WHEN her waters broke at just 18 weeks, Cally Hibbert was told she was going to lose her baby.

The 27-year-old was admitted to hospital to await a miscarriage. When she did not go into early labour, she was advised to terminate the pregnancy.

14 Cally, 27, with her son Leo, 2, who had 'less than one per cent chance of survival' as a premature baby Credit: Paul Cousans - The Sun

Doctors said the unborn boy could not survive losing so much of the protective fluid from her womb - just ten per cent of babies in his case will survive.

But after conducting her own research, Cally sank 15 pints of water a day to replenish the lost liquid.

She claims it worked — and ten weeks later, Cally gave birth to 1lb 10oz Leo.

Cally, from Ashton-under-Lyne in Greater Manchester, says: “Leo is our real-life water baby. I’m sure the water I drank saved him by helping to protect him until he was strong enough to be born. I couldn’t terminate when his heart was beating.

14 Leo was born at 28 weeks and weighed a little less than 2lbs

14 Leo was unresponsive and needed resuscitating but kept fighting and was allowed home a week before his due date

“That’s when I desperately started researching and found the advice about the water. It’s astonishing doctors said there was nothing they could do, yet something so simple may have saved his life.”

Full-time mum Cally and partner Jason Clark, 26, an IT manager, already had Oliver, nine, and Holly, five, when they found out they would be parents again.

Having already suffered four miscarriages, Cally was terrified when she started bleeding early in the pregnancy and doctors diagnosed a blood clot in the womb.

To not tempt fate, superstitious Cally avoided taking photos of her bump. At 16 weeks, the bleeding seemed to have stopped. But just two weeks later, Cally was folding washing at home when she realised her waters had broken.

14 Cally, when she was pregnant with Leo, admits she found it hard to drink that much water

14 The doctor recommended a termination when Cally's waters broke at 18 weeks

At hospital, a consultant told her the baby could not be saved and to expect a miscarriage.

She says: “Jason and I clung to each other and cried.

I had nothing to lose so I just kept sipping Cally Hibbert

“It was heartbreaking to think our baby would soon be gone, especially as I could still feel him moving inside me.

“He was too small to survive labour.

"They called it a miscarriage but, to me, it didn’t feel like that.”

14 Leo with his older siblings, Holly and Oliver

14 Leo's older siblings visiting him in hospital

It was then she realised she had no pictures with her baby bump, so she got out her phone.

She recalls: “I cradled my bump and was saying goodbye to him as the picture was taken. I was so upset that this was going to be our first and last ever photo.”

14 Leo with his parents, Cally and Jason

By the next morning there was still no sign of labour and a scan showed her son’s heart was still beating.

She says: “I was told a termination was the best option because they said he had a less than one per cent chance of survival with my waters having broken so early.

"They said the small amount of fluid was not enough for him to survive.”

14 Cally says it 'was heartbreaking to think our baby would soon be gone'

14 Jason and Cally were delighted that their baby continued to grow

Desperately seeking information, Cally headed to Facebook and found a group called Little Heartbeats, which supports women who suffer from pre-term pre-labour rupture of membranes, known as PPROM.

Cally says: “When I read that other mums believed drinking more water had helped, I knew straight away I couldn’t give up on my baby.

“I kept researching and read that the more the mother drinks, the more the baby urinates which increases the amniotic fluid, so it made sense that drinking more might help replenish some of the waters at least.

14 Baby Leo went home about three months after being born prematurely

“I had nothing to lose so thought I would try.” Doctors accepted her decision but warned there was a high chance of infection.

Following advice on the Little Heartbeats website she rested as much as possible and drank 15 pints — nine litres — of water a day.

The average recommendation is to drink six to eight glasses (1.2 litres).

Vital for survival SUN doctor Dr Carol Cooper says: “It’s a real dilemma when the waters break this early in pregnancy. "Just ten per cent of babies born at 18 weeks survive the mum’s waters breaking. “It’s vital for the mother to rest and look out for fever or other symptoms that suggest infection. “Drinking plenty of fluids prevents dehydration and can help fight infection. There’s evidence extra fluids counteract the loss of amniotic fluid and help the baby survive. “When a baby beats the odds and is born alive, as Leo was, lung problems are common, as amniotic fluid has a major effect on lung development.”

She says: “It wasn’t easy drinking that much but I had to try for our baby, so I forced it down.”

To her and Jason’s delight, their unborn son continued to grow.

14 Cally, Leo and 15 pints of water

14 Leo is now a healthy two-year-old

Cally says: “I was desperate to get to 24 weeks, which is when Leo would be recognised as viable and given medical assistance to stay alive, so I just kept sipping away.”

At 24 weeks she was given steroid injections to boost Leo’s lungs.

14 Cally: 'All mums think their kids are a miracle but Leo really is'

Finally, at 28 weeks, contractions started and Cally gave birth to Leo at Royal Bolton Hospital on July 16, 2016. He was unresponsive and needed resuscitating but kept fighting and was finally allowed home a week before his due date in October. By then he was a healthy 6lb 1oz.

Now just a few months short of his second birthday, he has been given a clear bill of health.

Cally says: “All mums think their kids are a miracle but Leo really is.

MOST READ IN FABULOUS Exclusive OH TOT I spent £40k spoiling my kids, my girl, 12, has a £100 iPhone bill & Gucci clothes Exclusive LET'S TALK SHOP My entire wardrobe comes from charity shops - my favourite boots cost 20p TACKY DAYS Lockdown projects that make you look common, according to etiquette expert IN THE BOX The Home Edit fans go wild for B&M’s £2 plastic storage which Stacey would love WISE FRY McDonald’s fans share their best McHacks to make your meal REALLY happy BOMB-CHELLE Michelle's 'style messages' revealed & how she's 'happier than ever' with Mark

“Don’t get me wrong, he’s a little terror sometimes, but we wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Professor Mark Kilby, a spokesman for the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, said: "There is no evidence to suggest that drinking large amounts of water will reduce risk to the unborn baby, and medical advice should be sought immediately.

"If a woman thinks she is leaking fluid from her vagina, she should wear a pad and note the colour and amount of the fluid to ensure that it isn’t urine, as leaking urine is common during pregnancy.

"If she thinks the fluid is amniotic fluid, she should contact her local maternity unit. Expert advice and surveillance for potential infection of the mother and/or baby should ensue."

A spokeswoman for Little Heartbeats said: “Many mothers we support who have experienced PPROM believe that drinking water has helped.

“But tragically we acknowledge this might not always be the case, as there are many contributing factors and each pregnancy is unique, which is why we continue to fundraise for more research.”

Alex Jones reveals her husband feared she'd die during childbirth