“DETERMINED” and “headstrong” is how a Pontypool mum describes her daughter who has refused to give up on life after doctors said that she had little chance of survival.

The Argus previously reported how when Kirsty Poulsom’s waters broke at just 19 weeks pregnant her baby was given no prospect of survival by doctors.

But now, despite a year which has included two investigations and a heart operation, Esme is fighting against the odds.

The youngster is still facing tough battles including being fed by a nasogastric tube, which passes through her nose and into the stomach, and is waiting for a feeding tube to be placed directly into her stomach as she keeps pulling the tube out.

But her "feisty nature" has kept her fighting back and her parents Mrs Poulsom, 25 and husband Gareth, 28, of Pontnewynydd, are now planning for special second birthday celebrations for the brave youngster on December 18.

Mrs Poulsom said: “Esme is headstrong and loves exploring and climbing. She has had to fight from a very young age and we think this has given her a feisty nature.”

Among the battles Esme has faced include taking milk into her lungs (aspirating), a problem which she still suffers with.

Mrs Poulsom said: “If she swallows liquid it goes into lungs and she chokes and goes blue and if left it can develop into pneumonia."

This year, Esme also underwent two investigations including a bronchoscopy to look at her lung and another to look at her swallowing.

The problems with her lung began when she was about five months old, when she stopped breathing twice with both Mr and Mrs Poulsom having to resuscitate her.

In hospital, her condition worsened and one of her lungs collapsed, and despite attempts to reinflate it, the top half remains deflated.

On July 29, this year, the youngster also had an operation after being born with a Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) heart problem, where an opening, which usually closes after birth, remained open and surgeons in Bristol accessed her heart through her groin to close it.

She was meant to remain in hospital for four days, but Mrs Poulsom said that Esme had other ideas and was walking around the following day so was discharged.

Esme remains small for her age, wearing clothes for ages six to nine month olds and weighs just 17lbs, but Mrs Poulsom said this doesn’t hold Esme back and she is a determined child.

On August 29, 2014, the couple tied the knot at The Manor Hotel in Crickhowell and Esme got her first family holiday, together with older sister, Ava, aged four, to Greece.

The couple want to give Esme as normal a life as possible and hope she can attend the same nursery as Ava.

She said: “Esme is classed as disabled but we want her to have the same upbringing as Ava, although she may need one on one help as her speech isn’t as developed as it should be, but she has learnt to sign for things.

“We believe that because she was born premature she just needs more time to catch up.”

Last year The South Wales Argus, report how Mrs Poulsom went into labour at Nevill Hall Hospital in Abergavenny at 19 weeks.

She said: “Four days later my waters broke" and added: " “They didn’t think Esme would survive because she’d had no waters for five weeks. There was a one per cent chance.”

But against the odds Esme was born crying, weighing just 1lb 60z, months before her original due date of April 7.

Esme went straight to neo-natal intensive care and after eight weeks was transferred to the special care baby unit at Nevill Hall, and was allowed home after 100 days.