“He weighed 475 grams, less than a pack of butter”: James (4), like Melissa Depraetere’s child, was also born much prematurely

It starts with figures that are almost impossible to grasp: 475 grams, 29 centimeters. “He weighed less than a pack of butter,” says Melissa Ramos Silva (36) from Pajottegem about her son James (4). Just like the child of Flemish minister Melissa Depraetere (Vooruit), he was born much too prematurely. James was born at 26 weeks — “so small, so nice… but perfect on the outside” — and is now a big toddler. Melissa talks about the months of fear, about hope that grows with every gram, and about a sense of guilt that no mother can easily let go of.

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