A woman who did not realise she was pregnant has described giving birth alone at the beauty parlour where she worked before cutting her baby's umbilical cord with eyebrow scissors.
Bryony Mills-Evans said she did not think she wanted children, but was thrust into motherhood at the age of 23 despite having no pregnancy symptoms.
Cryptic pregnancies, where a woman is unaware they are pregnant until late on, or as in Bryony's case, when in labour, have been described as "rare, but not exceptionally rare" by one midwifery professor.
After recently discovering little was known about such pregnancies, Bryony has decided to raise awareness so others who have experienced something similar know they are not alone.
A study has suggested there are about 325 of these surprise births in the UK every year.
The beautician was in work in Newtown, Powys, on the day she gave birth, and after finishing with her last client felt what she thought were just menstrual cramps.
"I had tight leggings on so I went on the beauty bed in the back to take them down because I thought that might ease the pain," she said.
"Within 10 minutes of lying there her head had come out.
"I thought I'd just gone to the toilet, looked down and saw her head."
Bryony instinctively started to push and gave birth to her 6lb 14 oz (3.1kg) baby girl, Willow.
"I didn't really know what to do. My phone had died and was in another room, so I just lay on the bed for a bit," she said.
"After a while I noticed her umbilical cord had started going white. I had eyebrow scissors next to me, not that I know anything about babies, but I cut that with them and wrapped her up in loads of towels."
Bryony, who has since had a second baby, then dashed to charge her phone before heading to the toilet.
"I didn't know that your placenta has to come out. I think maybe I freaked more with that because I thought it was another baby," she recalled.
After calling 999 Bryony was sent to hospital.
While being asked questions by paramedics en route, she said she texted her mum something along the lines of "I've just had a baby, not to worry, we're both fine," before asking if she could meet her there.
"I don't think I held her until the next morning," she said.
"I was definitely freaked out because I was only 23 and didn't think I ever wanted any kids."
Bryony said it was only when her mum suggested she named her new baby that she began to calm down a bit.
"It was a shock. Everyone always says to me 'you must have been petrified'.
"I don't really remember being petrified, it's just one of those moments where you just get on with it because you don't really have another choice."
Bryony said she had none of the tell-tale symptoms you would expect if you were pregnant - including a baby bump.
"When people ask 'how could you not know?' I always say 'if you have a period monthly...why are you checking that you're pregnant?' " she said.
While pregnant Bryony went to Alton Towers theme park where she went on every ride, attended music festivals and went on a trip to Poland, which she now believes was on her due date.
Remarkably, she said she was told that her daughter Willow could have been around two weeks overdue due to her "wrinkly old man" appearance.
"I had a bad back but I always have one because I'm 5'11 and slouch in my job every day, so it was no more than normal," she said.
Copyright © Times of London © 2021