{"id":114493,"date":"2025-09-04T17:31:10","date_gmt":"2025-09-04T17:31:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/114493\/"},"modified":"2025-09-04T17:31:10","modified_gmt":"2025-09-04T17:31:10","slug":"i-got-deadly-sepsis-breastfeeding-my-baby-charli-says-capital-fms-aimee-vivian","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/114493\/","title":{"rendered":"‘I got deadly sepsis breastfeeding my baby Charli,’ says Capital FM’s Aimee Vivian"},"content":{"rendered":"

Capital FM star Aimee Vivian developed the condition mastitis while breastfeeding which led to deadly sepsis<\/p>\n

13:55, 04 Sep 2025Updated 16:33, 04 Sep 2025<\/p>\n

\"CapitalCapital FM’s Aimee Vivian nearly died<\/p>\n

It is one of the most natural things a woman’s body can produce. It sustains life and helps to strengthen the bond between mother and child. But Capital FM star Aimee Vivian\u2019s breast milk nearly killed her.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember looking at a hospital midwife and saying \u2018please don\u2019t let me die tonight<\/a>\u2019,\u201d she tells The Mirror<\/a>. “I really thought I wasn\u2019t going to make it. I still can\u2019t believe something so simple, which is supposed to provide life, almost ended mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now 34-year-old Aimee, back home in Buckinghamshire with daughter Charli, is keen to raise awareness of the causes of the breast condition mastitis <\/a>and the subsequent deadly sepsis<\/a> infection which took hold earlier this year.<\/p>\n

Speaking at the start of September’s Sepsis Awareness Mont<\/a>h, she says: \u201cMotherhood is an amazing journey but it can be hard. We need to talk about mastitis, learn the symptoms and what it can lead to. It\u2019s time to support each other.\u201c<\/p>\n

READ MORE: ‘I have HIV and I still breastfeed my baby – there are so many misconceptions’<\/a>READ MORE: Expert who reversed her severe eczema issues warning as Brit kids ‘among most allergic’<\/a>\"AimeeAimee and baby Charli enjoy a cuddle \"AimeeAimee looking healthy after her ordeal <\/p>\n

Married to husband Steve for two years, Aimee, who is due back on air in October following her maternity leave, had her daughter June by planned caesarean section in June.<\/p>\n

She says: \u201cMy pregnancy<\/a> was pretty straightforward – I developed a whole new appreciation of what a woman\u2019s body could do! The Caesarian was a really positive experience too with wonderful midwives – I was only in hospital overnight.\u201d<\/p>\n

But from day one Aimee\u2019s body produced an abundance of breast milk. She says: \u201cEveryone was telling me it was brilliant and I was feeling quite good about it. Once we got home, though, things became difficult.\u201d<\/p>\n

Baby Charli had difficulty latching on to breastfeed because of a tongue tie – a condition where tissue connecting a baby\u2019s tongue to the floor of the mouth is shorter than normal.<\/p>\n

An appointment was made for doctors to rectify the problem and, in the meantime, Aimee used a breast pump to help her feed and to ease the huge supplies of milk her body was producing.<\/p>\n

Soon, though, her breasts became painfully engorged. Medics offered advice on how to tackle it, but very little worked. After three weeks, Aimee began to feel unwell – suffering with headaches<\/a> and chills.<\/p>\n

She recalls: \u201cI was tired too, but I was a new mum and just persevered. After a couple of days I still didn\u2019t feel right, though. I’d read online about mastitis and knew I had some of the symptoms.”<\/p>\n

The inflammatory condition is common in breastfeeding women and can be caused by an infection or a build up of milk. Symptoms can include swollen breasts which are hot to the touch as well as \u2018flu like symptoms.<\/p>\n

\"MumNew mum Aimee with baby Charli \"AimeeAimee enjoys a day out with baby Charli <\/p>\n

Aimee made an appointment to see a GP who wasn’t convinced it was mastitis. She remembers: \u201cShe was adamant it was an oversupply of milk and that putting Charli on the breast would help. But I couldn\u2019t. I felt ashamed, guilty. \u201cI tried to advocate for myself but it was hard. I left the surgery doubting myself.\u201d<\/p>\n

She did secure antibiotics – albeit with the proviso from the doctor that she start them only if she felt no better. \u201cI thought \u2018maybe it will get better\u2019 and I just got on with things,\u201d says Aimee<\/p>\n

But over the next couple of days Aimee\u2019s health deteriorated. \u201cI woke up early one Sunday morning to feed Charli and I was so cold my whole body was shaking. My head hurt so much I could barely lift it. Then I tried to pump some milk. The pain was excruciating and it was clear the milk was infected – there was puss in it.\u201d<\/p>\n

At her wits\u2019 end she posted for help on her Instagram<\/a> account and got a response from a local midwife. \u201cShe messaged me and said: \u2018you need to get down to the hospital. Don’t leave it any longer,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Within a couple of hours Aimee was admitted and hooked up to intravenous antibiotics with what doctors told her was a \u2018serious infection\u2019 later confirmed as sepsis.<\/p>\n

\"PregnantPregnant Aimee shows off her bump \"AimeeAimee looks radiant <\/p>\n

Aimee says: \u201cIt was horrible. I felt so unwell and so upset that as a new mum I couldn\u2019t be with my baby. \u201cThe fear of dying when you hear sepsis is very real. I remember Steve and Charli had been to visit and when they\u2019d gone I thought \u2018what if I never see him or her again?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

After four days in hospital she was allowed home but admits her recovery has been slow, both mentally and physically. She also consulted a lactation expert to help stop her body producing milk as she cannot risk a mastitis infection again.<\/p>\n

She says: \u201cI keep asking myself how my breast milk – the thing that is advocated so hard for – could have nearly killed me? I don’t say that to scare people because breastfeeding is great but I wish I’d have known the symptoms of mastitis sooner; I could have gone to the doctor sooner, trusted my instincts, taken those antibiotics earlier.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now she is determined to speak out about her ordeal and encourage other women to get informed. She says: \u201cI don’t want anyone to have to go through what I have so trust your gut – you know your body better than anyone and don\u2019t be afraid to speak up.\u201d<\/p>\n

As for the future, Aimee is looking forward to days spent with her brand new family. \u201cThey say what doesn\u2019t kill you makes you stronger,\u201d she reflects. \u201cNow I know I am going to be ok. I am excited for the next chapter.<\/p>\n

READ MORE: Beauty fans rush to Boots as No7 beauty advent calendar with ‘highest ever value’ launches<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Capital FM star Aimee Vivian developed the condition mastitis while breastfeeding which led to deadly sepsis 13:55, 04…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":114494,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[55106,55105,59,102,2268,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-114493","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-health","8":"tag-breastfeeding","9":"tag-capital-fm","10":"tag-gb","11":"tag-health","12":"tag-sepsis","13":"tag-uk","14":"tag-united-kingdom","15":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114493","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=114493"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114493\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/114494"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=114493"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=114493"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=114493"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}