A MUM has told of her terror as she faced every parent’s worst nightmare when she discovered her baby unresponsive in her crib.

Karen Shields discovered little Saylor with her eyes rolling back in her head when she was just days away from giving birth to her fourth child.

Saylor, who was 13 months old at the time of her ordeal, soon began to seize and was rushed from her Balornock home to Govan’s Royal Hospital for Children as ambulance staff frantically worked to save her life.

Karen, 36, watched on helplessly for what felt like a “lifetime” as puzzled medics scrambled to determine what had caused the youngster to develop a mystery illness.

The mum-of-four said: “It was just absolutely terrifying. It was the worst thing we’ve ever went through.

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“She normally shouts and talks in her sleep, which she was doing, but I woke up about 4am and I thought her breathing sounded a bit funny. When I checked on her she seemed fine, but I stayed up for about an hour watching her.

“I must’ve fallen back asleep and when I woke up it was 7am which we automatically thought was strange because she always wakes at 6am. When I walked over to the cot, she was completely unresponsive, and her eyes were rolling back. I lifted her up and she was totally floppy.”

Karen and husband Liam, 35, immediately dialled 999 but were told the service was extremely busy and they would be put on hold.

The terrified mother screamed in the background it was a baby who required the service, and the operator immediately dispatched a vehicle.

However, things took a turn for the worst when Saylor began to seize in her mother’s arms prompting the family – including big sisters Stephanie, 16, and 15-year-old Skye – to fear the worst.

“The people on the phone tried to keep us calm,” Karen said, “but it was just too difficult. She started to take a seizure and when the paramedics arrived, they just grabbed her out my arms and we were on our way to the hospital.”

Paramedics alerted the hospital to the seriousness of the situation to ensure they were prepared ahead of time and began administering life-saving treatment as Karen looked on.

After her arrival at the hospital, the toddler began to come around but was left paralysed down her right side for several hours.

Her heartbroken parents were told she had suffered from a vocal seizure, but doctors were unable to determine the cause or if she’ll ever have another one.

Karen said: “If it happens again, they’ll diagnose her with epilepsy, but they’re quite convinced she’ll never have one again. Her CT scan was clear and we’re just waiting for her MRI this week.

“The only thing different in her routine that week was she had had her MMR vaccine the day before but we can’t be sure if she’s taken a reaction to that or it was something else.

“It’s just so scary to not know. It’s a waiting game now. It feels like we’re constantly waiting for her to have another one but, at the same time, praying she doesn’t.”

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The tot made a full recovery and the family went on to welcome baby Tate on December 8 – just days after little Saylor returned home.

Now, after ringing in the new year with a healthy toddler, the mum has offered her thanks to the paramedics who saved her life.

“It would’ve been a different story if they hadn’t gotten there so quickly and done what they did,” she said.

“I can never thank them enough. How can you thank them for bringing back your child? You just can’t.

“Thankfully, she’ll never have a memory of this but we can still barely sleep. We’re just so grateful they did what they did.”

Paramedic Martin Zaranski and technician Karli Boyd attended to Saylor after her ordeal. Karli said: “It was so nice receiving feedback like this. It really does mean a lot to me.

“This was a job that was really me close to my heart as I have a young girl the same age, sadly it was a very rushed job as it was time critical so we never spent much time with mum or the patient.

“Sometimes you feel like you neglect the parent as you are so focused on the patient. Although we do try and explain to mum what we are doing and why as best as we can. It’s so touching to hear that mum appreciated our work and I’m so glad that we were able to help.

“I went home and gave my little girl a massive hug that day. I hope they are doing well now, as we never get to find out what happens after you leave the patient at hospital.”