Hurstpierpoint mother who lost one-month-old baby writes book to help others with trauma

Liana Stemp, 40, began writing Three Little Birds after losing baby Brandon on September 8, 2019.

A donation from every copy sold will go to First Touch charity and Ronald McDonald House Charities UK.

The book is available in shops like Waterstones and WH Smith, as well as online at Amazon and on publisher Troubador’s website.

Liana, who runs an aesthetic clinic in Hove with her husband Kevin, said: “At Brandon’s funeral, we played ‘Three Little Birds’, by Bob Marley, as we lit candles in Brandon’s memory as a symbol of hope. The song was also playing as I gave birth to Brandon, and it was the tune I sang most to him during many long hours by his side in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).”

Liana said Brandon was diagnosed with congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) during a gender scan appointment, meaning his diaphragm had not formed properly. She said her pregnancy was ‘very stressful’ and said she also developed prenatal epilepsy.

Liana said: “Brandon arrived by C-section on August 12, 2019. When he was born, we heard one tiny little cry, but he had to be intubated, so he didn’t make a sound after that. At the time we had no idea that would be the last time we would hear his sweet little voice.”