Down Syndrome and Abortion

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There is a new noninvasive prenatal test available that can determine if your unborn child has Down syndrome.  It is a huge ethical and moral debate.  The problem is, there is an enormous amount of misinformation and stereotypes about people with Down syndrome.  I have heard parents tell horror stories about when they got the prenatal diagnosis that their unborn child may have Down syndrome.  The doctors and other people told them a number of myths such as "It will be too hard to raise a child with a disability" "Your child may never smile" "Your child will have to be in a special school" "Your child will not be a real part of society".  I want to know....where did these doctors get their medical degrees?  Obviously they did no work with any child with a disability.

New Zealand's government actually uses this pre-natal test to promote abortion of unborn babies diagnosed with Down syndrome because the "economic costs of screening outweighed the high costs associated with the long-term care needs of a person with Down syndrome."  They have a 90% abortion rate for these children.  I just don't understand.  Is the United States going to become like that?  Even with all of the awareness programs and advocacy, I often fear we are not far behind.  Why are we trying to be God?  God made and created everyone, in the womb, before they were born.

So how do I feel about the test?  I would have loved to have it!  We spent 7 months with the information that Noah has a "greater than 50% chance he will have Down syndrome" (based on the results of non-invasive screening).  That was it.  Yes, we could have done an amniocentesis to know for sure, but there was still about a 1 in 1,000 chance that that test will end in a miscarriage.  I was not going to risk the life of my baby just to know for sure.  It did not matter.  Noah was coming no matter what.

Of course, if I had a test that had no risk of harming my baby, I would have done it to know for sure.  I wanted that information so we could be ready, not to chose whether or not to kill my baby.  Because we knew we had a high chance Noah would have Down syndrome, I got prepared.  I contacted local support groups, the local Down syndrome clinic, read as much information as I could in those seven months.

If you have a prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome, do not be afraid.  A child with Down syndrome is like any "typical" child, they may just hit their milestones a little later than a "typical" child.  Arm yourself with information, and even more importantly, find a local support group.  I cannot tell you how invaluable these people will become to you.  They will become friends and give you the inside hints and tips!  Check out my my Helpful Resources and Who to Contact First  and Links You Can Use pages.


Please watch this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_JViGmEnHA&feature=youtu.be

("Let the Waters Rise" by MIKESCHAIR)