A blind dad-to-be who lost his sight as a teenager has shared his emotional reaction after finally being able to feel his unborn baby's tiny face and features through a tactile 3D model.
Reece Finnegan-Knight and his wife Sophy appeared on Monday's (September 7) episode of BBC Breakfast, hosted by Sally Nugent and Jon Kay, to discuss their experience of a new scheme that turns pregnancy scans into tactile 3D models.
How the tactile 3D model works
The model was created through First Hello, a pilot scheme from Guide Dogs aimed at helping people with sight loss take part in moments surrounding pregnancy that are usually experienced visually.
As part of the project, a standard 20-week 2D ultrasound image can be uploaded and converted into a 3D digital version. The resulting design is then 3D-printed, producing a model that parents and relatives can handle and explore with their fingers.
Reece's emotional reaction
For Reece, who has been blind since his teenage years, the model offered something he had struggled to get from previous scans – a physical way of discovering his baby's features before their arrival.
The expectant dad got the chance to feel the model and was stunned by how much information he could pick up through his hands. Speaking to hosts Sally Nugent and Jon Kay, he said: "It was absolutely unreal. We didn't really know what to expect - I mean, it's hard to imagine what an embryo really looks like for me.
"I've been blind since I was a teenager so as far as I've been told, it looks like a carrot or a potato or whatever vegetable you're on that week."
What surprised him most
What surprised him most was the level of detail. Reece said he was amazed by the level of detail captured in the model, explaining that he could feel the contours of his baby's face, their little bottom and even their legs moving around. He admitted he was "really impressed" by just how much detail had been reproduced.
The experience has also changed how Reece feels about the pregnancy, particularly after finding the early scans more difficult than he had anticipated.
He explained that pregnancy can be an anxious time for any parent, with people naturally wanting to learn everything they can about their unborn child. But for him, the visual element of scans created an unexpected barrier.
Reece explained that while he is proud of being blind, he hadn't realised how difficult he would find the highly visual nature of traditional pregnancy scans. Being given the 3D model therefore made the experience feel "very special" and allowed him to feel more involved.
BBC Breakfast airs everyday from 6am on BBC One and iPlayer.
