Australian Hannah McLean says going into labour during the coronavirus lockdown in the United Kingdom had its advantages.
Her son Callan arrived so quickly he had to be delivered by paramedics in her London home on the Easter weekend.
“They came very quickly because there was no traffic on the road,” she told the ABC.
“I got in the bath and 10 minutes later we had a baby.”
But she soon discovered the downsides of the restrictions. The lockdown meant she could not see friends or family.
Worse still, her parents could not travel from Australia to meet their grandchild.
“I was thrown into depths of anxiety,” she said.
“What kind of world was I was bringing my baby into?”
As COVID-19 was taking hold around the globe, the Federal Government warned Australian travellers they should return home while airlines were still operating regular services.
But for Ms McLean, that was not an option.
“The thought of getting on a plane, I don’t think physically I could have done that as I was eight months’ pregnant,” she said.
“My partner is English, my life is here, my work is here.
“You can’t just suddenly click your fingers and go back to Australia.”
Ms McLean, who is originally from the Blue Mountains in NSW, is hoping to introduce Callan to his family soon.
However, she said strict caps on passenger arrivals in Australia had made securing a flight a “total nightmare”.
Read more here: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-09-01/australian-mothers-in-uk-chartering-flight-to-australia-covid-19/12604610
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