A woman who believed she was going through menopause gave birth just 24 hours after finding out she was pregnant.

Monica Thompson, 46, believed she couldn’t have children after struggling to conceive with her late husband Kevin Thompson for 16 years before his death in 2016.

But she was left stunned when a blood test revealed she was expecting – before going into labour with little Jayden the very next day.

When Monica, from Las Vegas, USA, met her partner Jason Ratliff in 2017, she had already made peace with the idea that she’d never be a mother.

Monica, a cook, said: “My husband Kevin and I tried to have children but it just never happened for us.

"We did everything we could but we weren’t in a financial position to try IVF. When I turned 40 I became content with being a dog mother.

"I figured they could be my babies. I have a niece also and she’s really special to me. When Kevin died in 2016, I put having a family out of my mind completely.

“I met Jason when we matched on an app and we really hit it off.

"We moved in together in October 2017 so it was really quick but we didn’t consider the idea of becoming pregnant.”

Monica thought she was entering menopause when she began to experience what she believed to be incontinence in September, a symptom of the life change.

She was still menstruating each month, but said her periods were lighter and more erratic than usual.

When Monica began to experience nausea and cramping on October 5, she left work early to visit her local urgent care center and was shocked when a blood test revealed she was pregnant.

Monica added: “I’m a cook so when I started throwing up, I knew I had to go home. My fiance picked me up and he drove me to the urgent care center.

"They didn’t have the equipment to do an ultrasound, but they asked me if there was any way I could be pregnant.

“I said, ‘No way’. I believed I was starting menopause because I was having a little trouble with incontinence.

"Or at least I thought I was but actually it ended up being amniotic fluid that was leaking.

“They did some blood work and they came back and told me I was pregnant. I was shocked and in disbelief. I thought I couldn’t have babies.

“Looking at me you would never have known, I wasn’t showing at all.

“They did something called the finger test and estimated that I was about six months pregnant.

“They told me I urgently needed to book an ultrasound with an OBGYN, but as it was the weekend, the best I could do was on Monday.”

Monica returned to work the next day but immediately began experiencing cramps and bleeding.

At the end of the shift, Monica rushed to University Medical Center, Las Vegas, where doctors quickly discovered she was five centimeters dilated and in labor.

“I was shocked to learn I had been in labor all day.

“They did a vaginal exam to discover the source of the bleeding and they determined my amniotic sac had ruptured and I had been leaking fluid.

“In fact, the fluid had been leaking for months and I had mistaken it for urine and incontinence associated with menopause.

“The doctor told me I was dilated about five centimeters and I started freaking out. Not even 24 hours before I was told I was pregnant and here I was already in laboir.

“They told me I needed an emergency C-section which was frightening.”

Doctors safely delivered Monica’s son Jayden, 3lb 9oz, in the early hours of October 7, who was immediately rushed to the hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).

Using a ballard test, Jayden’s physicians estimated the tot was born at 30 weeks which meant Monica was pregnant for seven and a half months without realizing.

“I couldn’t see the baby until the next day because of my surgery but when I did see him for the first time he was covered in wires," said Monica.

“I got to hold him for the first time a week later, and it was surreal. I thought 'Wow, I’m a mom'. It felt right. I felt complete.”

The new mom said it was difficult to look at her son in the NICU and worried that if she had known of her pregnancy, things may have been different.

Monica had recently taken up a new fitness regime and diet and dropped 20lbs during her pregnancy, which doctors said made a difference.

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