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Home / Lifestyle

Antiques Roadshow expert died after suffering post-pregnancy psychosis

Daily Telegraph UK
13 Apr, 2017 12:17 AM3 mins to read

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Alice Gibson-Watt died five weeks after daughter Chiara was born. Photo / JustGiving

Alice Gibson-Watt died five weeks after daughter Chiara was born. Photo / JustGiving

The husband of an Antiques Roadshow expert who died after suffering a post-pregnancy panic attack has described how medics restrained her.

Alice Gibson-Watt, who died after suffering a severe panic attack, had to be held down by five police and ambulance crew, an inquest heard.

The Sotheby's jewellery expert died in hospital following a suspected bout of postpartum psychosis, which can cause hallucinations and paranoia.

West London Coroner's Court heard the 34-year-old had suffered a ruptured liver and internal bleeding in November 2012.

That October she had given birth to her first daughter Chiara Charlotte with husband Anthony Gibson-Watt.

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Mr Gibson-Watt told the inquest jury on November 13 his wife suffered what was described as a panic attack at home and began to crawl around her bed on all fours shouting her daughter was unsafe.

Giving evidence Mr Gibson-Watt said: "Neither Alice or I were at all aware of postpartum psychosis.

"What happened that first night was deeply traumatic and wholly unlike my dear wife Alice.

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"After some 48 hours of her arrival at Lakeside Mental health unit, I was somewhat relieved she was in the right place to start receiving treatment.

"How wrong that turned out to be."

Concluding his short statement he said: "She was enthralled by motherhood. One day I will tell our daughter more about her wonderful mother.

"I just hope now finally we get as close as possible to the truth of her passing."

Alice Gibson-Watt worked for Sotheby's and appeared as an expert on popular TV show Antiques Roadshow.
Alice Gibson-Watt worked for Sotheby's and appeared as an expert on popular TV show Antiques Roadshow.

After being carried from the house to the ambulance Ms Gibson-Watt fought like a "tigress" with members of the emergency services.

The inquest heard her mother Miranda Phillimore was called by her son-in-law to her daughter's home after the ambulance crew arrived at the scene on the evening of November 13.

She told the court she arrived to find her daughter in the back of the ambulance and said: "She was alarmingly strapped down with five people holding her down at the time."

In her witness statement Ms Phillimore, the daughter of 4th Baron Phillimore, said her daughter was "as wild as a tigress" in the ambulance, thrashing as she was being held down.

Describing how they had to carry the first-time mum by her shoulders and legs out of the house, paramedic Suzanne Elias, who was holding Chiara, said: "She was very distressed, she was shouting 'my baby is dead'.

"She was struggling a lot, but they carried her out to the ambulance."

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She told the inquest jury paramedics didn't have restraining training, and if someone requires restraint then they would call for the support of police, who are trained.

She was admitted to the Lakeside Mental Health unit at the West Middlesex University Hospital in the hospital run by West London Mental Health Trust.

The coroner said: "She had another event on the November 15, 2012, on the ward.

"She was taken to a seclusion room for a few days and then went back to her bed on the ward.

"Then she suffered a cardiac arrest and she was taken to the intensive care unit at West Middlesex Hospital.

"It was while she was there it was decided she needed to go to theatre for urgent surgery and there was a tear found on her liver.

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"It caused a large bleed in her tummy and she was transferred to intensive care at Kings College Hospital on full life support.

"It was there she died on November 20, 2012."

During the three week inquest four London health trusts and the Met Police are expected to give evidence.

- Originally published in Telegraph UK

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