• [Irish Mirror Icon]
• News
• World News
• Spain

'Dad told me to visit Canary Islands A&E before I gave birth to surprise baby'

Carmen Romero was just 24 when she visited A&E in Tenerife complaining of stomach cramps, only to be told she was already in active labour in what doctors confirmed was a cryptic pregnancy.

[Carmen Romero ]

View 3 Images

Carmen Romero was stunned when her baby arrived(Image: Carmen Romero)

A woman was rushed to hospital and received a shocking revelation that her condition wasn't merely stomach cramps, but rather something far more dramatic.

Carmen Romero, 31, from the Canary Island of Tenerife, reportedly attended A&E aged 24 complaining of abdominal pain, only to be told moments later that she was about to give birth.

When Carmen recalled the incident at the end of 2025, she spoke to several outlets about the matter, including Y ahora Sonsoles and its presenter Sonsoles Ongea. Already a mother to one daughter at the time, it subsequently emerged that she had experienced what is known as a cryptic pregnancy.

What is a cryptic pregnancy?

A cryptic pregnancy is where the expectant mother remains oblivious to their condition until the latter stages of pregnancy, reports Chronicle Live.

The BBC reported in 2024 that, in the UK, roughly one in every 2,500 births is cryptic, accounting for approximately 300 births each year. In Spain, there is reportedly scarce data available concerning cryptic pregnancies.

[A young woman holding her lower abdomen, in pain due to cramps or a stomachache.]

View 3 Images

A woman with stomach cramps turned out to be pregnant (stock)(Image: boonchai wedmakawand via Getty Images)

What happened to Carmen?

Carmen said: "I went to the emergency room because my father insisted. I just had cramps, like the urge to use the bathroom....I gained 45 kilos during my first pregnancy and developed a hiatal hernia."

Carmen went on to explain that upon arriving at hospital she discovered she wasn't simply pregnant, but was in fact in active labour and on the brink of giving birth, reports the Mirror. She described how she had not experienced a single movement from the baby prior to labour beginning: "I didn't feel a thing, not a kick, nothing."

According to 20 Minutos, Carmen later explained that she underwent an ultrasound which revealed the pregnancy. She said: "They did an ultrasound and told me, 'You're pregnant.' And I said, 'Excuse me? How far along?' And the doctor replied, 'I'd swear you're actually giving birth right now.'

"I flatly refused to go into the delivery room; I couldn't believe I was pregnant. But once they calmed me down and I spoke to my mother on the phone, I told them to at least give me an epidural. But the woman said, 'The baby's head is already out.' I was in the delivery room for ten minutes."

[An aerial view of a coastal settlement characterized by a dense arrangement of multicolored buildings, nestled against a rugged cliff face with the sea crashing at its base.]

View 3 Images

Carmen is from the Canary Islands (stock)(Image: Getty)

Carmen explained that she hadn't noticed anything was wrong, partly due to a medical condition which caused her abdomen to swell. She also mentioned that she had flagged that her menstrual cycle was irregular.

Having erratic periods in her circumstances meant she could go several months without one, or miss them entirely. She added that following the birth, she endured a "horrifying" ordeal when staff placed the newborn in her arms.

She said: "I was alone, they put the baby on top of me and told me: 'It's a girl, she's okay'. I looked at the baby, hallucinating. I felt like they had given me a baby that wasn't mine.

"You have a daughter whom you aren't even able to love at that moment, because you are in such shock that you can't picture yourself as a mother."

In a subsequent interview, Carmen disclosed that she reached a turning point when she began to form a connection with her newborn.

She explained: "But twenty days after my daughter was born, she suffered a sleep apnea episode; she turned purple and stopped breathing. That was the moment I said, 'Shit, I love her. I need someone to save my child.'"

Carmen later admitted that she had told medical staff she wanted to put the baby up for adoption, though she ultimately had a change of heart and reversed her decision.

[Irish Mirror Icon]

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Choose Irish Mirror as a 'Preferred Source' on Google News for quick access to the news you value.