Louise Thompson’s fiancé Ryan Libbey has said he went into ‘survival mode’ after her traumatic birth before a conversation with his dad made him realise he needed help.
Influencer Louise, 35, who now campaigns for women’s health and maternity rights, nearly died giving birth to her and Ryan’s son Leo in 2021 after a emergency caesarean in which she lost ’12 and a half litres of blood’.
The former Made In Chelsea star developed post-traumatic stress as a result of the horrific complications she endured and admitted she was only able to start bonding with Leo six months after the birth as she was just focused on ‘staying live’.
Her partner Ryan, 35, has now opened up about how he played the role of ‘both mum and dad’ in the first year of Leo’s life, as well as being primary carer for Louise, as he appeared on CBeebies Parenting Download alongside Professor Green.
But that first year took its toll and Ryan said he was ‘basically in survival mode’ until an intervention from his father encouraged him to get help for himself, his son and his family.
He said: ‘My version [of becoming a dad] was very very different to what I would have ever hoped or dreamt of.
Louise Thompson’s fiancé Ryan Libbey has said he went into ‘survival mode’ after her traumatic birth before a conversation with his dad made him realise he needed help
Her partner Ryan, 35, has now opened up about how he played the role of ‘both mum and dad’ in the first year of Leo’s life
‘That first year of becoming a dad I was essentially just thrown head first into being primary caregiver for Louise because she was super, super unwell for longer than a year – but that first year we had all sorts of medical appointments both hospital and at home. We had different teams of medical experts almost on a daily for observations of Louise.
‘I won’t go into the gory details of it but we had so many moments at home which unfortunately live long in my mind, which is very difficult, and I suppose that’s the emotional residue almost if you like of that year first year.’
He continued: ‘So in amongst looking after Louise and trying to support in the best way I could, I had a newborn baby. So I was doing every nighttime, every change, every walk. I was doing the role of both mum and dad.’
Ryan added: ‘My first year was… yeah I don’t even know how to describe it. Difficult doesn’t cut it really. I think I was just in survival mode for a year.
‘And after 11 months I remember having a chat with my dad on a park bench in Mayfair – and I knew that it took a lot for my dad to orchestrate that chat and that conversation because it was essentially “You’re not in a good spot. You need some help. How can I help you?”‘
Ryan revealed he took himself abroad for four days to clear his head and focus on making a change – which he is thankful he did as he was on a ‘pretty bad trajectory’.
It comes after Louise was forced to spend her Christmas Eve in hospital amid her ongoing health battle and thanked the NHS for their help.
Louise suffered with PTSD and post-natal anxiety due to her near-death experience giving birth to Leo and has since been diagnosed with Lupus, Asherman’s syndrome, suffered a second Hemorrhage, and has also had a stoma bag fitted.
Ryan also said he became the primary carer for Louise, as he appeared on CBeebies Parenting Downloadalongside Professor Green
Influencer Louise, 35, who now campaigns for women’s health and maternity rights, nearly died giving birth to her and Ryan’s son Leo in 2021 (Seen together in June)
She was also placed on suicide watch due to being ‘mentally checked out’ following the traumatic birth.
On Wednesday she gave fans an update as she shared a snap of herself in a hospital gown, writing: ‘Looks dramatic but it wasn’t. I had a proctoscopy today. It’s like a colonoscopy but not as invasive because I don’t have a colon so there isn’t very far the camera can go.
‘Still bloody awkward and a tiny bit uncomfortable but fentanyl is a wonder drug.’
‘It prompted me to say a big thank you to everyone that is working as part of the NHS over the bank holidays.’
‘Thanks for keeping the country ticking along and for keeping our loved ones alive,’ the former actress concluded.
Earlier this year, Ryan revealed heartbreaking details of Louise’s battle with postpartum depression, following the birth of their son Leo.
It comes after Louise was forced to spend her ChristmasEve in hospital amid her ongoing health battle and thanked the NHSfor their help
Speaking on the latest episode of Giovanna Fletcher’s Happy Mum Happy Baby podcast, Ryan shared: ‘We even had a crisis-management team come very regularly, which – to be really honest with you – was a suicide watch because she was so mentally checked out.
‘Which is absolutely terrifying, and I don’t think I’ve quite processed that one. I think that was something that I wanted to reframe straight away.
‘It’s really, really sad to know that Louise was hurting like that and she couldn’t, and I suppose I didn’t really understand what was happening.’
He continued: ‘I could understand that she was in shock and that she was completely reduced to a version of herself that was… she was just surrendering to the whole thing.
‘She’d lost the fight, and I could understand it because she would have been exhausted and her body would have been looking and feeling so different.
