'I left my career of 18 years to become a midwife after my son was born with a cleft palate'

dailyrecord.co.uk:

A mum-of-two swapped her banking career for midwifery after her son was born with a cleft palate. Nicole Stirrat's youngest, Alex, faced significant challenges due to his cleft palate and Pierre Robin syndrome, affecting his hearing and development.The Cleft Palate Clinic at Glasgow Children's Hospital provided crucial support.

Now 39, the Uddingston mum is studying midwifery at the University of the West of Scotland (UWS), and was inspired to help others following her own experience, reports Glasgow Live.Nicole shared: "Alex has had a lot of operations, including a cleft palate repair when he was just nine months old, surgery for grommets, and a partial adenoidectomy.

These procedures were needed for his development, but they were really challenging for all of us."Balancing his medical needs with the long hours of my financial work became incredibly difficult, and I knew I needed a change.

After 18 years in banking, I decided to leave my career to pursue midwifery because I wanted to do something that really made a difference."Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today.You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland.No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team.All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in!If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'.We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners.