Sophie, the Countess of Wessex, recently, dropped by the air ambulance service that came to her aid when she suffered a pregnancy emergency in 2001. The wife of Prince Edward visited Thames Valley Air Ambulance base as the service staff celebrated their 21st anniversary.
According to People, Sophie was given a tour of the emergency helicopters that, now, have advanced medical equipment. The Countess of Sussex, also, talked with some of the staff and the invited former patients who owe their lives to the emergency service.
Thames Valley Air Ambulance is the first charity to operate on the White Waltham Airfield at the turn of the new millennium. Sophie, unfortunately, needed this service when she suffered an ectopic pregnancy during the early years of her marriage to Prince Edward.
In 2003, Sophie had to be airlifted to London from Bagshot Park for a life-threatening operation. The baby in her belly was her first child with Prince Edward following their marriage in 1999.
Sophie gave birth to a premature baby girl who was barely five pounds in weight. But, the Queen's daughter-in-law was also minutes from death as she was losing a lot of blood and slipping from her consciousness.
The Countess of Wessex had to be monitored for the next 24 hours after the operation and she barely got a glimpse of the baby she named Louise. Many said that she wasn't able to breastfeed Louis properly because of what she's been through. Prince Edward, on the other hand, was not told of how bad the situation was until he reached the hospital following his trip to Mauritius.
Friends recalled that Sophie's traumatic experience affected her as a person and a mom. She will hug the baby but she will keep her emotion under control. Some friends described Sophie as "caring but formal" around her kids.
The Countess of Wessex told friends later on that the pregnancy emergency was the "most frightening time" of her life. Then, three months after Louise's birth, Sophie and Prince Edward learned that their baby suffered from esotropia, an eye condition that will require many more hospital treatments. To get through this medical ordeal, Sophie needed two nannies to help care for Louise since she was still recovering from the birth and the operation.
Despite what happened, Sophie and Prince Edward still decided to have a second child. After several IVF tries, James, Viscount Severn, was born in 2007.
