Born with a rare lung condition, baby Mireya’s fight for life inspired her family to walk 125 miles for the hospital and charity that saved her
14:12, 30 Oct 2025Updated 14:12, 30 Oct 2025
The family are walking from Tavistock to Bristol Hospital to raise funds
When Mireya Andrews celebrated her first birthday in July, it wasn’t just a family occasion marked by cake and cuddles — it was a powerful milestone in a journey that began in fear and uncertainty.
Her parents, Autumn and James Andrews, have lived through a year that tested them in every way: emotionally, physically, and logistically. Now, in a remarkable act of gratitude, they’ve decided to walk more than 125 miles as a family — a journey that retraces the path of Mireya’s earliest and most fragile days, raising money for the charity that supported them when they needed it most.
Their walk started on Saturday, October 25, from their home in Tavistock, ending at St Michael’s Hospital in Bristol — the place where Mireya underwent critical treatment before and after her birth.
James Andrews is walking across Dartmoor
James explained what inspired the challenge: “We can’t believe our little miracle turned one in July, so to mark this occasion we have decided that we want to give back to the people that were there for us and who supported us through the most challenging times as a family while she was in NICU.”
Mireya’s story begins before she was even born. At just 34 weeks and five days gestation, she arrived into the world in a state of emergency. Though she weighed a little over five pounds, a significant amount of that was fluid retained due to a rare and life-threatening condition diagnosed during pregnancy.
Autumn recalled the moment everything changed: “We received an awful diagnosis that our baby had pleural effusion and was hydropic. This meant she had fluid around her lungs and was holding too much fluid in her body, which ended up crushing and deflating her lungs from the pressure.”
Mireya received fetal medicine treatment before birth and then intensive care treatment after birth for 7 weeks
The family was swiftly transferred from Derriford Hospital in Plymouth to St Michael’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) in Bristol. There, a specialist named Victoria carried out a delicate and life-saving procedure: placing a shunt into Mireya while she was still in the womb to help drain the excess fluid. It gave Autumn an extra two weeks of pregnancy — a critical extension that made all the difference to Mireya’s chance of survival.
But when Mireya arrived via emergency caesarean, the situation remained critical. She stopped breathing moments after birth. The team resuscitated her, inserted another chest drain, and placed her on a ventilator. She would spend the next seven weeks in intensive care.
The diagnosis that followed was chylothorax — a rare and complex condition that causes lymphatic fluid to leak into the space around the lungs. This made it painful and difficult for her to breathe, and nearly impossible to feed her. “Because she had a breathing tube in, and whenever she ate the fluid leaking into her body became worse, she went ‘nil by mouth’ for weeks,” Autumn said.
What followed was a daily rollercoaster, with each small gain hard-won. But throughout it all, the family were supported not only by the exceptional medical team but also by the charity Cots for Tots, which provided them with accommodation near the hospital. That meant their three older children could live with them in Bristol, keeping the family together during one of the most distressing periods of their lives.
“In NICU, we received the best care from the most amazing consultants, doctors and nurses who we now consider lifelong friends,” Autumn said. “James and I are forever grateful for the love, care and support shown to us as a family.”
The fmaily were there to support Mireya
Small comforts made a big difference. The Miniboo — a tiny comforter that helped keep Mireya from tugging at her tubes — quickly became a fixture beside her face. And the ‘Your NICU Story’ diaries gave the family a way to record their thoughts, fears and triumphs along the way. “It was an important part of our journey, and let us reflect on how far Mireya had come,” Autumn added.
There were unexpected moments of joy too. “Somehow, despite the situation we were in, the hospital staff turned our scariest experience into one that was also filled with fun, adventures and special memories for our other children,” Autumn said. “They still speak so fondly of it.”
After almost seven weeks at St Michael’s, Mireya began to improve. She no longer needed a ventilator or the advanced NICU care only Bristol could offer. The family were flown back to Plymouth by helicopter — “in style,” Autumn recalled — where they stayed for a further three weeks as Mireya completed her recovery at Derriford Hospital. In the space of just one week, she went from needing a CPAP machine to breathing on her own, and from tube feeding to taking a bottle. They even began the transition back to breastfeeding. Finally, after ten long weeks in hospital, they were discharged home — together as a family.
Since then, Mireya has flourished. Now weighing a healthy 29 pounds, she’s a happy, cuddly baby with a wide grin for everyone — unless she’s hungry. “Then we all know about it,” Autumn said with a smile.
To mark how far she’s come, the family decided to take on a challenge rooted in appreciation and purpose. They’re walking the 125-mile journey from Tavistock to Bristol — the same path they travelled under such desperate circumstances a year ago — but this time, on foot and together. “We will be sharing the walk between us and staying in our car when we can’t walk any more that day,” James said. “We’d like to complete it within four days, but as we are taking this challenge on as a family, including all four of our children, it’s more about doing it together than how long it takes.”
Mireya is now a healthy and happy child
Their goal is to raise funds for Cots for Tots, the charity that provided them with stability, compassion and practical help during their time in Bristol. “Last year we were overwhelmed with the help we had from people giving money to us, so we are asking again — but this time to help the charity help other families who find themselves in the situation we were in,” James said.
Some of the money raised will go towards items that helped them through their hospital stay — practical things that are often overlooked, but mean everything to families in crisis.