A father of a special needs child “struck a chord” with the Princess of Wales when he shared that his wife suffered from severe morning sickness during her pregnancy.
The Princess visited The Orchards, a centre for children with special educational needs and their families in Sittingbourne, Kent, on Wednesday as part of her “Shaping Us” campaign, which looks to highlight the importance of supporting children and parents in all sorts of circumstances.
Stephen Ikebuwa, 44, who was at the centre with his son, Nathan, said the princess’ expression changed after he informed her that his wife suffered from hyperemesis gravidarum during her pregnancy with their son.
The condition causes severe vomiting during pregnancy and often requires hospital treatment, according to the NHS.
Kate mentioned in a podcast in 2020, that she was “not the happiest of pregnant people” while suffering from hyperemesis gravidarum during her past pregnancies.
Mr Ikebuwa, 44, from Gravesend, Kent, told the PA news agency: “It was nice meeting her and when I told her that my wife had hyperemesis gravidarum, it struck a chord with her.
“You can see her expression change; she went through the same thing.
“I remember one of her visits in a hospital she said something about how she had hyperemesis gravidarum.
“You can see her connection to the fact that my wife went through all that, and that really resonated with me.”
Kate was dressed in a red blazer with black trousers, with a beige top and shoes and was sporting a chignon hairstyle.
Speaking in a children’s playroom at the Orchards, the princess played with three-year-old Beatrice in an enrichment play pit filled with shredded paper.
She told Beatrice “well done” after she was able to fit a large amount of shredded paper on a toy dog.
