Hannah, 28, a stay-at-home mum from Belvedere, Kent, shares their story.
"My bouncy baby boy Michael was born on 10 October 2016, weighing in at a very healthy 8lbs 15oz. I had the perfect birth and he was wonderful. I brought him home and he met his big sister who was two at the time. On the 14th of October, in the evening I had him on my lap and thought he felt a bit warm, so I took off his baby grow and left him in his vest while I breastfed him.
"After a little while he still hadn't cooled down so I used a digital thermometer, which read 38 degrees. I was not happy so took him to a walk-in centre to be checked over. This was at about 6pm. The doctor monitored him for about 15 minutes. His temperature was now at 39 degrees so we were told to go to hospital. The ward was expecting us. I was on my own with my baby trying to feed him when the doctor came in to check him over. By this point he was fussing so much he wouldn't latch.
The doctor picked him up off the hospital bed and told me to follow him to the neo-natal ward. As we were walking he told me that Michael would have to have a lumbar puncture as he suspected meningitis.
I felt my world crumble around me.
"My four-day old baby boy was taken to a room by himself and I was left in the family room. The nurses were wonderful, they consoled me and explained everything in detail, while Michael was having the procedure done.
"I was taken to the private room where Michael was. An IV had been placed in his little hand and he was already hooked up to two different antibiotics, paracetamol and fluids. As it was a Friday night the lumbar puncture sample was delayed in testing, so doctors were unable to tell me what strain of meningitis Michael had.
"By this point, Michael was making startled movements and sleeping constantly. It was the longest night of my life. Finally, after two days of antibiotics and paracetamol, his temperature had come down and doctors advised Michael was suffering from viral meningitis, caused by enterovirus. This is basically a tummy bug in older children and adults, but his little body couldn't handle the germs. The antibiotics were stopped and my little boy fought off the virus by himself. He even lifted his little head up to look around the room. He is now a very happy healthy 18-month-old. I'm so glad I followed my instincts and had him checked over."
