A couple weeks ago, I was reading some chats on pregnancy message boards and there was a decent amount of talk around genetic testing. I went back and looked at some older posts (from earlier chats and birth months) and found SO MANY people who received a positive result for Trisomy 21 and terminated. It made me feel sick to my stomach. I’m not naive to the fact that this happens, but when I read about it so many times, it was like a punch to the gut.
I felt defeated and motivated to do more all at the same time. Where do I go from here?! Maybe off the message boards to avoid seeing these posts entirely? …or maybe not. Maybe I stay.
These messages are really hard for me to read. Not because I don’t think women should have the option to do what is right for them, but because I think so many women make these decisions based on fear, the unknown, and lack of support.
Do I stay in these spaces as an “advocate” of sorts or go and protect my heart?
A Down syndrome diagnosis can certainly be scary, but it doesn’t have to be devastating. I share Jade with the world as much as I can because I think the fear of the unknown is the worst thing. (Plus, it doesn’t help if the diagnosis you receive is dripping with a “doom and gloom” tone.) If you don’t have someone in your life with Down syndrome (and most people don’t!) then you wouldn’t know what to expect and you wouldn’t know how amazing this life can be.
So… I stayed. It was the only choice, really. If I can make a difference to just one scared mama by sharing Jade’s joy and love and light, then it’s worth it. ❤️
Star-Eyed Girl 