamp next to me, I immediately saw how bad it was.
"I told my husband that I wanted to go to A&E straightaway and as we were getting dressed his condition got worse. He threw up, then his mouth and tongue began swelling. We immediately called 999 who told us to lay him down but he couldn't breathe so we had to turn him to his side."
'Felt like an eternity' "It felt like an eternity had passed until emergency responders arrived then the ambulance crews. We were not told anything about it being meningitis until we were in the ambulance where we were told 15 nurses and doctors were waiting in the ICU of Rotherham Hospital.
"I was in shock as I had not heard anything about meningitis for years."
In the hospital, doctors and nurses worked tirelessly on Jaxon as his rash worsened and turned purple. Sammy and John tried their best to comfort him.
Mrs Knowles said: "He just kept asking to sleep in mummy's room. I tried to distract him by singing his favourite lullabies. He was crying blood and it was awful.
"The doctors eventually told us that he needed to be put into a coma and the plan was to send him to a children's hospital. They continued to work on him and told us that they managed to restart his heart when it stopped but then we were urgently called back into the room as he had then died."
Now, still reeling from the shock of their son's sudden passing, Jaxon's parents are preparing for his funeral on March 10. Mrs Knowles shared: "It still doesn't feel real. He was fine all weekend and in a matter of hours he is gone. There were no symptoms of meningitis.
"He was our miracle baby and our last chance of having kids as I am 40-years-old. We tried for seven years and went through five rounds of IVF as well as other fertility treatments."
She added, "He changed our world and finally made us parents after we suffered three miscarriages. He took our sadness away. He loved going on holiday and travelled the world with us. We took him to Lapland last Christmas."
Adding: "He was such as good boy, no trouble at all. Now we have nothing."
A charity foundation page has been set up in Jaxon's name, with all donations going to Meningitis Now. Tonight, at the Sheffield Wednesday game against Sunderland, which kicks off at 8pm, there will be a four-minute applause in memory of Jaxon, who was a big fan of the club.
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