"You're pregnant. And you have a brain tumour."

“I just felt foggy and under the weather,” recalls the 34-year-old.

"I was having some trouble hearing too, due to a strange ‘whoosing’ sound.

"I booked to see my GP who diagnosed me with an ear infection.”

When the drops Amy was prescribed proved ineffective, the GP sent her for a hearing test.

"I was having constant headaches by then too, and the test revealed my hearing was really bad - suddenly hearing aids were being discussed,” she says, shaking her head.

"I couldn’t figure out what on earth was happening to me.”

Amy, of Doncaster, was referred to a consultant at her local hospital who ordered a second hearing test. This one showed an improvement.

"At that point, the consultant was happy to just send me home, but I’d already been dismissed so many times by then, and was really bothered by what was causing these symptoms,” she says.

“The consultant agreed to send me for an MRI.”

A week before Christmas, a letter landed on Amy’s mat, containing an appointment for her in neurosurgery at Sheffield Hallamshire Hospital.

“I called Hallamshire to ask why I’d been referred to them, and was told it would be discussed at my appointment – but that was still three months away!” she recalls.

"The consultant at Doncaster told me the same thing.”

In the end, Amy could only try and push the appointment out of her mind.

"I was worried of course, but I kept telling myself it couldn’t be anything serious if they were happy to keep me waiting months between appointments,” she says.

"In the meantime, Craig and I were trying for a baby, so there was plenty to distract me."

The biggest distraction of all came one week before her neurosurgery appointment, when Amy and Craig received the news they’d been waiting for – they were going to have a baby.

"We were over the moon, absolutely overjoyed,” she grins.

The smile dulls slightly then, as she adds: "Of course, we had no idea what was coming.”

Days later, Amy – who was now six weeks pregnant – arrived for her appointment at Royal Hallamshire Hospital.

"The consultant started talking to me very matter-of-fact, and I had to stop him and ask why I was there,” she says.

"His words were: ‘have Doncaster not told you?’

"I explained I didn’t know anything, and that’s when he told me the MRI scan had revealed a large tumour in my brain.

"Days earlier I’d been celebrating the greatest news of my life, and now here I was receiving the hardest; it was a total shock.”

It was then, as the doctor began to perform some routine tests on Amy, that she began to realise the scope of what was happening to her.

"He touched each of my eyeballs, and I couldn’t feel anything on one side.

"I had tingling on my lower lip too that I hadn’t noticed.

“The scariest one was when he told me to close my eyes and march on the spot. I did, and when I opened my eyes, I’d walked around in a big circle.”

The consultant revealed that Amy’s pregnancy meant that all treatment would have to be delayed until after the birth.

“The tumour was too big for radiotherapy, so surgery was my only option,” she says.

"There was never any question of whether we’d continue with the pregnancy. No matter what it meant for me – my baby came first.”

Amy’s pregnancy continued, with regular monitoring. She made the decision not to tell many people about the tumour.

"I wanted my pregnancy to be a happy time,” she explains.

"I wanted people to be excited and to ask about my baby, not my tumour.”

Darcy Mitchell was born by caesarean section in October 2019.

"The original plan was for me to go into surgery the next day,” says Amy.

"But during the pregnancy, my body went into a kind of fight mode, and I’m told the growth of the tumour slowed right down.

"My consultant decided I deserved some more time to bond with my daughter before undergoing brain surgery.

"He gave us five precious months.”

Amy’s surgery was scheduled for March 2020, but had to be cancelled as the country went into lockdown.

"I was sort of relieved,” she admits.

"It meant more time with Darcy.”

Amy’s surgery was finally given the go-ahead for May, and Craig dropped her off at the hospital door, unable to go in with her.

Following the surgery, Amy stayed in hospital for a week. Visitors weren’t allowed, but she video-called Craig and Darcy every day.

"That was a lonely time,” she recalls.

"All I could think about was getting home to my husband and daughter.”

Nearly four months on, Amy is well on the road to recovery.

“My balance has improved and the sensation in my face has returned,” she smiles.

"I have been left with permanent hearing loss in one ear, and still get some headaches, but I feel much better.

"The results of my MRI scan next month will reveal how much of the tumour they managed to get, and whether I’ll need to have radiotherapy.”

And despite having just undergone brain surgery, Amy is excited to be taking part in Brain Tumour Research’s 10K Walk of Hope this weekend, with Craig and Darcy.

"I want to help raise awareness and money to find a cure,” she says.

“I also want people to know that being diagnosed with a brain tumour isn’t all doom and gloom.

“Because of everything I have been through, it’s unlikely we will have any more children but, Darcy and I have the most wonderful bond - she is very special, and she is enough.

"We’re making the best of everything.”

Visit Brain Tumour Research and Amy’s JustGiving page