Sisterhood of Angel Mama’s Magazine | Bereaved Parents Awareness Edition July 2022
Adam’s Story


Written & Photos by Julie Cairns
Adam was my third child, he had an older sister and a brother. He was 7.5 months old when we arranged his christening day for April 10, 1983. My husband was up first and then I got up about 7.30am because I was making all the food for the christening. I am not sure why but I had an uneasy feeling that morning. Anyway I finished the food and told my husband I was going to take a shower and get the kids up for their breakfast. As I walked past the bedroom that Adam shared with his sister I felt a cold chill but just proceeded to my bedroom. A few minutes later my daughter came out and said “mummy I don’t think Adam was in his cot until I saw his feet sticking out of his covers and when I pulled the covers back he was a funny colour and would not wake up”. I shouted for my husband who went into the bedroom and came back out and told me not to go in. He rang for an ambulance which came pretty quickly and they took Adam and my husband to the hospital while I waited with my other children. We eventually got a phone call requesting for someone to go and pick up my husband which my dad did. Then the police turned up and told me not to touch anything as we would have to be interviewed about Adam as it would be treated as a suspicious death. A post mortem was carried out and it came back as a cot death (SIDS).