A HEREFORDSHIRE mum has issued a stark warning about the dangers of coronavirus after her previously healthy son became unwell as the pandemic continues to spread.

Lauren Fulbrook issued the warning in a Facebook post that even children without underlying conditions can contract the virus after her son Alfie became unwell with Covid-19.

The 30-year-old from Bromyard described how her five-year-old son developed a temperature of more than 42C, hallucinations and vomiting.

Her post has already been shared 52,000 times. Her son started to show symptoms on Monday, March 16, and was rushed to Worcestershire Royal Hospital on Thursday.

At one stage Alfie said: “Mummy, am I going to die?”

On the post she said her son was now "starting to get better slowly" and thanked everyone for their "kind words and good wishes".

The carer said: “I didn’t want to upset any people with my post, just want people to understand how important it is to self isolate where possible, and to follow social distancing if you do have to go out.

“Coronavirus is not a joke. Please stop brushing it under the carpet and putting not only your own lives at risk but everyone else’s just because you want to go to the pub, or to a restaurant or think you need seven packs of 24 toilet rolls. God knows why, as a Covid-19 positive household I’ve seen the effects it has.

“I’ve had to watch my five year-old son go from having all the energy in the world to not moving, not eating, hardly drinking or urinating. His temperature wouldn’t go below the 40s and at its highest was 42.3, which caused vomiting.

“I watched him hallucinating and crying from the headache, being taken to hospital by ambulance to be put in isolation pods and be swabbed for the virus and confirmed positive.

“He lay in the hospital bed and asked me if he was going to die – as a mother that is heartbreaking.

"His blood sugar levels were only 3.7, his respiratory rate was 18-20 and his heart rate was 180, the sweat was pouring out of him but he was shivering, he was panting for breath and he had photophobia.”

She described it as "one of the worst experiences of my life" and added: “So please, just stay in for a little while, so what if you can’t do all your normal things, the sooner everybody does social distancing, the sooner it will be over.”