An Arizona woman fighting for her life woke up from an induced coma - only to discover she was 13 weeks pregnant with an ‘incredible’ baby boy.
Last year, Sarita Cervantes, 30, was cooking up a storm in the kitchen for her and her 32-year-old husband Manuel’s family - including their two children Jojo, 3, and Noelle, 2.
The couple - who were married in 2022 - had previously struggled to convince, with Sarita suffering 15 miscarriages in her life due to PCOS and endometriosis.
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Despite giving up hope, the pair later discovered they were pregnant again - but not before the mum was rushed to hospital with life-threatening injuries.
In January 2023, Sarita was making a ‘special family recipe’ for her family; fried chicken, mashed potatoes and homemade white gravy.
However, as she placed a large chunk of lard in the cooking pot, her arm caught the pan and some grease spat out onto the kitchen floor.
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“Suddenly, I slipped,” she recounted. “As I landed onto the kitchen floor, burning hot lard splashed all over my body.
“I was in agony and let out the loudest scream. My skin melted all over the kitchen floor.
"Then everything went black.”
Manuel, who rushed in to save his wife, burnt himself in the process and his family were forced to call an ambulance for the couple.
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The pair were quickly air-lifted to hospital, where Sarita was put into an induced coma after burning almost 50 percent of her body.
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However, while examining her and later operating on her 27 times, medical practitioners discovered she was pregnant.
Doctors informed Manuel - who was recovering from burns to his knee, chin and feet - that his wife was pregnant, but claimed there was a chance that neither she nor the baby would survive.
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A month later though, Sarita eventually woke up from her coma and her husband finally explained everything to her.
“As I opened my eyes I turned and saw Manuel lay on a hospital bed next to mine,” she said.
“He teared up and explained everything. I couldn’t believe it. I kept telling myself I was alive, and that everything was okay. I’d been a paramedic for 10 years before.
“I’d seen how bad these things could get, so I knew how lucky I was. But then, Manuel told me I was pregnant. I didn’t believe him at first.
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“One moment I’d been cooking family dinner. The next, I’d woken up from a coma pregnant.”
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However, Sarita was ‘filled with dread’ because she was worried that her baby wouldn’t make it.
During her recovery, doctors intensely monitored her and her baby, especially whilst she had skin grafts and further operations.
Soon, she and her husband were transferred to rehabilitation centers, where the mother-to-be felt her baby kick.
“I realised the baby was really there and I cried. It was my little miracle." she said. “If I had died, the baby would’ve too. As I recovered each day, nurses kept monitoring the baby.
“They checked the heartbeat and did ultra-sounds constantly. Every single time, I had a pit in my stomach but it was in there alive and kicking.”
In April 2023, Sarita was discharged from hospital at five months pregnant.
Unfortunately, the rest of her pregnancy wasn’t plane sailing as she experienced abnormal body temperature due to her burns.
“I kept passing out everywhere, and had extreme morning sickness,” she said. “I’d also only been tube fed in hospital, so the baby didn’t have enough nutrition.”
Despite complications, Sarita eventually gave birth to a baby boy named Ernesto, now 11 months old.
“Thankfully he was a strong boy and he fought hard. He’d come this far and he wasn’t going to back down,” she said.
Months on from Ernesto’s birth, Sarita is still trying to ‘physically and mentally’ heal from being a burn survivor.
“I had to relearn how to be a mum, even with my older kids. I couldn’t brush their hair or clean diapers." she said. "I couldn’t even cut my own food, and had help with everything.”
The mum-of-three, who still struggles with scars and self-image, believes her newborn son is destined for brilliant things.
"Now, Ernesto is doing great. He’s 11 months old, and I know he’ll do big things when he’s older."
Ella Scott