A HEARTBROKEN mum has spoken of the distress she faced when her 12-week-old daughter contracted coronavirus.

Winter-Rose Watson was admitted to Royal Blackburn Hospital on Friday morning, suffering with a severe temperature and struggling to breathe.

Mum Jade Watson, 27, said it was heartbreaking to see her little girl in so much pain, but what made it worse was the fact she had to go through the ordeal alone, without the comfort of having her family and friends around her.

She is now advising other parents to be vigilant and stay indoors, after previous reports suggested babies were not as susceptible to the virus.

***Warning, some viewers may find this video upsetting***

Miss Watson, who also has a six-year-old son, said: “On Thursday she had a really bad temperature, it was about 38.5 degrees.

“So I contacted 111 and they advised me to stay at home. But at about 5am on Friday I’d set my alarm to check on her and she’d got really warm, even more than she was before. I didn’t even need to touch her, there was heat just coming off her. She was gasping for breath.

“I called for an ambulance but it took around three hours to get here. Her temperature had gone down slightly but it was still 39.1.”

When Miss Watson arrived at hospital with Winter-Rose she claims a senior doctor told her babies did not get Covid-19 and they would not be testing the 12 week old.

She said: “That really upset me, and they could see that. A consultant said he still wanted to give her a test though and they put a cannula in her hand and tried to put a catheter in her too, it was heartbreaking.”

***Warning, some viewers may find this video upsetting***

Miss Watson said it usually takes 24 to 48 hours for a coronavirus test to come back, so while doctors waited for the results, they carried out other checks and placed Winter-Rose on antibiotics to try and bring her fever down.

The mum-of-two said: "They put needles in her spine to check for meningitis and gave her antibiotics, but they didn't work.

"And on Saturday morning the doctor came and told me she had tested positive for coronavirus.

"She was on a drip to try and get her fluids back up but there was nothing else they could do to help her fight it."

Over the weekend, Winter-Rose's condition improved and she was allowed to go back to her home in Burnley on Monday morning, where Miss Watson was told to isolate with the 12-week-old for 14 days.

She added: "She's still got the virus and I don't know if I've had it or not, as the only symptom I had was a headache that wouldn't go away, even after taking headache pills.

"My son was with me a couple of days before Winter went into hospital, but now he has to isolate with his dad at his home as we don't know if he could have it too.

"It's been such a difficult time as I've not been able to have anyone come and visit. Even when I was in the hospital I was on my own, it was hard.

"You need support at times like this, but with this whole situation, it must be so difficult for people who are in hospital alone, not having anyone to come and visit them.

"That was the hardest thing - having no-one to support me at the hospital.

"I did receive a lot of nice messages from people online though. That was quite overwhelming, and made me cry but it's what got me through."

Miss Watson said doctors are continuing to check on Winter-Rose's condition every day, and family members drop food and other items outside her house.

She said: "There's been talk of this virus not affecting babies the same way as others, but it does, and it has affected Winter so much. I had never seen her looking so helpless.

"I'd only been out of the house really to go to Lidl and Home Bargains but people need to listen to the advice, and stay indoors."