UK mom of five dies after paracetamol overdose

Gemma Lennard from Manchester, United Kingdom, died a week after she lost her sixth baby to a still birth from an overdose of the pain killer paracetamol. This unexpected tragedy happened when Lennard, who was dealing with extreme back pain after giving birth to a stillborn baby at 24 weeks. Multiple organ failure, cause by the liver giving up, was the official cause of death of this mom of many. She was on prescription pain killers as well as paracetamol as recommend by her general practitioner.

Our hearts go out to Lennard's husband Robert and their five children. Gemma Lennard was in her 24th week of pregnancy, and was expecting her sixth baby, when she suddenly started bleeding. She asked her husband to call an ambulance, but when a misunderstanding with the emergency services dispatcher caused a delay in the arrival of help, Robert Lennard decided to drive his wife to the hospital himself. When they got there, an ultrasound revealed that the baby girl, whom the couple named Ariana, had already passed away. Labor was then induced, and Lennard gave birth to her still born baby. Back pains were so terrible for this mother that she was prescribed two different medications to help her cope.

The coroner, John Pollard, concluded that she took an accidental overdose of pain killers after looking at the amounts of drugs in her system. He said: "She had a lot of pain from her back over a long time. She had been prescribed [another medication] and had the other tablets on top of this. And there was the sad fact that the baby she had been carrying died inside her and she had pain from that. She took these drugs herself not intending to cause her death but relieve the pain." What a sad story, indeed! For more pregnancy-related news, check stress increases IVF success chances and Pennsylvania women hides murdered newborns in closet.